A surfer off Gleneden Beach just about got his rear-end chomped by the business end of a Great White Shark Friday afternoon. But because of the sturdy quality of the surfboard (Grain) and the fact it’s made of very muscular wood, the Great White bit the back end leaving only shallow teeth marks. Had it been a standard fiberglass-over- foam variety, the surfer would likely have lost a big chunk of his board.

Loren Goddard of Dockside Charters in Depoe Bay first learned about the incident when the surfers came into his business saying they needed to fetch a loose surfboard. They told Goddard that one of them was sitting on his board waiting for a wave when something very large came up out of the deep and chomped on the back end of his board. The Great White grabbed a hold of it and tossed the surfer into the water. His partner said it was a very large shark and they quickly headed for the beach both on his board.

Because the surfers manufacture the Grain brand of surfboards with their more traditional style of pure wooden design, the boards are not inexpensive. That’s why they they asked Goddard to motor out and look for it. After about a half hour of looking off Gleneden Beach they finally spotted it about a mile and a half from where they were surfing earlier.

The board looked none the worse for wear, save for a few teeth marks. The mouth size on the shark was around 12″ according to Goddard. The board, none the less, appeared to be in fine shape with maybe a little smoothing and reglassing in its immediate future.

Kind of a tough way to prove the strength and durability of a surfboard, to be sure. Neither surfer had a mark on ’em. Both were last seen heading back home to Maine and their surf shop. Grain Surfboards. It’s worth visiting their website to appreciate how a big Great White could bite so hard and yet leave such a meager calling card.