And that chase is Michael Phelps racing a great white shark!
Who will emerge with bragging rights?
Absolutely, the odds are stacked against Phelps.
Great Whites are the fearsome predators of the sea that can swim up to 10 times faster than humans.
[For the full Shark Week schedule,click here.]
That was the only way I was going to do it.
And it was there.
But obviously, its an opportunity that you dont get very often to race a great white.
So I said for sure I would do it.
So I was like, Okay, lets just have fun with this and see what happens.
And sure enough, I was able to learn a lot more about wildlife and sharks.
Its been a bucket list item for me for years.
Im just double-checking some stats here.
A hammerhead can reach up to 12 to 14, and the average cruising speed is 3 to 4.
I was like, Yeah, sure, why not?
Lets see who would win a race.
How seriously did you take the race?
Youre in the open water but not actually competing side-by-side against the shark.
But were you two at least racing at the same time?
We were in open water.
We were very safe.
We had about 15 safety divers around.
Its something that a shark can survive in, and a human really cant survive in water like that.
How far is the distance that youll be racing?We raced 100 meters.
I think seeing them in person would be a true treat.
Hopefully, Im just breaking the surface on seeing different animals.
What was your level of fear?I started in the cage.
Lets get out and see what these guys and girls are like head-to-head and close up.
I was excited to get out, and I started swimming around with these guys.
