There's a story I always love to tell about the Shark tank at Atlantis. I won't repost it here as it was up on shipitholla.com for a couple years but the very brief cliff notes are: Durrr (Tom) and I paid a guy 5k to jump into a tank full of shark at the Atlantis resort in the Bahamas a few years ago.

No matter how awesome my retelling may be, whenever I impart that story on an innocent soul they quietly judge me. They laugh of course and think the story is amazing and crazy and awesome, but, having the curse of the poker player... I see that glimmer of 'what if' judgment in their eyes.

This year that was put to rest.

I went to the Bahamas about a week before the PCA this year to get out of the cold and enjoy a Caribbean New Years with Tom, Gabe (gp333), Alex(ofishstix), Jimmie (pinkbunnythatgetsawayoften) and some others before the girlfirend (just kidding) and all the poker players (hmm.. ok jk) got there. New Years and the rest of the week is a story in itself but I don't want to get too off track.

The first night we all got together there was talk immediately of the tank. Stories were retold and bets and dares were thrown out. Nothing was quite accepted but after dinner at Nobu we went out to see the highly discussed beast.

Staring into the tank filled with sharks that I have thought so much about over the years I had the overwhelming urge to jump in. I can't exactly explain why... maybe the sake? maybe that look in the listeners eyes the last months and years, or maybe just because it's awesome... but the funniest thing happened right as everyone was looking at the sharks and these thoughts are running through my head... Tom quietly says, we need to just do this, both of us, now. I didn't reply, just threw my shoes off and stepped up on to the pedestal as Tom went around to the other one. I quickly surveyed the water for sharks and jumped.

I don't know if it was the excitement or the sake but i didn't plan my descent very well. It was the highest goal in my mind to touch the bottom and I only made it half way or so and was forced to swim down the rest of the head first. I grabbed the sandy bottom with my hand and shot up as fast as I could, pulling myself out at the top. I only paused for a minute to check out a passing reef shark no doubt trying to determine the reason for the commotion.

My nose was filled with seawater but I was otherwise unscathed. Maybe the weirdest thing about it all was that I was at no time scared or nervous about it in any way. I have since had a bad dream or two but at the time I felt fairly invincible.

The best part? Tom didn't hit bottom so I think someeeeeeebody might have to go in again next year...






In tournament news I made day 2 of the PCA and lost Ak to KQ for lots of chips.
last week I final tabled the high roller sunday event on Poker Stars.
Yesterday (Sunday) I won the Heads up tournament on Poker Stars. Even though I only play MTTs about two days a month I have been owning them pretty bad, I'm thinking of adding in a few more regularly.


Holla

-Peter