Watch This Foil Surfer Get Photobombed by a Leaping Shark
The relationship between humans and sharks has always been one of fear and fascination, but it wasn't until recently that we learned how common it is to unknowingly encounter the apex predators in the ocean. And yet another video has now surfaced that catches a shark in close proximity to a surfer.
The video was posted to Instagram by hydrofoiler and DJ Adam Bennetts over the summer, but just started to make waves on the internet, pun intended, this week. In the drone footage, Bennetts is foil surfing—also known as wing surfing or winging— which is a wind-propelled water sport that's a sort of mashup of kitesurfing, windsurfing and standard surfing. But then, in the background, a shark deftly jumps out of the water and executes a perfect spin.
Quite appropriately, the video is set to the tune "Reggae Shark" from the now-defunct YouTube channel, The Key of Awesome.
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Back in June, researchers at Shark Lab, a biology unit of the California State University, Long Beach, published findings of a study that used drones to learn the habits of juvenile white sharks along the Southern California coastline. They were shocked to observe sharks swimming near humans on 97 percent of the days surveyed, and often within 50 yards of wave breaks. Yet, through the duration of the study period, from January 2019 through March 2021, not a single shark bite was reported at any beaches that were part of the study.
Since the study came out, as if to further prove the point, several drone videos have surfaced in which sharks are seen peacefully coexisting in the ocean among surfers. It was already well established that shark attacks are rare, as it's 50 times more likely to killed by a lightning strike than be eaten by a shark in the United States. But these videos add credence that it is, indeed, safe to go back into the water.
