BODEGA

Royce Fraley's fellow surfers were left shaken by his close call Sunday with a great white shark.

Several who had been with him gathered late Sunday afternoon at Bodega's Northern Light Surf Shop to talk about the attack off Marin County's Dillon Beach that left Fraley of Guerneville with minor bites.

They described Fraley as "a private person" and "one of the better surfers on the water."

"He got hit and the shark pulled him under for about four seconds," a surfer said. "Word got out in the lineup pretty fast, and everyone started paddling to shore."

Like many of Fraley's friends, he declined to give his name.

Northern Light owner Nick Marlow, who also was surfing at Dillon Beach on Sunday morning, said Fraley didn't need help to paddle back to the beach.

"He was riding a brand-new board, and there was a big chunk of it taken out and blood where the shark's teeth got scraped up," he said.

"He wasn't limping super-bad," said the surfer who wouldn't give his name. "But with the way his board was, we thought that there'd be some serious injuries.

"He drove himself home, just a little scratched up, like he fell in some berry bushes," added another young man.

"It humbles everyone," Marlow said. "When it's someone you know. . .. And everyone knows everyone here."

The news about the shark attack traveled fast, and by afternoon surfers at Bodega Bay's Doran Beach were discussing it.

Mick Loveland and his wife were walking their dog along the beach while their teenage son and a friend peeled off their wetsuits and dusted sand off their boards.

Loveland said he knew Fraley and was relieved his injuries were few.

"He got bumped once at the mouth of the Russian River and (the shark) put a dent in his board. When I asked him about it, he didn't want to talk about it," he said.

"It's always disconcerting when someone gets chomped, especially at the end of the sharky season," he said.

Veteran surfer Rich Potter, 51, of Bodega, said the attack was "unfortunate" but he was determined to balance the risk against the pleasure of being in the waves.

"It's more dangerous driving these roads," he said. "I've been surfing since Friday. With these swells, it's epic."