Rules Quiz: Who had the right-of-way, kite surfer Alex Soto (DOM) or the shark?
SAN FRANCISCO (#1161) – According to a story by Kate Ryan that appeared Christmas Day on the West Australian website:
GoPro footage has captured the spine-tingling moment a kite surfer crashed into a shark in waters off Cabarete in the Dominican Republic.
Alex Soto, a professional kite surfer [from the Dominican Republic –TFE], was training for the 2019 Pan American Games on Thursday, when he suddenly crashed into the water.
He said he saw the shark just seconds before the crash, but was going too fast to avoid it. He flipped off his board into the water, while still holding on to his kite.
The whole drama was caught on his GoPro.
“I went back to the school where I work, and I told the guys but they didn’t believe me, but I had my GoPro and I showed them the video,” Mr Soto said.
He posted the video on his social media pages, and people from all over the world commented and shared the incredible footage, especially because he said it was very uncommon to see sharks in the Cabarete waters.
“I didn’t know that people would get crazy about it,” he said.
“I never saw a shark in Cabarete in 14 years, when I saw the shark I was surprised.”
The shark survived, but the foil on his kite and the board didn’t get away completely unscathed, Mr Soto said the foil was completely ruined.
“We are invading their habitat, do not be surprised if you see any [sharks],” he said.
Your Ed. has reached out to Mr Soto via his Facebook page to ask, among other questions, how he knows the shark survived. See Ms Ryan's full story here.
Mr Soto is a professional kite surfer from the Dominican Republic seen here in a 2013 photo on his Facebook page by hegeholtphotography.com.