Great White Shark Thwarts Marathon Swim in San Francisco Bay

Corte Madera marathon swimmer Simon Dominguez’s teenage daughter, in a support boat, spotted the shark about 3 ½ miles from the Farallon Islands, KPIX-TV reported.

Though Dominguez, who was born in Australia, was reluctant to give up his goal, he acknowledged that the danger of the white shark couldn’t be ignored.

He was hoping to reach his destination in 14- to 15-hours, but the great white sighting forced him to abandon his efforts at 5:15 p.m. Wednesday, after swimming more than 25 miles.

A great white shark.

Sharks are hardly an unknown presence in the Farallons.

“Apparently it was swimming around me and then it started moving straight toward me and that’s when I thought it was probably a good idea to get out of the water”.

The 17st 2lb (109kg) swimmer jumped into the cold ocean and began the swim under the Golden Gate Bridge on Tuesday night, wearing only a cap, goggles, swimsuit and a thick coat of grease to guard against jelly fish stings and keep him a little warmer in the 50F (10C) water. The ocean waters surrounding the cluster of islands and sea stacks attract what are considered some of the largest great whites in the world, with some measuring as long as 19 feet.

“It was hard. But a shark is a shark”, he said.

Dominguez said two people have previously completed swims from the islands to the Golden Gate Bridge.

His attempt, if completed, would have been the first time anyone swam from the bridge to the islands, according to Night Train Swimmers. She would become the first woman to make the swim in either direction. Dominguez trains at Redwood pool and Bushell is a recent graduate. He plans to ponder the decision drinking beers at his favorite pub.