Windsurfer Smashes Into Whale in Wild Video
March 31, 2026
The Daily Beast
KTLAA routine day on the water turned abruptly surreal for a windsurfer who collided with a whale. Video circulating online shows the windsurfer being violently knocked off his board after slamming into a breaching gray whale off the California coast, sending him tumbling into the water in a split-second encounter. The windsurfer, identified as Eric Kramer, was riding near San Francisco when the whale surfaced directly in front of him.
Footage shows him gliding across relatively calm water before the massive animal emerges, striking his board and launching him off. Kramer said he had already tried to adjust his behavior after spotting whales earlier. “It was a ‘whale’ of a day.. Please be cautious and respect wildlife, I had reduced my speed greatly bc I had seen a couple whales in the area but on my last run back it just popped up right in front of me. Glad we are both ok,” he wrote. He was not injured. The whale also appeared unharmed. Online, some questioned why he remained in the area at all. “I mean if you noticed them there, then why did you still decide to sail,” one commenter wrote. “Hmm- what happened to keeping back 300 ft from marine mammals?” another added.Read it at New York PostRead more at The Daily Beast.
The Daily Beast
Coverage and analysis from United States of America. All insights are generated by our AI narrative analysis engine.