Bethany Hamilton was born on the island of Kauai, Hawaii on February 8th, 1990 to parents Tom and Cheri Hamilton. She has two older brothers, Noah and Timmy. Both of her parents, as well as her brothers, are die-hard surfers. Being born and raised in Hawaii, it's kind of hard not to be drawn in some way to the water. At the age of 2, Bethany started learning to surf. At the age of 5, she began her personal journey with her Christian faith. At the age of 8, she entered her first surf competition, the “Rell Sunn Menehune Surfing Championship,” on the island of Oahu, Hawaii. In her first competition, she won 1st place in both the short and long board competitions. At the age of 9, she get her first sponsorships from Rip Curl and Tim Carroll Surfboards. Between the ages of 10 and 12 she got more sponsors (Angel Sunglasses and Gallaz Shoes), became homeschooled, and worked her way up through in amateur surfing competition. Her rankings were usually very high, and she won many events. At the age of 13, she won 2nd place in NSSA National Surfing Championships. Three months after this great victory, she went through an extremely traumatic event that would change her life forever. On October 31st, 2003 Bethany Hamilton went surfing off the North Shore of Kauai. She was wearing a watch on her left wrist that was given to her by sponsor, Rip Curl. The watch’s glare shone in the water, and caught the eye of the 14-foot long tiger shark that grabbed Bethany by the arm all the way up to her shoulder. Her arm was severed off, and by the time she got to the nearest hospital, she had already lost over 60% of the blood in her body. Bethany describes the incident in her book, “Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board” as follows:
“It came, literally, out of the blue. I had no warning at all; not even the slightest hint of danger on the horizon. The waves were small and inconsistent, and I was just kind of rolling along with them, relaxing on my board with my left arm dangling in the cool water. I remember thinking, "I hope the surf picks up soon..." That's all it took: a split second. I felt a lot of pressure and a couple of lightning fast tugs. Then I watched in shock as the water around me turned bright red. Somehow, I stayed calm. My left arm was gone almost to the armpit, along with a huge crescent-shaped chunk of my red, white and blue surfboard... I remember most clearly what the Kauai paramedic said to me in the ambulance: He spoke softly and held my hand as we were pulling out of the beach parking lot. He whispered in my ear, "God will never leave you or forsake you." He was right.”
After the shark attack, Bethany went through several surgeries without infection. This would have been the end of the story, had it not been for her amazing faith. Bethany says in her book, “Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board”:
“Some people don't think much about this kind of stuff unless something terrible happens to them… I truly believe that this faith is a big part of what did get me through it. It helps to know that even when you don't have a clue why something has happened in your life, someone up there has a master plan and is watching over you. It's a tremendous relief to be able to put your trust in God and take the burden off your shoulders. My plans to be a professional surfer got hit pretty hard on that Halloween morning... In the days, weeks, and months that followed I had a lot of cleaning up to do. Often, it was scary or trying… But for me, knowing that God loves me and that he has a plan for my life that no shark can take away and no contest result can shake, is like having solid rock underneath me. Bad things are bound to happen to everyone. That's life. Here's my advice: don't put all your hope and faith into something that could suddenly and easily disappear. And honestly, that's almost anything. The only thing that will never go away, that will never fail you, is God and your faith in him. All I can say is He gives me a really strong foundation for everything I do in life.”
Bethany Hamilton got back in the water and back on the board just a month after the shark attack. Her family and friends supported her the whole way. It wasn’t easy, however. It’s hard enough learning how to surf (in Hawaii especially), it surely isn’t easy with only one arm. When people told her it wasn’t going to be easy, she simply said, “I don’t need easy, I just need possible.” Her dad had a large hand in making it possible by putting a handle on Bethany’s surfboards to help her with duck dives (Pushing your surfboard under an oncoming wave or white water in an attempt to avoid being throttled). Bethany returned to competitions 2 months after getting back in the water, and placed 5th in the Women’s Open Division of the competition. At the age of 14, she wrote her best-selling autobiography, “Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board.” At age 15, she visited Thailand after the tsunami hit. While there, she encouraged orphans there to get back in the water, much like she did. She says that the struggles she faced after the shark attack was her “own personal tsunami,” and since she overcame her fears, she wanted to help others overcome theirs. A year after the shark attack, Bethany took 1st place in the Explorer Women’s division of the 2005 NSSA Surfing Championships, earning her first national title as a female surfer. 2 years later, she realized her dream of becoming a pro surfer, and made it a reality. In the years since turning pro, she has placed high ranks in international competitions. In 2011, her book “Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board” was turned into a major motion picture by the name “Soul Surfer,” with an all-star cast, starring actress AnnaSophia Robb as Bethany, Helen Hunt as Bethany’s mother, Dennis Quiad as Bethany’s father, and country artist Carrie Underwood as her youth group leader. In 2012 she competed in the MWT – Rip Curl Padang Cup in Bali, Indonesia, becoming the first woman to compete in this specialty barrel-riding event. She also won her first heat of the competition. Bethany married Adam Dirks on August 18th, 2013 in her hometown on Kauai. Her and her husband competed in the game show “The Amazing Race” for the 25th season, and Bethany became the first woman to compete in the race with an amputated arm, and the fifth person to ever compete in the race with a missing limb. Bethany and Adam were finalists on the show, and placed 3rd overall. On February 9th, 2015 she and Adam announced that they are expecting their first child, a baby boy due in early June 2015.
“It came, literally, out of the blue. I had no warning at all; not even the slightest hint of danger on the horizon. The waves were small and inconsistent, and I was just kind of rolling along with them, relaxing on my board with my left arm dangling in the cool water. I remember thinking, "I hope the surf picks up soon..." That's all it took: a split second. I felt a lot of pressure and a couple of lightning fast tugs. Then I watched in shock as the water around me turned bright red. Somehow, I stayed calm. My left arm was gone almost to the armpit, along with a huge crescent-shaped chunk of my red, white and blue surfboard... I remember most clearly what the Kauai paramedic said to me in the ambulance: He spoke softly and held my hand as we were pulling out of the beach parking lot. He whispered in my ear, "God will never leave you or forsake you." He was right.”
After the shark attack, Bethany went through several surgeries without infection. This would have been the end of the story, had it not been for her amazing faith. Bethany says in her book, “Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board”:
“Some people don't think much about this kind of stuff unless something terrible happens to them… I truly believe that this faith is a big part of what did get me through it. It helps to know that even when you don't have a clue why something has happened in your life, someone up there has a master plan and is watching over you. It's a tremendous relief to be able to put your trust in God and take the burden off your shoulders. My plans to be a professional surfer got hit pretty hard on that Halloween morning... In the days, weeks, and months that followed I had a lot of cleaning up to do. Often, it was scary or trying… But for me, knowing that God loves me and that he has a plan for my life that no shark can take away and no contest result can shake, is like having solid rock underneath me. Bad things are bound to happen to everyone. That's life. Here's my advice: don't put all your hope and faith into something that could suddenly and easily disappear. And honestly, that's almost anything. The only thing that will never go away, that will never fail you, is God and your faith in him. All I can say is He gives me a really strong foundation for everything I do in life.”
Bethany Hamilton got back in the water and back on the board just a month after the shark attack. Her family and friends supported her the whole way. It wasn’t easy, however. It’s hard enough learning how to surf (in Hawaii especially), it surely isn’t easy with only one arm. When people told her it wasn’t going to be easy, she simply said, “I don’t need easy, I just need possible.” Her dad had a large hand in making it possible by putting a handle on Bethany’s surfboards to help her with duck dives (Pushing your surfboard under an oncoming wave or white water in an attempt to avoid being throttled). Bethany returned to competitions 2 months after getting back in the water, and placed 5th in the Women’s Open Division of the competition. At the age of 14, she wrote her best-selling autobiography, “Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board.” At age 15, she visited Thailand after the tsunami hit. While there, she encouraged orphans there to get back in the water, much like she did. She says that the struggles she faced after the shark attack was her “own personal tsunami,” and since she overcame her fears, she wanted to help others overcome theirs. A year after the shark attack, Bethany took 1st place in the Explorer Women’s division of the 2005 NSSA Surfing Championships, earning her first national title as a female surfer. 2 years later, she realized her dream of becoming a pro surfer, and made it a reality. In the years since turning pro, she has placed high ranks in international competitions. In 2011, her book “Soul Surfer: A True Story of Faith, Family and Fighting to Get Back on the Board” was turned into a major motion picture by the name “Soul Surfer,” with an all-star cast, starring actress AnnaSophia Robb as Bethany, Helen Hunt as Bethany’s mother, Dennis Quiad as Bethany’s father, and country artist Carrie Underwood as her youth group leader. In 2012 she competed in the MWT – Rip Curl Padang Cup in Bali, Indonesia, becoming the first woman to compete in this specialty barrel-riding event. She also won her first heat of the competition. Bethany married Adam Dirks on August 18th, 2013 in her hometown on Kauai. Her and her husband competed in the game show “The Amazing Race” for the 25th season, and Bethany became the first woman to compete in the race with an amputated arm, and the fifth person to ever compete in the race with a missing limb. Bethany and Adam were finalists on the show, and placed 3rd overall. On February 9th, 2015 she and Adam announced that they are expecting their first child, a baby boy due in early June 2015.