Luckily for one California surfer, a shark swimming in San Mateo County waters over the weekend managed to get only a sample of his surfboard. Jens Heller was about 100 yards offshore at Montara State Beach sitting on his board Saturday when the shark attacked, according to reporting from the San Francisco Chronicle.

Shark attacks in California are exceptionally rare, averaging fewer than two incidents per year across the state over the last decade, according to the California Academy of Sciences. Heller said he believed he was attacked by a white shark, which is the primary species involved in nearly all unprovoked attacks in California.

A surfer is speaking out after surviving a terrifying close call with a shark in California. Jens Heller was in the water at Montara State Beach when he suddenly felt something beneath the surface, according to ABC affiliate KGO, the San Francisco Chronicle and NBC affiliate KNTV .