Humboldt County surfer escapes great white attack
The Associated Press
Article Launched: 09/28/2007 10:53:19 PM PDT


McKINLEYVILLE, Calif.?A surfer was unhurt after a shark attacked her near a Humboldt County beach, though her surfboard wasn't so lucky, witnesses said.
Sue Snyder was sitting on her surfboard Thursday when the great white knocked her off from behind, said Ralph Collier of the Van Nuys-based Shark Research Committee, which tracks shark attacks along the Pacific coast.

Snyder began kicking the shark, which left a 16-inch bite and teeth fragments in her board, according to other witnesses in the water at the time of the attack.

The shark was likely 14 to 15 feet long and weighed about 3,000 pounds, Collier said.

Shark run-ins are becoming more common in Northern California as more people take to the water, said Jess Bareilles, owner of the Greenhouse Surf Shop in Arcata.