UP CLOSE AND PERSONAL WITH THE
SHARKS AND THIS TIME, SHE TOOK
US WITH HER.
ITS ESTIMATED ROUGHLY 180
MILLION AMERICANS MAKE THEIR WAY
TO THE BEACH EACH YEAR.
AND WHILE THERES ONLY A HANDFUL
OF DEATHS FROM SHARK ATTACKS
DURING THAT TIME, SPURRED ON BY
MOVIES AND STEREOTYPES, THE
PERCEPTION OF SHARKS AS TERRORS
OF THE DEEP AND MINDLESS
MAN-EATING MACHINES STILL
PERSIST.
OCEAN RAMSEY WANTS TO CHANGE
THAT.
IF YOURE LOOKING FOR HER, THIS
IS WHERE SHELL LIKELY BE,
STUDYING, SWIMMING WITH, AND
GETTING VERY CLOSE TO SHARKS ALL
AROUND THE WORLD.
LET ME BEGIN BY ASKING WHAT IS
IT YOU DO.
>> WE GO OUT EVERY DAY TO
COLLECT DATA ON SHARKS AND WE
GET TO TAKE PEOPLE WITH US TO
TREAT US ABOUT THE BEHAVIOR AND
BODY LANGUAGE OF SHARKS.
>> SHARKS AND THEIR CONSERVATION
ARE OCEANS PASSION, THE
VASTNESS OF THE DEEP BLUE HER
SECOND HOME.
>> WHATS THE BIGGEST
MISCONCEPTION ABOUT SHARKS?
>> A LOT OF PEOPLE THINK THAT IF
A SHARK SWIMS PAST YOU, ITS ARE
GOING TO COME UP TO YOU AND EAT
YOU.
THATS WHATS SO GREAT ABOUT
BRINGING PEOPLE ALONG WITH US,
IS THEY GET TO SEE WHAT SHARKS
ARE REALLY LIKE.
AND YOURE GOING TO EXPERIENCE
THAT QUICKLY HERE.
A HUGE PART OF THAT IS JUST
GETTING THEM IN THE WATER.
>> FOR OCEAN, THE BEST WAY TO
PROTECT SHARKS IS TO TEACH
PEOPLE ABOUT THEM.
THE BEST WAY TO DO THAT IS TO GET IN THE WATER WITH THEM.
GET IN THE WATER WITH THEM.
SO AFTER A QUICK SAFETY LESSON,
THE
AVOID MURKY WATER, AVOID
SPLASHING.
>> KEEP YOUR EYES IN THE WATER.
ESPECIALLY IF THEYRE COMING UP
CLOSE, GIVE THEM EXTRA EYE
CONTACT.
DONT TURN YOU BACK TO ANY OF
THEM.
>> DEFINITELY A LITTLE NERVOUS.
>> THATS A NATURAL HUMAN
REACTION.
YOURE GOING TO BE FLOATING IN
300 FEET OF WATER, SURROUNDED BY
SHARKS.
>> THEN IT WAS TIME TO TAKE THE
PLUNGE.
MOST PEOPLE ARE OBVIOUSLY
TERRIFIED ABOUT SHARKS.
WHY SHOULDNT THEY BE?
>> THEY SHOULDNT BE AFRAID OF
SHARKS.
THEY SHOULD BE AFRAID OF A WORLD
WITHOUT SHARKS.
SHARKS ARE SO IMPORTANT FOR THE
HEALTH OF THE OCEAN.
THEY KEEP DISEASES FROM
SPREADING.
THEY KEEP FISH HEALTHY, THEY
KEEP CORAL REEF HEALTHY.
ITS SO IMPORTANT TO HAVE
SHARKS.
>> THIS IS FREE DIVING, NO
OXYGEN AND NO CAGES, AND BECAUSE
OF THE STRONG CURRENT AND OF
COURSE, THE SHARKS, THE RULE IS
TO HANG ON TO THE BOAT UNTIL
OCEAN GIVES US THE OKAY.
THEN DIVE.
ABLE TO HOLD HER BREATH FOR
MINUTES AT A TIME, OCEAN SEEMED
TO BE ABLE TO SUMMON THE SHARKS
ALMOST AT WILL.
WITHIN MINUTES, THERE WERE
NEARLY A DOZEN LARGE GALAPAGOS
CIRCLING, SWIMMING TOWARD THE
SHARKS WAS ONE THING, HOLDING MY
BREATH LONG ENOUGH TO GET CLOSE
TO THEM, QUITE ANOTHER.
SO WE LET THEM COME TO US.
OVER AND OVER, SHARKS NEARLY
DOUBLE MY SIZE CALMLY SWAM
AROUND, BENEATH, AND NEAR ME.
CURIOUS, BUT NOT AGGRESSIVE,
INCLUDING MJ, A GALAPAGOS MORE
THAN TEN FEET LONG.
>> WHEN A SHARK ATTACKS, ITS
INCREDIBLY RARE, IS A SHARK
HUNTING A HUMAN OR IS IT A
MISTAKE?
>> 1,000 PERCENT IT IS NOT
HUNTING HUMANS, MEANING THEYRE
DEFINITELY TRYING TO GO AFTER
THEIR NATURAL PREY ITEMS.
THEY HAVE BEEN EVOLVING, BEFORE
DINOSAURS, BEFORE TREES.
HUMANS HAVE ONLY BEEN EVOLVING
FOR AROUND 200,000 YEARS.
WERE NOT ON THEIR MENU.
>> INCREDIBLE.
AMAZING HOW MANY SHARKS IN JUST
A SHORT LITTLE AREA.
HOW QUICK AND CURIOUS THEY ARE,
AND THEYRE BIG.
>> THE OCEANS MOST FEARED
PREDATOR, BUT PERHAPS ALSO ITS
MOST MISUNDERSTOOD.
THIS WAS CERTAINLY AN EXPERIENCE
OF A LIFETIME.
AND I CAN ADMIT, I WAS A BIT
SCARED AT TIMES.
BUT IT WAS CERTAINLY WORTH IT,
AND WE WANT TO HIGHLIGHT WHAT TO
DO IF YOU ARE IN THE WATERS
WHERE SHARKS MAY BE.
WERE TOLD YOU SHOULD ALWAYS
LOOK AROUND.
AWARENESS IS KEY.
IF YOU SEE A SHARK HEADING
TOWARD YOU, LOOK AT IT DIRECTLY.
DONT FRANTICALLY SWIM AWAY.
AND OF COURSE, DONT GO SWIMMING
WITH SHARKS ON PURPOSE UNLESS
YOURE WITH AN EXPERT.
THEY ARE APEX PREDATORS.
BACK TO YOU.
>> IT LOOKS SO CALMING BUT ITS
KIND OF COUNTERINTUITIVE BECAUSE
YOURE SWIMMING WITH SHARKS.
>> YOU DID IT FOR WORK.
WOULD YOU DO IT AGAIN ON YOUR
OWN?
>> I THINK ONCE WAS ENOUGH,
CRAIG.
>> EXACTLY.
BEAUTIFUL ASSIGNMENT.
THANK YOU, MIGUEL.
AGAIN, SHARK WEEK BEGINS ON