An ultra-athlete goes head-to-head with the world’s most formidable sharks

Extremely-athlete Ross Edgley isn’t any stranger to pushing his physique to extremes. He as soon as ran a marathon whereas pulling a one-ton automotive; ran a triathlon whereas carrying a 100-pound tree; and climbed a 65-foot rope over and over till he’d climbed the equal of Mt. Everest—all for charity. In 2016, he set the world document for the world’s longest staged sea swim across the shoreline of Nice Britain: 1780 miles over 157 days.

At one level throughout that swim, a basking shark appeared and swam alongside Edgley for a day and a half. That have ignited his curiosity about sharks and finally led to his new Nationwide Geographic documentary, Shark vs. Ross Edgley—a part of 4 full weeks of 2024 SHARKFEST programming. Edgley matches his athletic prowess in opposition to 4 totally different species of shark. He tries to leap out of the water (polaris) like a nice white shark; stand up to the G forces produced by a hammerhead shark‘s quick, speedy turns; mimic the acute fasting and feasting routine of a migrating tiger shark; and match the swimming pace of a mako shark.

“I like this concept of getting a objective after which reverse engineering and deconstructing it,” Edgley advised Ars. “[Sharks are] the final word ocean athletes. We simply had this concept: what for those who’re loopy sufficient to try to comply with within the footsteps of 4 superb sharks? It is an not possible process. You are going to fail, you are going to be humbled. However within the course of, we might use it as a sports activities/shark science experiment, virtually like a Malicious program to convey science and ocean conservation to a brand new viewers.”

And who higher than Edgley to tackle that not possible problem? “The keenness he brings to the whole lot is actually infectious,” marine biologist and shark knowledgeable Mike Heithaus of Florida Worldwide College advised Ars. “He is recreation to strive something. He’d by no means been within the water with sharks and we’re throwing him straight in with massive tiger sharks and hammerheads. He is loving the entire thing and simply devoured all the data.”

That Edgley physique does not keep itself, so the athlete was up at 4 AM swimming laps and figuring out each morning earlier than the remainder of the crew had their espresso. “I am doing bicep curls with my espresso cup and he is doing bicep curls with the 60-pound underwater digital camera,” Heithaus recalled. “For the document, I acquired one rep in and I am very pleased with that.” Rating one for the shark knowledgeable.

(Spoilers beneath for the assorted shark challenges.)

Ross vs. the good white shark

For the primary problem, Edgley took on the good white shark, a creature he describes as a “submarine with tooth.” These sharks are ambush hunters, able to propelling their large our bodies absolutely out of the water in an arching leap. That maneuver is known as a polaris, and it is important to the good white shark’s survival. It helps that the shark has 65 p.c muscle mass, significantly concentrated within the tail, in addition to a light-weight skeleton and a big liver that serves as buoyancy machine.

Edgley, by comparability, is roughly 45 p.c muscle mass—a lot increased than the common human however falling in need of the good white shark. To assist him attempt to match the good white’s highly effective polaris maneuver, Edgley sought recommendations on biomechanics from the Aquabatix synchronized swim group, since synchronized swimmers should incessantly launch their our bodies absolutely out of the water throughout routines. They usually get a lift from their teammates to take action.

The group did handle to spice up Edgley out of the water, however sharks do not want a lift. Edgley opted to work with a monofin, incessantly utilized in underwater sports activities like free diving or finswimming, to see what he might obtain on his personal energy. After a little bit of observe, he succeeded in launching 75 p.c of his physique (in comparison with the shark’s one hundred pc) out of the water. Verdict: Edgley is 75 p.c nice white shark.

Ross vs. the hammerhead shark

Subsequent up: Edgley pitted himself in opposition to the exceptional underwater agility of a hammerhead shark. Hammerheads are identified for having the ability to swim quick and activate a dime, due to a versatile skeleton that allows them to bend and contort their our bodies practically in half. They’re in a position to stand up to some spectacular G forces (as much as 3 G’s) within the course of. Based on Heithaus, these sharks feed on different rays and different sharks, so that they should be constructed for pace and agility—therefore their capacity to speed up and switch quickly.

The NatGeo crew captured spectacular underwater footage of the hammerheads in motion, together with Edgley assembly a 14.7 hammerhead named “Queenie”—one of many largest nice hammerheads that visits Bimini within the Bahamas throughout the winter. That footage additionally consists of pictures of divers feeding fish to a number of the hammerheads by hand. “They know each shark by identify and the sharks know the feeders,” mentioned Heithaus. “So you may safely get shut to those massive superb creatures.”

For years, scientists had questioned in regards to the function of the distinctive hammer-shaped head. It might assist them scan a bigger space of the ocean ground whereas looking. Like all sharks, hammerheads have sensory pores referred to as ampullae of Lorenzini that enable them to detect electrical indicators and therefore doable prey. The hammer-shaped head distributes these pores over a wider span.

However in keeping with Heithaus, the hammer form additionally operates a bit like the massive broad flap of an airplane wing, leading to glorious hydrodynamics. Shifting at excessive speeds, “You’ll be able to simply tilt the top a tiny bit and financial institution an enormous diploma,” he mentioned. “So if a ray turns 180 levels to flee, the hammerhead can observe with it. Different species would take a wider flip and fall behind.”

The airplane wing analogy gave Edgley an thought for a way he might mimic the tight turns and excessive G forces of a hammerhead shark: take a flight in a small stunt airplane. The catch: Edgley will not be a fan of flying. And as he’d feared, he turned horribly airsick throughout the problem, even puking into slightly airbag at one level. “It seems to be so cool within the clip,” he mentioned. “However on the time, I used to be in a world of hassle.” Pilot Mark Greenfield lastly reduce the experiment brief when he decided that Edgley was too sick to proceed. Verdict: Edgley is 0 p.c hammerhead shark.

Ross vs. the tiger shark

The third problem was attempting to match the fortitude of a migrating tiger shark because it makes its means over hundreds of miles with out meals, solely feasting at journey’s finish.  “I used to be attempting to grasp the psychology of a tiger shark as a result of there’s simply nothing for them to eat [on the journey],” mentioned Ross. And as soon as they arrive at their vacation spot, “they will chow down on whole whale carcasses and eat absolutely anything. That concept of feast and famine is one thing we people used to do on a regular basis. We dwell fairly comfortably now so we have misplaced contact with that.”

Step one was to determine simply what number of energy a migrating tiger shark can devour in a single chunk. Heithaus has been a part of SHARKFEST for a number of years now and recalled one throwback present, Sharks vs. Dolphins, through which he tried to find out which species of of shark had been attacking dolphins, and simply how massive these sharks could be. He come across the concept of constructing a dolphin form out of gelatin—basically the identical stuff FIU’s forensic division makes use of for ballistic assessments—and requested his forensic colleagues to make one for him, because the materials has the identical weight and density of dolphin blubber.

For the Edgley documentary, they made a big gelatin lollipop the identical density as whale blubber, and he and Edgley dove down and managed to get an 11-foot tiger shark to take an enormous 6.2-pound chunk out of it. We all know what number of energy are in whale blubber so Heithaus was in a position to deduce from that what number of energy per chunk a tiger shark consumed (6.2 kilos of whale meet is equal to about 25,000 energy).

Such subject work additionally lets him collect ever mire specimens of shark bites from a spread of species for his analysis. “The wonderful thing about SHARKFEST is that you just’re seeing new, cutting-edge science which will or might not work,” mentioned Heithaus. “However that is what science is about: attempting issues and advancing our data even when it does not work al the time, after which sharing that data and pleasure with the general public.”

Then it was time for Edgley to make like a migrating shark and embark on a fastidiously designed famine-and-feast regime. First, his weight and physique quantity had been measured in a “Bodpod”: 190.8 kilos and 140.8 pints. Then Edgley fasted and exercised virtually constantly for twenty-four hours with a mixture of weight coaching, working, swimming, sitting within the sauna, and local weather chamber biking. (He did sleep for just a few hours.)  He dropped 14 kilos and misplaced twelve pints, ending up at a weight of 177 kilos and a quantity of 128.7 pints. As a substitute of meals, what he craved most on the finish was water. “If you find yourself in a very disadvantaged state, you discover out what your physique really wants, not what it desires,” mentioned Edgley.

After slaking his thirst, it was time to gorge. Over the next 24 hours, Edgley consumed an eye-popping 35,103 energy in fastidiously managed servings. It is fairly the menu: Haribo combine, six liters of Lucozade, a Hulk smoothie, pizza, 5 slices of lemon blueberry cheesecake, 5 slices of chocolate mint cheesecake, fish and chips, burgers and fries, two cinnamon loaves, 4 tubs of Ben & Jerry’s ice cream, two full English breakfasts, 5 liters of custard, 4 mars bars, and 4 mass gainer shakes.

When his weight and quantity had been measured one final time within the Bodpod, Edgley had regained a whopping 22 kilos for a remaining weight of 199 kilos. “I want I had Ross’s capacity to eat that a lot and stay at 0 p.c physique fats,” mentioned Heithaus. Verdict: Edgley is 28 p.c tiger shark.

Ross vs. the mako shark

Lastly, Edgley pitted himself in opposition to the mighty mako shark. Mako sharks are the speediest sharks within the ocean, able to swimming at speeds as much as 43 MPH. Edgley is a long-distance swimmer, not a sprinter, so he threw himself into coaching at Loughborough College with British Olympians teaching him. He fell far in need of a mako shark’s prime pace. The form of the human physique is just a lot much less hydrodynamic than that of a shark. He realized that regardless of his greatest efforts, “I used to be making up hundredths of a second, which is large in sprinting,” he mentioned. “That might be the distinction between a gold medal on the Paris Olympics and never. However I wanted to make up many kilometers per hour.”

So Edgley determined to “suppose like a shark” and make use of a shark-like technique of using the ocean currents to extend his pace. He ditched the pool and headed to the Menai Strait in Wales for some open water swimming. Finally he was in a position to hit 10.24 MPH—double what an Olympic swimmer might handle in a pool, however simply 25 p.c of a mako shark’s prime pace. And he managed with the assistance or a group of 20-30 folks dropping him into the quickest tide doable. “A mako shark would’ve simply gone, ‘This can be a Monday morning, this is not an occasion for me, I am off,'” mentioned Edgley. Verdict: Edgley is 24 p.c mako shark

When the outcomes of all 4 challenges had been mixed, Edgley got here out at 32 p.c general, or practically one-third shark. Whereas Edgley confessed to being humbled by his limitations, “I do not suppose there’s anybody else on the market who might achieve this as effectively throughout the board as compared,” mentioned Heithaus.

The last word objective of Shark vs. Ross Edgley—and certainly the entire SHARKFEST programming—is to assist shift public perceptions of sharks. “The nice Sir David Attenborough mentioned that the issues dealing with us when it comes to conservation is as a lot a communication difficulty as a scientific one,” Edgley mentioned. “The one means we will fight that’s by educating folks.”

Shark populations have declined sharply by 70 p.c or extra over the past 50 years. “It is actually important that we defend and restore these populations,” Heithaus mentioned. Tiger sharks, as an example, eat massive grazers like turtles and sea cows, and thus defend the ocean grass. (Amongst different advantages, the ocean grass sequesters carbon dioxide.) Sharks are additionally fairly subtle of their habits. “Some have social connections with different sharks, though to not the identical extent as dolphins,” mentioned Heithaus. “They’re extra than simply loners, and so they might have personalities. We see some sharks which might be extra daring, and others which might be extra shy. There’s much more to sharks than we’d have thought.”

Individuals who hear about Edgley’s basking shark encounter invariably assume he’d been at risk. Nonetheless, “We had been pals. I am not on its menu,” Edgley mentioned. “There are such a lot of totally different species.” He likened it to being chased by a canine. Folks may assume it was a rottweiler giving chase, when the truth is the basking shark is the equal of a poodle. “Hopefully what folks take away from that is transferring from a worry and misunderstanding of sharks to respect and admiration,” Edgley mentioned. “That’ll make the RAF fighter pilot airplane price it.”

And he is recreation to tackle much more shark challenges sooner or later. There are much more shark species on the market, in spite of everything, simply ready to go head-to-head with a human ultra-athlete.

Shark vs. Ross Edgley premieres on Sunday, June 30, 2024, on Disney+.