Shark frenzy is continuing at New York’s Long Island beaches. And it’s the drone pilots who are making the most of it. But while many are leveraging the clear waters and sunny days to film whatever’s going on under the surface, Tim Regan’s week has been a bit more exciting. After all, it’s not every day you witness a fishing crew fight a 487-pound thresher shark within a quarter-mile of the beach.
Tim is a Part 107 certified drone pilot and the field editor for On The Water magazine. He has been spending the summer chasing southern sharks, bluefin tuna, funky rays, and humpback whales as they make their way toward the coast.
Drone video shows giant shark near New York beach
In the week of July 22 though, as Tim was investigating bunker schools, he got a call from his friend Chris Ravn. Chris and his crew, Jay Ferrara and Alex Sorensen, had spotted a shark tail about 300 yards from a Hamptons beach and pitched it a live bunker.
Only if it were as simple as that. The fishermen thought they were fighting a brown shark, but it turned out to be a thresher. And not just any thresher. A regular thresher shark usually runs about 250 pounds, but this was a beast that weighed nearly 500 pounds. Of course, Chris didn’t know that when he was busting his crew’s chops for taking so long to reel in a small shark.
It all worked out in the end though. Here’s Tim:
They hooked the fish about 300-400 yards from the sand where I was filming. For the next 5 hours or so, the shark dragged the boat in circles as they tried to reel the giant to the boat’s side. I was in contact with them, and had the fortune of capturing most of the fight, including the gaff shot and the victory cheers. I watched them high five, hoot and holler on the screen of my remote, and then I heard the cheering a few seconds later on the beach. That’s how close they were. That’s how close that giant shark was.
Watch the epic catch here:
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