Saturday, April 24, 2010

Ride 'Um!

ALOHA!

:)



Click on the pictures
Ted Trimmer photo


"I travel a lot; I hate having my life disrupted by routine."

Caskie Stinnett




"Trees are your best antiques."

Alexander Smith




"Like all great travelers,
I have seen more than I remember,
and remember more than I have seen."

Benjamin Disraeli



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Some people are old at 35
Jim Rawlinson of Kauai is not one of them.
At 68 he works as a carpenter,
and he loves to surf Hanalei Bay.

On Monday he was in the line up as usual
when a tiger shark estimated to be 14 feet long
hit his board, taking an iconic chunk out of it.

The board and Jim were catapulted into the air
and the carpenter became a Paniola (Hawaiian Cowboy)
when he came down right on the predator's back,
riding the bucking creature for a good ten seconds.

Coolly, he decided to remove the surf leash from his ankle,
after all, the board was still in the creatures mouth.

"It was relatively calm at that point." Rawlinson told a reporter.

So he swam to the shallow of a nearby reef
where deep-water sharks usually don't patrol.

When he saw his board floating
he swam to retrieve it
and deciding "What the heck"
spent another hour surfing,
albeit as an instant celebrity to his fellow surfers
who had seen the whole adventure.

"It was quite an experience,
but nothing that should have interrupted what was otherwise a relaxing,
late afternoon surf session." He was reported to explain.

Jim described the experience as unfolding in slow motion
and one of being in "survival mode."

Boaters came by to take pictures of his board.

"Everybody was totally cool about it.
Everybody on the beach was was so supportive and sweet."

Jim won't let his experience chase him from the waves.
"I don't want fear to hold me back from doing what I'm doing."

Something to ponder. . .


ALOHA, cloudia

29 comments:

Anonymous said...

Okay -- the man is lucky. God was in the ocean at the time, because I didn't know there were "nice" sharks.
DrumMajor

wenn said...

he knows how to enjoy his life.

Dr. Russell Norman Murray said...

The water is fantastic, but I am not into female tats...sorry.;)

Happy Weekend

Reader Wil said...

That's quite a courageous man,this Jim !! It's a pity nobody took photos of this adventure!

Jingle said...

superb fun,
what a cheerful post!
I dream about going to beaches...

Happy Saturday!

Unknown said...

Our spirit does not keep track of time if we allow it to sour.

Hey! I made that up! :-) It's you Cloudia - you inspire!

Brian Miller said...

i hope to have a lot in common with jim when i turn 68...

Hilary said...

I wonder how many people can say that they've ridden a shark. I'm guessing.. just one.

the walking man said...

Seems to me if you're on the sharks back that he has less ability to bite eh? I think he became a bad ass when he swam off towards the reef and then back for his board. Cool dude this cowboy is.

Fireblossom said...

They say that if you can keep your head when all about you are losing theirs, then clearly, you don't understand the situation!

Linda Bob Grifins Korbetis Hall said...

http://itistimetothinkformyself.blogspot.com/2010/04/sunshine-brightens-ones-day-award-and.html

Happy Saturday!

Dianne said...

I love the quote about trees :)

Teresa said...

What a story!! Love it!

Ileana said...

This is better than the "when you fall off a bicycle get right back on" message! Wow! What an inspiration he is.

Maude Lynn said...

And, he went back for the board! Wow!

who said...

I like the quotes, the story and the pictures, but now I want to know where her tattoo ends.

Couture Carrie said...

Oh I love surfing! That first pic is fabulous!

xoxox,
CC

subu.ps said...

Salute the real hero. It is the presence of mind in such situations which helps one to survive.
The photos in this site are really too good

Anonymous said...

It is the stars that guide lifes beneath.

Love them very much.

Please have a wonderful Sunday you all.

Jingle said...

http://jingleyanqiu.wordpress.com/2010/04/24/well-here-comes-the-week-15-rally-awards-and-more/

Have A Beautiful Day!
Two awards on the bottom of my post!

Anonymous said...

Aloha pretty lady. Thanks for the great pics. Ahhhh..drats, now I have to go home...away from the beach.

Nancy said...

Having just come from the sea, I felt this incredible story more than normal. Do we ever feel totally at ease in the ocean, knowing we could be dinner? Evidently so. Jim is here to prove it.

Barbara Martin said...

Anyone who can ride the waves has a good set of nerves; and Jim, has an excellent set, plus divine help. Great post!

Cloudia said...

Yeee-HAW!

LOL

Thanks for coming by :)

magiceye said...

amazing tale!

namaste /\ from mumbai
aloha!!

foongpc said...

Ooh! I like this quote!

"I travel a lot; I hate having my life disrupted by routine."

bichonpawz said...

Now THAT is one really, really dedicated surfer....and one very lucky man.

VENUSCREEPER said...

Cool tattoos on the back...lovely images...

Noe Noe Girl...A Queen of all Trades. said...

Love those tats!
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