Vegan Surfer Survives Shark Attack

Last week, Australian vegan surfer Colin Rowland was attacked by a great white shark while surfing in Booti Booti, New South Wales. Rowland was in the water when a shark estimated to be eight to 11 feet long attacked him from beneath his surfboard, before pulling him under water. Fellow surfer Billy Eitz came to his rescue and placed Rowland on his own board before swimming with him to shore. Rowland received surgery on his arm and 20 stitches to repair his foot. “It’s not the shark’s fault,” Rowland says from his hospital bed, “I was in his territory. I just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.” The 62-year-old father of three joked with Sydney’s 9News reporter Sophie Walsh that he survived because the great white didn’t have a taste for vegans. Rowland says he will be getting back into the water as soon as his back foot heals, stating, “[I feel] joyous that I’m alive.”