Plenty of parking near GZ at the Lompoc-Surf, California Amtrak Station. (Coincidentally survivors struck by great white sharks during attacks have described the sensation as, “like being hit by a train”)
“Surf has long been known for its clean air, clear water, and beautiful white sand beaches. But in recent years, a cloud has appeared on the horizon of this beautiful unincorporated community... a cloud in the shape of a killer shark.” - Peter Benchley
Beachgoers have been attacked by a great white shark at Surf Beach every two years like clockwork, with attacks in October of 2008, 2010, 2012, and 2014. It may seem unlikely that one shark could be responsible for all these incidents, but that’s not necessarily true…
Researchers have said that this pattern, although eerie, is not unfounded because adult female white sharks have a 2-year migration pattern, so it could be the same fish coming to the same beach every couple of years.
A highly migratory animal like the great white, will sometimes return to the same exact spot, on the same day, every year or two…
Here is the pattern of recorded attacks that have occurred at Surf Beach (note the escalating ferocity):
October 2008: Kyle Knapp was surfing and saw a great white shark circling him. Using his surfboard (skegs first) as a shield, he fended of the shark’s bite. Teeth marks estimated the shark to be 14 to 16 feet in length. Knapp escaped unharmed.
October 2010: 19-year old Lucas Ransom was bodyboarding when a shark nearly took his leg off while pulling him underwater. His friend Matthew Garcia was a few feet away when the fatal attack occurred. Garcia managed to pull him to shore, but not in time to save him. The fish was described by eyewitnesses to be 14 to 20 feet in length.
October 2012: 39-year old Francisco Javier Solorio, father of two, was surfing when a shark bit him through the torso and pulled him underwater. As in Ransom’s case, a friend managed to pull him to shore, but the extensive wound was a fatal one. Bite marks on Solorio’s board estimate the shark at 16 to 20 feet.
October 2014: 3 attacks in 2 days! Ryan Howell was fishing when a shark attacked his kayak, launching him into the water. He escaped unharmed and credits the kayak with saving his life. Just a few hours before Howell’s attack, another kayaker in the area was launched from his boat by the same shark. Insanely, a day before the kayak attacks, another surfer suffered minor injuries to his leg by a near miss attack.
There were no recorded incidences of shark encounters here in 2016, which could be attributed to the new lore surrounding this beach. Many locals avoid it and posted signs warning beachgoers of potential danger have greatly decreased this place's popularity for family fun.
On the bright side, now you can go geocaching!!!
Just maybe avoid October... it is 2018 after all.
