Lucky, Unlucky: Great White Evening Bite

On the evening of December 4, 2021, I was attacked by a 15-to 18-foot great white shark in 3 to 5 feet of water while surfing at my home break called “Banyans” in Kailua-Kona. There are far too many details about the event to fit into one article. During my recovery, I’ve been writing a book about my life and all the events that led up to this horrifying experience.

Ever since I was a keiki, I loved to fish. While most of my friends idolized pro surfers like Kelly Slater and Shane Dorian, my role model and hero was “Fishing Tales” host and legendary angler/artist, Mike Sakamoto. Sadly, Uncle Mike passed away in 2009 at the age of 59; however, he lives on in me and so many others that he inspired. I still cherish the time I got to meet him during the release of his illustrated book, “How to Hook and Cook.” We posed for a photo together, and he wrote some kind words while autographing my copy of his book.

I always dreamed of being able to fish for a living. For the past five years, that’s what I’ve been doing. My commercial fishing is performed from a kayak, which may seem unlikely. Most people who have seen what I do have no response