Christopher Speakman, 60, hit the water off Oregon last weekend for a day of ocean surfing with a friend. He had no idea he would use his surfboard to help save the lives of three men.

“I saw an unusual object in the water and experienced a little bit of concern as to what it was,” he told the local media and said he thought it could be a buoy, “but it sure looked like the bow of a boat.”

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