A great white shark pursued foil boarder Ron Takeda for five minutes off Santa Barbara Saturday, following him at 10 mph as his partner Tavis Boise captured the encounter on video. The 13-foot predator stayed on Takeda's tail for several miles before losing interest and swimming away.
Takeda and Boise were conducting a 20-mile run near UC Santa Barbara when Takeda noticed the massive shape trailing behind him. "Tavis, is it a dolphin?" Takeda asked — a question that immediately alarmed Boise, since both veteran surfers know dolphins well enough to identify them instantly.
The viral footage shows the shark's fin cutting through the water as it matches Takeda's every move. "Don't fall!" Boise shouts in the video as their paths diverge. "Oh my God, it's coming for you!" The animal maintained pursuit as Takeda focused on keeping his specialized surfboard above the surface, glancing back periodically to check if the shark had departed.
"My god, it's still in pursuit. It's still happening. This is beyond comprehension," Boise said during the encounter. "That's when we both start to panic." Both men had encountered sharks before, but never in an extended chase lasting this long.
Takeda, a retired mechanical engineer, kept his composure throughout the ordeal, opting not to dwell on the shark's presence. The predator disappeared and reappeared multiple times before finally giving up the chase. When Boise caught up with Takeda miles later, his partner's first words weren't about the near-death experience — they were about the water conditions. "The first thing he said was 'It's really good out here,'" Boise recalled.
The pair shared their footage with friends and experts at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, who confirmed their assessment that the creature was likely a great white shark. A friend posted the video on social media, where it quickly gained over one million views and sparked questions about whether it was generated by artificial intelligence.
Takeda and Boise believe the foil underneath the board may have attracted the shark's attention, since the equipment resembles a stingray when viewed from below. The theory suggests the predator mistook the board setup for prey, explaining the sustained pursuit through California's shark-populated waters.
The encounter highlights the risks facing water sports enthusiasts along California's coast, where great white shark populations have been recovering. The dramatic footage serves as a reminder that even experienced surfers can find themselves in life-threatening situations within minutes of launching from shore.
