Suits or skins: predator protection by kainoa deguilmo, staff writer
SSSSpearfishing is a popular hobby, but even the most fun activities come with a price. Small fish to spear aren’t the only creatures that live in the reefs. Reefs are also home to sharks. Although they don’t normally prey on humans, accidents happen. Shark attacks are not common, but they are extremely deadly. A surfer can easily look like a seal on his board. Similarly, a diver with a fresh catch can attract some unwelcome visitors with a fish’s blood. However, companies now have a solution to shark-related incidents. One company that specializes
Photo used courtesy of NoShark
The ESDS device, now NoShark, is said to repel ocean sharks. in this is NoShark by BluVand, formerly Electronic Shark Defense System. They make a shark-repelling device that wraps around the ankle. These anklets can go on surfboard leashes and wetsuits too. The device is currently available at http://www.NoShark. com for $399. An international converter/charger is also available for an additional $20. Wilson Vinano Jr. is the creator of the device. He lives in Honolulu and surfs. “We would send down a fish
with a rope and it [the shark] would grind the fish,” Vinano said in an article at dailymail. com. “Then [we put down] another one with the device on. [The sharks] didn’t eat the fish, but, when we remove the device, they shred it.” A video on the NoShark website demonstrates this. Other companies have similar devices available, such as Australia’s Shark Shield. Their products are available at http:// www.sharkshield.com.
Prices range from $599 for a surf model to $699 for the SCUBA model. They also have accessories including carry pouches and an extended warranty. Both devices work by disrupting the electrical signals contained in the snouts of sharks, keeping them at bay. Shark Attack Mitigation Systems (SAMS), another Australian company, is already making shark-deterring wetsuits that don’t uses electronic pulses. Rather, they use camouflaging wetsuit patterns that use the designs and colors of the ocean or mimic animals sharks avoid. The blue and white Elude suit blends in with water and is supposed to make surfers or divers nearly invisible to sharks. Another design is the black and white Diverter. The stripes of the suit look like sea snakes, which sharks always steer clear of, much like the red and white lionfish suit, which is another fish sharks leave alone. (This article has been modified from its original version, published 1/26, to reflect changes in the branding of NoShark.)
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Risky business: use freediving caution by alyssa urayanza, staff writer
They say freediving pushes people to and sometimes even beyond their limits. Those who participate in this extreme sport do so for that very reason: to test their limits. But there are some who argue that they freedive for that sense of calm that comes over them in the stillness of the darkest depths of the water. The objective of freediving is to determine how deep one can go or how well one can function on a single breath of air. This objective is reason enough for most to not even consider this extreme sport. Because of this, free diving is more dangerous than most sports. The two most common risks
of free diving are shallow water blackout and deep-water blackout. Shallow water blackout is the loss of consciousness caused by cerebral hypoxia, or the lack of oxygen to the brain, in water typically shallower than five meters deep, while a deep-water blackout occurs when descending to a depth of ten meters or more. Those who experience either shallow water blackout or deep-water blackout most likely do not recall having the urge to breathe the moment before losing consciousness. Scientifically, the urge to breathe is not, in fact, the urge to inhale oxygen, but the urge to exhale, or breathe out, carbon dioxide. When you feel the
need to breathe, it’s not because you’re running out of oxygen, but because your carbon dioxide levels are rising. Usually, the balance between oxygen and CO2 in your body is balanced, but when holding your breath for a long time, the CO2 levels rise. The disproportion of oxygen and CO2 in the body is what makes you feel uncomfortable. Despite these risks, free diving is an ever-growing sport with about 5,000 free divers around the world in 67 different countries. Since freediving is so deadly, participants should always follow these important safety-tips:
SAFETY TIPS: 1. Use the buddy system. 2. Get the proper training be fore-hand. 3. Rest in between deep dives. 4. Evaluate the dive site before diving. 5. Know your limits. Sources: The Guardian on free diving: http://bit. ly/1yzlZ39 Blogs at Undercurrent.org on free diving hazards: http://bit.ly/15D4rIz Tampa Bay Times on the risk of free diving: http://bit.ly/1BiYpr7 Diverwire.com for scuba diving enthusiasts on free diving: http://bit.ly/15wbyBS Freediving on safety precautions: http://bit.ly/1GE6z30 ABC News on death of free diver Audrey Mestre: http://abcn.ws/1E7XWvp
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