Whitey jumping off Sunset Beach- LA

[MichaelF]

http://www.surfline.com/surf-news/sequence-of-the-week-white-shark-breaches-in-la_31125/1/

I have had my kids watch the great white videos from South Africa when they jump and eat the seals...  I always tell them, they don't jump like this near our beaches.....
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http://latimesblogs.latimes.com/lanow/2009/10/report-of-shark-sighting-off-sunset-beach-causes-buzz-among-surfers.html
Many surfers who ride the waves at beaches in Santa Monica Bay will tell you they don't think about sharks. But photos shot this week by a longtime local surfer and surf shop owner have created a buzz about "Jaws" in the lineup.
The photos, taken Saturday morning by Randy Wright, apparently show a large white shark jumping out of the waters off Sunset Beach near Pacific Palisades.

"It was like, 'Oh my God,'" Wright recalled in an interview today. "I was really stoked ... It was definitely a fascinating experience."

Wright, who owns Horizons West surf shop in Santa Monica, said he was in his 10-foot kayak about 300 yards off the beach life guard tower when he snapped a series of photos capturing the animal as it broke the surface of the water. The shark was about the same size as his kayak, he said.

Wright said he was in the water as a volunteer for the the nonprofit Shark Research Committee, which conducts research on sharks and documents attacks against humans. He said he had heard that someone spotted a shark at the beach the day before so he went out the next morning about 8:30 with his waterproof camera.

"I was just  sitting out there in my kayak, not throwing chum or anything," Wright said.

Ralph Collier, head of the committee, said that sharks in that area are nothing new. With more people surfing and enjoying water sports, he said, the potential for shark sightings has increased.

"Those little critters have been out there for thousands of years," said Collier, author of "Shark Attacks of the Twentieth Century: From the Pacific Coast of North America."

The photos were posted on the committee's Web page, along with a report by Wright. Word spread after the sighting was mentioned in local TV reports and by surf blogs.

Officials with the Los Angeles County Fire Department, which oversees lifeguard operations, said today that they were aware of the photos and assume they are legitimate.

"It's a healthy ecosystem out there, and we know there's sharks in the water," said Fire Department spokesman Matt Levesque.

The sharks, he said, are "not endangering anyone."

Still, some surfers said the shark shots have caused them to think twice when paddling into the water.

"It was a little chilling," said Guy Okazaki, a Venice surfer and surfboard shaper who saw the photos on the Internet. "That was a big critter. It could take your leg off."

As for Wright, he said he's been surfing for about 30 years. And he isn't going to stop now.

"I'm part of the food chain when I'm in the [surf] lineup. I could get bit," he said. "But it hasn't happened yet."

[Gdub]

Sunset is one of my haunts.  I have witnessed this event quite a bit this summer, of a similar looking, if not the same, shark.  I was talking to Randy a few days before he got the shots.  We talked about where and when I usually saw "Sunny" (as some of the locals call the shark), and Randy mentioned that he was hoping to get the money shots with PCH in the background.  It was a matter of time before somebody got pictures at Sunset.

I have quite a few dolphin photos taken on my old school not the new good one Gopro at the same break.  When I see whitey, I hold on to my paddle with both hands, I don't take pictures.

It's funny to read the "photoshop" comments.  While these could be photoshopped, I doubt it, given my knowledge of the area. 

Yeah, sharks don't live in the ocean. 

[PonoBill]

1. Little guy, having fun. It is a white but it's hardly great. When you see a real one you'll know the difference.

2. Do papers really have to exactly reproduce such a pathetic excuse for English? "It was like.."Oh my god"... Why not include grunting noises as well?

When did this start? Could it please end? It's so moronic it makes my head ache. I was treated a similar  knucklehead soliloquy at breakfast yesterday morning by a loud solipsistic airhead in the booth behind me. I'm surprised that I didn't snap and throttle her.

[Linus]

I've caught the tail end of this shark splashing several times.  So, is his name Sunny!??  Gdub, I know you've seen him so much that he probably knows your name by now 

[Gdub]

Yeah, Sunny and I are pals.  We have had a lot of quality time together this summer.  I only saw him in the lineup once, and once near the jetty where we launch, everything else has been near the buoy/sushi bar.

He didn't show up when your roommate donated blood that day.

I'm more concerned about the raw sewage, broken beer bottles, and cranky surfers at Sunset.

[cutsman]

I have heard that shark referred to as "Fluffy", or is that the one down at San Onofre?

[Gdub]

For those of you who wondered why there was a boat parked off Sunset recently...
http://www.palisadespost.com/news/content.php?id=5228