Beware what lurks beneath the water! While surfing enthusiasts are known to brave potentially career-ending challenges with gusto, it’s not always that they can escape unscathed. Sometimes, the ocean and those living in it can cause serious trouble to the surfers as they ride to dominate the waves. One such horrific incident has happened recently that sent shockwaves across the community.

Shark attacks aren’t an entirely foreign concept to those who regularly hit the seas on their surfboards. Earlier this year, a child experienced a frightful encounter with the sea creature, making surfing fans gasp. And now, another veteran of the sport came face to face with a similar situation.

Surfing old-timer faces underwater threat

An Instagram post by Gnarly Charley (Charley Hajek) from September 23 showcases how the 18x East Coast National Champion got entangled in a messy affair while surfing in the waters of Volusia County in Florida. Sharing a video clip by Channel 9 News, the post narrates how Charley’s Sunday turned into a nightmare. The news reporter claims the surfer felt “his feet inside the shark’s mouth.”

“Today he feels good, but mostly down that he cannot get back to surfing for a few days,” the reporter states further as Charley’s blues can be fathomed better considering he was on a 148-day surfing streak. Charley accidentally stepped on a shark while surfing and didn’t much time to react and save his skin. “By the time I even thought twice about it, it just bam! It bit me up,” Hajek said. “Man, I felt like I stepped my foot on a light socket,” said the surfer.

The 62-year-old still harbors the same passion for surfing as he did years ago, and that’s enough to keep him going despite his latest injury. Hajek was also astonished by how little blood came out after the bite. “I take that first step on the beach, and all those little teeth, you could see them,” he later told WESH, as he narrated how he drove himself to the hospital. But he can’t wait to jump back on his trusty surfboard as soon as he’s properly healed in his eyes. “I’m anxious to get back out there,” he said. While his misfortune doesn’t threaten to keep him away from the water for too long, not everyone has similar luck.

Surfers and injuries: A never-ending tale of woe

The pristine waves of Teahupo’o, Tahiti witnessed titillating action as it hosted the surfing events of the 2024 Paris Olympics. While the beach is renowned for its appealing conditions, it also poses a significant threat to all those who dare to test their surfing skills at the Polynesian location. ‘Teahupo’o is one of the best waves, and the scariest waves, you could ever surf. The people need to know that wave is really dangerous,” said Tahitian surfing phenome Michel Bourez in July. His ominous warning comes from personal experience, as it was here where he endured one of the worst wipeouts of his entire career. After crashing into the waves, Bourez had to undergo surgery thanks to a broken hand and vertebrae.

The 2023 Vans Pipe Masters also experienced more tumultuous surfing injuries when pro surfers Eimeo Czermak and Joao Chianca had horror experiences of their own. Czermak fell head-first into the water and was rushed to the hospital where he regained consciousness but got to learn that getting back to his feet would be a more difficult task. His situation was so devastating that Surfing legend Kelly Slater stepped up to help out his colleague. But Hajek seems to be cut from a different cloth than most of his peers. How soon do you think we’ll see him battling waves and coming out on top? Tell us in the comment section below!