Hey All,

Wasn't sure if there is a similar thread about (I don't really care if there is) but I was wondering with all the hours everyone has accumulated up on the foil nowadays has anyone had any contact with sealife below the surface?

I remember during skiff racing one of the crews hit a large fish one afternoon at 20kts+ causing a rooster tail and a poor snapped fishy . I'm just up to the tack/gybe stage and during my long reaches (doing so in order to increase enjoyment before falling into water again) I see some sort of marine life shoot past the carbon axe.

Mike,

I hit a shark a few years ago at high speed on my surfboard. The dorsal went one inch into the rail (it had a bamboo top). Poor shark, we were both just one the wrong trajectory. I felt pretty bad as it would have left a nasty scar on it. Last year I nearly hit a small hammer head at slow speed but it dove right as I saw it. That dude in the vid had no chance at that speed.

I clocked a small ray out here in the bay a month back, straight over the handle bars. Waited to see what it was after checking the foil. Nothing. The sound an fish makes is very different sound to small logs and other **** in the water.
Touch wood I haven't hit a turtle yet.

I've managed to hit a bird. A Cormorant took off from the water as I approached. We had intersecting vectors. I was at full throttle and course change was difficult. I hit it with the mast as it went under the board. Bird didn't fare well, looked back to see the bird in the water and a few feathers in the air. No damage to the foil

DM

We had heaps of large jelly fish earlier this year, hitting a single one slows you down a little, hitting a few in quick succession and you end up in the water in the middle of a swarm of them...

Turtles vs. Carbon Race Foils in North Queensland. I feel like it's fairly obvious which one wins

I came within inches of hitting a decent sized croc off Townsville. I know what colour fear is - it's brown.

.... we have lots and lots of wildlife in our neck of the woods here in tropical Darwin, literally see something every session so we have near misses all the time,,, but occasionally we unfortunately do come into contact, a few memorable ones for me have been:

- hit big enough fish (dunno what) with front wing of my foil that cart-wheeled me and loosened some bolts,,, no damage thank F.
- hit box Jelly fish square in the middle of my foil's mast that sliced it in half,,,, sucked in jelly.
- hit turtle squarely on its back,,,, basically running it over from behind, knocked 3 of my 4 fins off on my Nugget, sorry turtle.
- landed on a little reef shark from a jump, was riding a 3 fins surfboard that knocked a fin out.
- ran over a large eagle ray on my twin tip doing mach9 in shallow water, it turned on me tried to punch on, pretty sure it tried to stab my TT.
- hit a seagull with kites line, luckily it flew away.
- hit a hawk with my LE on my old Naish X2 years ago, lady found it later laying in the water still alive, she took off with it to vet.
- flying fish flew into my sunnies,,, that I was wearing of course, thank F I had sunnies on, I didn't even see it coming just whammm.
- flying fish in the leg,,, just a glance but scared the begeezus out of me at the time.
- flying fish in the face,,,,, friggin thing stunk.

- notable mention and the one I most regret, doing mach 9 heading into the sun on my windsurfer (back when I was a poley), squarely hit the neck of a dugong with the monster race fin bolted in my slalom board,,,,, damn it, bloody hell I cut it. Sooooo sorry.

Near miss of a few crocs over the years mind you their sneaky bastards so you never know how many we've actually come close too.

Anyway, keeps one entertained out there!

Cheers,

Robbie