Nathan Florence just had an experience that should send a chill down the spine of every experienced surfer. He told the story on the most recent episode of his podcast with fellow North Shore surfer Koa Rothman, and it’s honestly kind of surprising he made it out alive.
The story takes place on a downwind foiling expedition with his brother John John. From the beginning, the narrative has an ominous tone. “We get out there and I quickly realize this east swell is way bigger than I thought,” starts Nate. If that weren’t enough, they were also in shark infested waters. “This area that we’re in, it’s a spooky area,” he continues. “Pretty much if you look at every tracked shark in Hawaii… this area is covered [in them].”
Then, Nathan made a critical error (by his own admission) when he decided to split off from John John and ride a wave far offshore. “I’ve foiled downwind so many times and I’ve always thought ‘Man it would be such a nightmare if you lost your board,'” said Nate. Of course, out of nowhere, a wave popped up, perfectly ripped off his leash and absconded with his board.
“I realize I’m like three-quarters-of-a-mile out, off the coast,” he continued. “I’m like ‘Oh my gosh.’ I don’t have anything on me, nothing but my springsuit. I’m not attached to any board anymore and I felt so naked, like ‘This is not good.'”
Luckily, before starting an arduous swim to shore through massive waves on a shallow reef, he managed to locate his board. The only problem was that it was on its way out to sea. What followed was a 15-minute terror-fueled sprint in the opposite direction of land, ending in him finally managing to retrieve the board.
Check out the full story in the video above, starting around the 32-minute mark.
