Video: Despite Tiger Shark’s Aggressive Attack, Surfer Risks Life by Daring Attempt

While surfing in the ocean, getting chased by sharks is an ever-present possibility. Sharks are majestic creatures and can be responsible for humans quaking in their boots. The recent fatal shark attack in Egypt, due to which a Russian man lost his life, is evidence of how terrifying an encounter with these creatures can be. But not everyone has the same reaction.

The menace of sharks would make most of us run in the other direction. That, however, is not true for this particular surfer. In a video that will take you by surprise, a courageous wave rider was seen returning to the ocean despite the danger that was lurking in the deep waters.

Surfing enthusiast back into the ocean despite scary shark encounter

The clip that was posted on the Instagram account of @varuntandjung revealed surfers promptly paddling away amidst the waves as a Tiger Shark seemed to follow them underwater. Indeed, this is a situation that would definitely put off anyone from going back to the ocean. For this surfer, though, that particular danger is not enough to abandon their plan of catching some waves. According to the caption, “chased out by a shark still went out for 1 after”. The video was also viewed by the surfing legend Kelly Slater.

After witnessing the surfer being chased by a Tiger Shark, Kelly Slater commented on the video, saying, “Don’t fall!”. To this, the surfer replied, “I’m still new to this”. The surfer featured in the video, named Varun, was paddling through the waters of Bali when the incident took place. According to Stab magazine, Bali is usually not known for its shark attacks, as they are a rare occurrence in the area. Since 1990, only five attacks have been known to have taken place in Bali, that too localized to the Uluwatu region, a surfer-heavy area. Varun Tandjung, who is the son of Rizal, a famous Indonesian surfer, posted the video while surfing nearby Nyang Nyang.

Read more: Despite Losing His Right Leg in a Terrifying Shark Attack, Surfer’s Bizarre Turnaround Story Gets International Acclaim

The Indonesian surfer had been surfing in the region for an hour without any incidents. Then suddenly, a Tiger Shark attacked a sea cow near him, just a few inches away. That was the moment Varun realized he had to get away, lest he becomes the Tiger Shark’s next meal. Varun told Stab magazine, “Yeah it was definitely a crazy moment!” While describing the incident, he further added, “It was super aggressive and there was a lot of splashing which kept creeping closer and closer to the inside.” The surfer revealed it was his first-ever encounter with a shark in Bali.

The reason behind shark attacks

With the increasing number of shark attacks, many have pondered the question: why do sharks attack humans? A common answer that has come out of the exercise is, as Britannica says, the splashes created by humans while surfing or swimming makes the sharks curious. There have been many theories surrounding the subject, including the notion that sharks attack humans because they confuse us with food.

While attacks in shallow waters are largely attributed to sharks confusing humans for food, attacks in deep waters do not necessarily subscribe to this explanation. Usually, bites in deeper water result from the sharks coming to inspect the foreign object that they find floating in their home. Sharks are hardwired to snap at anything that might resemble splashing fishes in the water, and humans paddling out on surfboards look exactly like that. Hence, Varun made the right decision of getting away from the feeding frenzy as soon as he could.

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