Instead of people who sit on their asses on the couch and bitch about pointless stuff like street names that "offend" them.


www.cnn.com/2003/US/West/11/22/surfer.shark.ap/index.html

KILAUEA, Hawaii (AP) -- She was lying on her surfboard, taking a break after catching some early morning waves, when the gray blur emerged near her left arm as it dangled in the Pacific.

Bethany Hamilton was suddenly being jerked back and forth.

"I looked down at the red water," she recalled. "Right away I knew it was a shark and I knew my arm was gone."

The 13-year-old lost more than half her blood and all but four inches of her arm, though those who witnessed the attack say Bethany never screamed or panicked.

"There's no need for that," she told The Associated Press nearly three weeks after the Halloween attack, in one of the first in a series of interviews and TV appearances. "I wasn't that scared. I didn't think I was going to die or anything."

Before the attack, Bethany was a top amateur surfer who was expected to turn pro. Now she is unsure whether she will ever surf competitively again. But she said she will not give up her passion.

Tall and lean, with blond hair and a tan, Bethany has accepted her misfortune with remarkable serenity.

"There's no time machine," she said. "I can't change it. That was God's plan for my life and I'm going to go with it."

For all the nightmarish drama the shark attack conveys, Bethany recounts it with nonchalance: She arose around 5 a.m. on October 31, heading out to do what she loves -- surfing with her best friend, Alana Blanchard. After about a half-hour of action, she took a break, dangling her arm in the ocean when the 15-foot tiger shark attacked.

Blanchard's father, Holt, surfing nearby, used a surf leash as a tourniquet. Fellow surfers towed her in on a surfboard. She blacked out briefly, then woke up ashore.

When she reached Wilcox Memorial Hospital, another amazing part of the story unfolded: The girl's father, Tom Hamilton, had been lying on the operating table, moments away from knee surgery, when a doctor burst through the doors, saying the room was needed for a shark attack victim. When he heard it was a 13-year-old, Tom Hamilton's heart sank. He knew it was either his daughter or her best friend.

Bethany spent nearly a week in the hospital and has remained largely in seclusion since then.

When her bandages were removed -- and her stump was revealed -- one of her brothers turned white. Her mother nearly collapsed. And her grandmother went outside and wept.

On Thursday, her stitches were to come out and she awaited word on when she could return to the water.

"If I was like a person that just quit surfing after this, I wouldn't be a real surfer," she said. "I'm definitely going to get back in the water."

Bethany hopes to be fitted with prosthetics allowing her to continue not only to surf but also to play the guitar. She plans to try snowboarding for the first time this winter, and she is aiming for a career in photography.

Around Bethany's neck hangs a glittering gold surfboard -- a get-well gift from a family friend. It has a diamond in the center and a bite taken out of the top, just like her own board, with its 16-inch gash.

Bethany said the attack is "pretty much all I think about," and she has revisited the horrible event in her dreams four times since the attack.

But she said: "If you don't get over it, then you'll just be sad and cry."

Tough little girl.

Quoted: Instead of people who sit on their asses on the couch and bitch about pointless stuff like street names that "offend" them. "If I was like a person that just quit surfing after this, I wouldn't be a real surfer," she said.

Wow. That's one tough kid.

Agree with your sentiment wholeheartedly, DK-Prof.

I know grown men that aren't that tough.

Quoted: I know grown men that aren't that tough.

And most of them were here posting derogatory comments about her yesterday...

www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=5&t=216269

So many jealous people...

We need more people who get their arms bitten off while engaged in frivolous pusrsuits? OK, if you say so.

Quoted: Quoted: I know grown men that aren't that tough. And most of them were here posting derogatory comments about her yesterday... www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=5&t=216269 So many jealous people...

Ooops - I didn't realize it was a dupe thread.  Sorry - I didn't even see the other one.  

I guess I'll leave this one up if it keeps a positive tone, because I think this is a great story and shows amazing spirit.  If I was ever going to have a kid (which I'm not), I'd want one like this!

I watched the story on her last night, tragic what that damn shark did to her.

Quoted: Quoted: Quoted: I know grown men that aren't that tough. And most of them were here posting derogatory comments about her yesterday... www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=1&f=5&t=216269 So many jealous people... Ooops - I didn't realize it was a dupe thread.  Sorry - I didn't even see the other one.   I guess I'll leave this one up if it keeps a positive tone, because I think this is a great story and shows amazing spirit.  If I was ever going to have a kid (which I'm not), I'd want one like this!

Go ahead and have a crack at it, I was going to let mine die. The nature of the threads being posted was getting disgusting.

Quoted: We need more people who get their arms bitten off while engaged in frivolous pusrsuits? OK, if you say so.

You know what I mean!  




Bastard  

Hey, you enter the ocean, you enter the food chain.  And you are no longer at the top.

Sorry for what happened to the girl.  Sounds like she's got her head straight though.  She'll be OK.

Quoted: We need more people who get their arms bitten off while engaged in frivolous pusrsuits? OK, if you say so.

I'm sure liberals would have similar comments wrt hunting accidents.  You sound like one of them when you say shit like that.

Quoted: Quoted: We need more people who get their arms bitten off while engaged in frivolous pusrsuits? OK, if you say so. I'm sure liberals would have similar comments wrt hunting accidents.  You sound like one of them when you say shit like that.

I saw FLALA1's comment more in a joking light - in the sense that it is not the accident itself we're really talking about - but the handling of it,a nd the response to it.

Let me be the first to say it.
In 5 more years I WOULD HIT IT!

Quoted: We need more people who get their arms bitten off while engaged in frivolous pusrsuits? OK, if you say so.

Frivolous? Hardly. But some people and their narrow minds think that only the things that "they" pursue are worthy. I praise this girl as she has shown the kind of dedication that few posses.

BTW, surfing is one of those things that most will never understand. Because of that, they can only criticize. Weak, truley weak.
CH

Quoted: I watched the story on her last night, tragic what that damn shark did to her.

We should kill all the sharks!






For the children of course!

BigDozer66

I'm not a surfer, but I don't consider it to be one of the "extreme" sports which require an inrodinate amount of risk.  She was engaged in a relatively safe, athletic activity and she suffered an unexpected tragedy.

Me?  I would have rolled over and died right on the spot.  I'm not going to tear down one of the few people that give us some hope, inspiration and perspective.

Seen that 20/20 about that teenage girl who was born without arms?  That was a trip.  She brushed her teeth, wrote, did just about everything you and I can do, without the benefits of having arms.

Sure, you guys can all hoot and hollar about how much spunk she has when the next shark attacks also.

Who is going to start the "let's buy her a rifle thing"

I predict that she'll be back surffing and even win some events. To coin a line from Full Metal Jacket said by R.L.Ermy, "You got guts and sometimes guts is enough".  God bless and keep this girl, she's one heck of a kid.

Quoted: Sure, you guys can all hoot and hollar about how much spunk she has when the next shark attacks also. img.villagephotos.com/p/2003-3/141064/story.shark.jpg Who is going to start the "let's buy her a rifle thing"

Well, she no longer has the right to bear arms, just the right arm to bear.

TXL