Media reports of Nathan Holstedt waiting for a wave, looking out toward the horizon, when something hit his leg and surfboard from behind.
He was pulled underwater — “directly down like a plunger.”
And when he resurfaced, he saw a shark only feet away.
It was coming back toward him.
So he “tomahawked” his board between himself and the shark — possibly hitting the animal — and turned toward the beach. He started paddling as hard as he could.
Holstedt made it to shore unscathed, though when the shark bit his board, it missed his right leg by about 6 inches.
Holstedt described the harrowing ordeal that unfolded about 8:30 a.m. Tuesday off the Oregon coast in Pacific City. Shark warning signs were posted on the beach as a result.
Holstedt, a 33-year-old Pacific City resident, told The Oregonian/OregonLive on Wednesday he’s thankful he wasn’t hurt and that his friends got out of the water safely.
The only carnage?
The shark bit the right side of his board and knocked off the board’s left fin. Holstedt also noticed a crack on the nose of his board, though that likely happened when he used his board to defend himself.