Shark Tale.

JUST BEFORE noon on May 23, Bucky Dennis was alone on his 23-foot skiff in the Gulf of Mexico off of Boca Grande, thinking about getting out of the South Florida sun. The 36-year-old fishing guide was hoping to hook a shark, but he hadn't seen one and was about to pack it in when he noticed another guide driving his boat in a tight circle, apparently to keep sharks away from some tarpon he had released after catching. When Dennis drove over to check it out, he saw two sharks under the other guide's boat. Dennis tossed in a line baited with a 25-pound stingray and before long felt a tug.

Nearly six hours later--and 12 miles away--Dennis finally reeled in a great hammerhead measuring 14'6" and weighing 1,280 pounds. The shark had dragged Dennis's boat out to sea (and out of cellphone range), but Dennis had some help from fishermen who heard about the battle by walkie-talkie. They took the helm of his boat and sunk a steel gaff into the shark while the 5'9", 180-pound Dennis did all the reeling. Pending certification, it would be a world record for a great hammerhead. "The rod stayed in my hand the entire time," Dennis told The New York Times. "I was thinking, Please don't let it get off, please don't let nothing happen."

PHOTO (COLOR): GOOD FOR THE JAWS? Dennis's catch dragged his boat 12 miles.

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Edited by Mark Bechtel and Stephen Cannella