A Florida surfer got blindsided by one flying shark that left him grateful to be alive

This Florida man thought he’d seen everything.

He’d watched shark attacks happen right in front of him at the beach.

But a Florida surfer got blindsided by one flying shark that left him grateful to be alive.

This wasn’t your typical shark encounter

Darren Kaye was doing what any sensible Florida man does on a perfect surf day at New Smyrna Beach – he grabbed his board and headed straight into shark-infested waters.

The seasoned surfer had already spotted several sharks cruising near the shore that morning.

He’d even witnessed a few shark attacks happen right there on the beach.

Most people would’ve called it a day and headed for the safety of dry sand.

But this is Florida we’re talking about, and Kaye wasn’t going to let some sharks keep him from catching waves.

“We always have waves. We are lucky,” Kaye told WFTV 9 about why he keeps surfing at New Smyrna Beach despite its reputation as a shark hotspot.¹

The inlet northeast of Orlando is crawling with sharks thanks to its shallow waters and abundance of fish – exactly the kind of buffet that draws spinner sharks, blacktip sharks, and the much more dangerous bull sharks.

The moment everything went sideways

Kaye was sitting on his surfboard, keeping one eye on the water around him for any lurking predators.

What he didn’t think to do was check the airspace above his head.

That’s when a spinner shark – aptly named for its signature spinning leaps during feeding – decided to launch itself like a missile straight at Kaye’s face.

The wild footage captured on a beach camera shows the shark rocketing out of the water and delivering a headbutt that knocked Kaye clean off his board.

“I was just really happy its mouth wasn’t open because that’s how they fish,” Kaye explained to the local news station.²

Spinner sharks can leap up to 20 feet above the water’s surface while hunting, spinning through the air to catch fish.

Kaye just happened to be in the wrong place at the wrong time when this particular shark decided to go airborne.

The impact hit like a freight train

The collision wasn’t just a gentle bump from a confused fish.

Kaye described the moment as feeling exactly like getting hit by a car – and he knows that feeling all too well.

“I have a scar on the side of my elbow from [being hit by a car] and that’s like what it felt like,” Kaye told WFTV 9. “It felt like getting hit by a car. It was really strong and powerful. They’re all muscle, you know.”³

The impact sent his heart rate skyrocketing to about 195 beats per minute as he scrambled to get back on his board and paddle away from the scene.

For a split second, Kaye had no idea what had just blindsided him.

One moment he’s sitting peacefully on his surfboard, the next he’s getting body-slammed by a flying predator.

“I got right back on my board and my pulse went to about 195 in a second. I paddled as fast as I could right out of the way,” he said.⁴

Classic Florida man response

Most people would probably never set foot in those waters again after getting headbutted by a shark.

Not Darren Kaye.

In true Florida man fashion, he spent the rest of the weekend surfing at the exact same beach where the attack happened.

He surfed there the next morning and the afternoon after that.

Because when you’re a Florida surfer and the waves are good, apparently not even an airborne shark attack is going to keep you out of the water.

“We surfed there the rest of the weekend, we surfed there this morning, we surfed there yesterday afternoon,” Kaye told reporters with the kind of casual attitude that only comes from a lifetime of living in the Sunshine State.⁵

Even the local news reporter covering the story admitted this was “a total Florida Man story” – which says something considering Florida news is clearly her regular beat.

Why this attack was actually lucky

As terrifying as getting headbutted by a flying shark sounds, Kaye actually got off easy in this encounter.

Spinner sharks aren’t known for having the strongest bite or being particularly aggressive toward humans.

The real danger at New Smyrna Beach comes from bull sharks – one of the most dangerous species to people.

If Kaye had been hit by a bull shark instead of a spinner shark, this story could have had a very different ending.

The fact that the spinner shark’s mouth was closed during impact probably saved Kaye from serious injury or worse.

Spinner sharks hunt by leaping out of the water with their mouths open to catch fish, but this one apparently wasn’t in feeding mode when it collided with the unsuspecting surfer.

Summer shark season in full swing

This bizarre attack comes at the height of summer shark season along the East Coast.

Earlier this month, a 9-year-old girl nearly lost her hand in another shark attack in Florida, though surgeons were able to reattach it.

Days later, a beachgoer in South Carolina was mauled by a shark near Hilton Head Island and had to be airlifted to the hospital.

New Smyrna Beach has earned its reputation as the “shark bite capital of the world” for good reason.

The shallow waters and abundant fish population create the perfect storm for shark encounters.

But for dedicated surfers like Kaye, the risk is just part of the deal when you’re chasing the perfect wave.

This Florida man’s encounter with a flying shark will definitely go down as one of the more unique shark stories to come out of the Sunshine State.

And knowing Florida, that’s really saying something.

¹ WFTV 9, “Florida man headbutted by airborne shark while surfing,” July 1, 2025 ² Ibid. ³ Ibid. ⁴ Ibid. ⁵ Ibid.