Andy McDonald displays the chunk taken out of his wing foiling board by a great white shark.

A 61-year-old man was wing foiling in Western Australia when a great white shark attacked, propelling him skyward before dragging him underwater.

Andy McDonald was wing foiling at the Margaret River surf break Monday afternoon when the terrifying encounter occurred, and it was captured on a surf cam.

“Just out of the blue—bang—it felt like a freight train,” he told Australian Broadcasting Corporation. “Something came up from under the water and just propelled me up into the sky. I knew it was a shark attack.

“I actually fell on top of it, the shark, and I just started punching it. It sort of dragged me underwater, and dragged the board and the sail under.

“And I thought, ‘Well, this is it.’”

McDonald described to 7 News that “it took me under, dragging the board and the sail. It was stuck in my leaches, and then I think the weight of my body…it broke free. Then I was like, ‘Holy hell, I’ve gotta get out of here.”

McDonald’s friend Neil Mattinson heard his screams for help and started paddling straight for him from about 40 yards away.

Mattinson thought McDonald had injured himself on his wing foiling equipment, as it is “quite sharp.”

"I was making my way over to him, thinking, 'Right, we can use leg ropes as tourniquets and whatnot,’” Mattinson told ABC News. "Then I heard the word 'shark.'''

Mattinson didn’t give the risk a second thought.

“I didn’t see it as a choice,” he told ABC News. “Somebody over there is badly hurt or in danger—I’ll just get there as quick as I can.

“I’m so grateful to still have Andy.”

Pieces of the foamy chunks from the hydrofoil board started littering the water as Mattinson reached his friend. They then paddled about 330 yards to shore. McDonald was uninjured in the attack.

This was the 18th encounter with a shark in Australia this year.

The experience did not deter McDonald from ever returning to the ocean. He said he would probably be out wing foiling the next day.

This article originally appeared on For The Win: Great white shark attacks wing foil surfer, bites chunk out of board (video)

Reporting by David Strege, For The Win / For The Win

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