Tuesday, October 30th the day before Halloween was like any other recent morning in my life. I filled up a mug of coffee, loaded my car and headed to the beach to surf. Fall has been good to Humboldt Bay’s surf exposed peninsula and this morning followed in suit. Smoke from the power plant drifted up and over Samoa Blvd, hinting of offshore SE winds and groomed conditions off the North Jetty. I remember the first thing I noticed when I eased onto the beach at the end of Bunker Rd. was large flocks of shore birds flying low to the surf turning simultaneously, reflecting shimmery silver like the offshore ocean spray. I tried to film the spectacle on my phone but of course you just had to be there to appreciate it.
The morning looked perfect, high tide peaks broke up and down the beach, most of the action being focused where an underwater canyon funnels in the approaching swells and maximizes their size and intensity. The water looked clean and clear, characteristic of the spot and time of year. As I suited up into my 5×4 wetsuit I got a call from my friend Teddy asking me how the surf looked. I laughed asking him how he knew I was checking the surf? “I guess I know you too well.” Out in the water I ran into another buddy, Blake, and we commented on how clear and nice the water looked. A set rolled in and I took a wave left separating me from the rest of the surfers on the north end of the peak. A fortunate channel brought me back out to the outside and I caught three more waves in quick succession, laughing at my luck, I dug deep paddling hard to get back out and catch another. My arms felt good, finally getting into paddling shape with all the recent surfing.
My luck would change in a heartbeat. Mid-paddle, from behind me and out of the corner of my left eye something dark broke the surface and I felt a weight land on my back. My first thought was seal, but as I was drug under water and felt the force and power of being shaken in the jaws of a top predator, I feared for my life. Feeling so small and insignificant, I opened my eyes under water to see my first shark in thirteen years of surfing. The face was black and streamlined, the nose jutting forward over an almost grinning mouth of teeth. Four feet from the tip of the nose to the beginning of the dorsal, it’s right eye as large as a baseball. My right fist made contact with the shark just behind this eye. It felt like punching a bag of concrete. I can’t describe what I was feeling at that moment. Some combination of shock and terror surely but within seconds it was all over. I was released, and the shark was gone into the depths. It wasn’t until I saw my board floating near by, leash bitten through and a 14inch diameter half circle missing out of it that I put thought to my injuries. As I got back on my board and started paddling to shore I noticed the red. Blood mixing with water, creating a crimson pool around me a hole in my wetsuit and my torso that I knew was serious.
Screaming for help while I paddled back to shore I hoped the other surfers 150 yards away would hear me. I kept paddling as I waited and wondered how much blood I had left to lose. A wave came to my rescue bringing me back to shore on my stomach where I was met by another surfer in waist high water. He grabbed my board and I stumbled onto the beach where two other surfers quickly met me. My hand did nothing to stop the bleeding, so I laid onto my side and one of the surfers, Ian an off duty EMT, had the quick and as the surgeon would later call it, creative thought to lay on my wound using his body weight to apply pressure. Luckily for me you’re allowed to drive onto the beach here and right when I needed it most another surfer Jason drove by on his way home. Not a minute was wasted as I was loaded into the back of his truck and driven almost to the hospital before being intercepted by an ambulance in Eureka. From there, everything continued incredibly with the head surgeon of St. Joseph’s Hospital on duty and fresh out of another surgery. I was going to make it. Modern medicine saved my life but not without the help of my heroes and fellow surfers.
In a sport made for kings, surfing remains a pursuit in which the playing field is unlimited, unbiased and unconquerable. Perhaps it’s this sense of unconquerable magnitude that drew the great Polynesian Kings to love the feeling of gliding atop the waters edge on something greater than themselves. I could only imagine that when your job is to be a ruler, you would seek out the places where you are least in charge. A place that beckons you time and time again asking nothing and tolerating so much. In a sport made for kings, surfing remains a sport …well…made for Kings.
In the wake of my recent shark attack I’m forced to stay out of the water but I find myself riding a different wave. A wave of compassion and support shown from the local community and surfers that live here, that has brought me back to shore standing tall, and mighty like a Polynesian King. I’ve always loved the saying “Surfers Can Do Anything,” and after witnessing the actions taken by fellow surfers to save my life and the response of others to raise funds for my care, I believe it more than ever. In thought to why or how I was so lucky, I am given a sense of joy for being alive. A joy that I feel is my duty to share with the world. An infectious stoke that has started as a bacteria inside the jaws of the mighty Great White, grown on my healing wounds and spread into the community that has supported me.
Call it a second chance, borrowed time or good graces, I would have never thought a life threatening accident could bring such a clarity to life. A little over a week after the accident I am told by my surgeon that I am fortunate, I’m young and healing fast. In just another couple weeks I should be back in the pool swimming, rebuilding, getting strong again. As far as the mental barrier of getting back in the ocean and back to what I love to do, it’s simple. Life is too boundless not to. Too boundless to turn your back on your dreams and not embrace what you love.
It’s in this same sense of urgency that I have written this letter to thank everyone that has supported my family and me over the last week. For the boundless compassion and generosity only capable of humans. I can only hope to be able to give back what has been given to me.
See ya in the water, Scott Stephens
http://www.times-standard.com/breakingnews/ci_21896914/humboldt-shark-attack-victim-punched-shark-rode-wave …………………………………………………………………………………………….. http://www.nbcbayarea.com/news/local/Surfer-Punches-Shark-Survives-Attack-176833751.html . . ……………………………………………………………………………………………. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/10/31/scott-stevens-eureka-shark-attack-surfer-california-humboldt-video_n_2049345.html ……………………………………………………………………………………………..http://www.mercurynews.com/breaking-news/ci_21889541/man-hospitalized-after-shark-attack-off-humboldt-coast
What an incredible story. You are a lucky man! I have to admit that the thought of a shark nearby is always in the back of my mind, but I love the ocean too much to stay out. I wish you a speedy recovery and hope that you will be out surfing again soon!
Very powerful and clear description of your experience, Scott. I am so glad that you made it and are able to share your story. You are one courageous kid! Ruth Sandven, Corie’s mom
Hey Scott, I saw the news story a few weeks back and was waiting to hear about your recovery. A friend (Corie S. from above) posted this story and I realize now that I recognize you from the ENVS department at UCSC! Small world. It is a huge relief to see you are doing well and finding value in this experience. Wishing you the best in recovery and a speedy return to the ocean!
An amazing story, well told! Just another chapter in the Scott Steven’s adventure series. You have always been a gamer in everything you did. We know you will be back on the waves soon enough. Best wishes to a speedy recovery! Bob and Sherry
Great story. Glad you are healing up and looking forward to getting back in the water. Hope you get back into the swing of it quickly.
Sometimes people I work with ask me, “what about sharks?” when I talk about surfing. I tell them that I’m vastly more likely to be killed by a drunk driver on the way to the beach. The possibility is always there, but we try not to think about it.
I also had a near death experience in 2010- when I was T-boned by a deer at nearly 40mph while on my bicycle. The mental challenges are more difficult to recover from than the physical ones. I certainly appreciate everything I have now. I still log several thousands of miles a year on the bike, but my awareness of riding has certainly changed.
Good luck. Hope you follow up your story in a few months.
[…] about it for now. If you want to read Scotty’s amazing shark-bite story, check out his blog. He’s a champion of a human being and we’re all glad he was able to fight for some more […]
Scott,
I live in Bayside and have followed your story with such interest. I was touched by all the people placed in just the right place at just the right time to help you survive. (Dr. VanSpeybroeck saw me through an emergency life-saving surgery once, too. So I know you were in great hands!)
I am a freelance writer for a multi-million readership inspirational magazine. You wrote in your blog that you feel it is your duty to share your joy in being alive with the world. I might be able to help get your story out even further than you have thus far. It is a great story. If you are interested in talking with me, please email me at jcv@northcoast.com, leave your number, and I’ll get in
touch.
Thanks. So pleased to hear of your recovery.