Kayak Fishing Adventures on Big Water’s Edge - View Single Post

Dennis Spike · 09-02-2009, 09:28 PM

5 OR 6 years ago, I was approached by Shark Shield to promote their product through my fishing business. They had a personal shark deterrent device developed by the South African government and licensed to the Aussie company to make a recreational consumer model. I did some homework, wasn't too impressed with any of it and nothing came of it.

A year ago, I was unintentionally copied on an email that got my interest. It led me to a handfull of people who have been in the jaws of white sharks and only returned to the sea because of this technology. I did my homework again and ended up endorsing Shark Shield and repping it to the paddlesport industry.

Here are some facts about Shark Shield.

This is a safety device, not a gizmo, that is approaching sales of 20,000 units worldwide. Fairly new to the U.S., about 200 people a month purchase Shark Shields here. Most of them are not kayak anglers.

You can't outrun the field on your kayak so the surf lineup "failure" is not an issue for us.

It repels all species of sharks, not just some. You can muscle most dogfish to the kayak with the unit on, anything bigger and you gotta turn it off or most sharks will run all day without tiring...In my experience so far. It makes me think small ampullae are less affected and that the larger the shark, the bigger the effect.

It doesn't effect finfish at all, they school within the field (baitfish, bass). Dolphins and pinipeds run close to it all the time. When you are fishing, it's like it's not there.

The argument that it attracts sharks is folklore and strongly denied by the company researchers. A lot of testing and ongoing R&D hs gone into the product they offer today. Credibility seems a harder thing to earn over blogged opinions these days. Claiming that Shark Shield is a "waste of money" is a common personal opinion I've seen pop up globally, not an educated position or assesment of the product.

It is factual that sharks react to electricity and I won't say that sharks aren't attracted to some kind of current. However, the 3 beam current put out by the SS unit only makes it a few meters into the water. A shark outside the field knows you are there because it sees you or you brought it in another way or just a chance meeting. The Shark Shield field was designed and improved to do what it does, repel sharks that come close to it. When they hit it, it's like getting hit in the face by a truck. It hurts. They hate it, they leave the area (that's a big factor) and are not injured by the experience. This is the technology.

One highly reported S/S "failure" was caused by a broken antennae when some guys with a writer on board in SA , not the Shark Shield company, wrapped the Shark Shield around a dead tuna, broke it and got whitey to chew. They leave thinking it was just a wasted day and the writer publishes a story on how the product "failed in testing". Old news that's bounces around the web years after it was completely disproved as a product failure. Things being different in the southern hemisphere, Shark Shield then initiated testing standards with an independant auditor making sure goofballs don't wrap it around a dead fish and call it a test of the product. They sanctioned testing of their product to reflect and respect it's intended use.

I have a lot to lose by being wrong about this product. The Shark Shield Company has a lot more to lose and they've defended their product successfully in the courts a few times. That says a lot. So does its many years of use by governments and industry.

Incidents while rare are picking up paralell to increased recreational ocean use. There are enough documented kayak angler/shark incidents in the past 3 years, local to all of us, to know it happens. I fish my backyard in some of the State's sharkiest waters, the Sonoma County Coast. I fished with a big white shark in Mexico on my kayak. I'm a cronic foot soaker, I like to swim in the ocean and the technology and proven experience gives me incredible peace of mind.

I believe there are too many credible testimonials, versus a few highly publicized bogus evaluations, to discount the effectiveness of Shark Shield. There is too much science to claim it doesn't work....for us.

Thanks for your time and forum space, readers can feel free to contact me anytime about Shark Shield.

Continued Good Fishing To All!

09-02-2009, 09:28 PM	#10
Dennis Spike Junior Join Date: Sep 2009 Posts: 3	In Defense of Shark Shield 5 OR 6 years ago, I was approached by Shark Shield to promote their product through my fishing business. They had a personal shark deterrent device developed by the South African government and licensed to the Aussie company to make a recreational consumer model. I did some homework, wasn't too impressed with any of it and nothing came of it. A year ago, I was unintentionally copied on an email that got my interest. It led me to a handfull of people who have been in the jaws of white sharks and only returned to the sea because of this technology. I did my homework again and ended up endorsing Shark Shield and repping it to the paddlesport industry. Here are some facts about Shark Shield. This is a safety device, not a gizmo, that is approaching sales of 20,000 units worldwide. Fairly new to the U.S., about 200 people a month purchase Shark Shields here. Most of them are not kayak anglers. You can't outrun the field on your kayak so the surf lineup "failure" is not an issue for us. It repels all species of sharks, not just some. You can muscle most dogfish to the kayak with the unit on, anything bigger and you gotta turn it off or most sharks will run all day without tiring...In my experience so far. It makes me think small ampullae are less affected and that the larger the shark, the bigger the effect. It doesn't effect finfish at all, they school within the field (baitfish, bass). Dolphins and pinipeds run close to it all the time. When you are fishing, it's like it's not there. The argument that it attracts sharks is folklore and strongly denied by the company researchers. A lot of testing and ongoing R&D hs gone into the product they offer today. Credibility seems a harder thing to earn over blogged opinions these days. Claiming that Shark Shield is a "waste of money" is a common personal opinion I've seen pop up globally, not an educated position or assesment of the product. It is factual that sharks react to electricity and I won't say that sharks aren't attracted to some kind of current. However, the 3 beam current put out by the SS unit only makes it a few meters into the water. A shark outside the field knows you are there because it sees you or you brought it in another way or just a chance meeting. The Shark Shield field was designed and improved to do what it does, repel sharks that come close to it. When they hit it, it's like getting hit in the face by a truck. It hurts. They hate it, they leave the area (that's a big factor) and are not injured by the experience. This is the technology. One highly reported S/S "failure" was caused by a broken antennae when some guys with a writer on board in SA , not the Shark Shield company, wrapped the Shark Shield around a dead tuna, broke it and got whitey to chew. They leave thinking it was just a wasted day and the writer publishes a story on how the product "failed in testing". Old news that's bounces around the web years after it was completely disproved as a product failure. Things being different in the southern hemisphere, Shark Shield then initiated testing standards with an independant auditor making sure goofballs don't wrap it around a dead fish and call it a test of the product. They sanctioned testing of their product to reflect and respect it's intended use. I have a lot to lose by being wrong about this product. The Shark Shield Company has a lot more to lose and they've defended their product successfully in the courts a few times. That says a lot. So does its many years of use by governments and industry. Incidents while rare are picking up paralell to increased recreational ocean use. There are enough documented kayak angler/shark incidents in the past 3 years, local to all of us, to know it happens. I fish my backyard in some of the State's sharkiest waters, the Sonoma County Coast. I fished with a big white shark in Mexico on my kayak. I'm a cronic foot soaker, I like to swim in the ocean and the technology and proven experience gives me incredible peace of mind. I believe there are too many credible testimonials, versus a few highly publicized bogus evaluations, to discount the effectiveness of Shark Shield. There is too much science to claim it doesn't work....for us. Thanks for your time and forum space, readers can feel free to contact me anytime about Shark Shield. Continued Good Fishing To All!