Shark Repellant Surf Gear: Friend or Faux? Part II

Surfers and beachgoers alike have some of the same fears when entering the water, and the biggest of those is, you guessed it, sharks. They’re a natural part of the environment we choose to spend time in, and at the end of the day, it is their house that we're paddling in to. So, sharks are a very immediate reality to anyone going into the ocean, but not always a threat. So, what can we do to keep them away, while keeping us AND the sharks safe? 

Lets jump in and explore the ESDS (now known as NoShark). It costs $449, and attaches to a leash.  It is an ankle strap that to us seems a little bit limiting, as it looks like it a probation-monitoring unit. Their website, noshark.com, states that it weights 7 ounces, which is a bit more hefty than your average leash strap, as well as having the electrical probes on the sides which it warns will “produce a very mild electrical shock”. Ouch. The No Shark DOES have an awesome 9 hour battery life for those long surf sessions, so it is worth looking at if you want to keep shark free for the whole day.  The NoShark has great reviews online and seems to be a nice alternative to getting a board specific option. Unless you're surfing off of Cape Town in South Africa with some Great whites, the NoShark might be much for the cost at the end of the day.