FOR most of us, stone-skimming is something we enjoyed for a few minutes during summer holiday visits to the beach.

But Helensburgh man Alex Lewis is made of rather sterner stuff.

Not content with stone-skimming as a mere day trip pastime, he takes the pursuit so seriously that he’s now been officially confirmed as the best stone-skimmer in Britain – not once but twice.

Alex, 21, a former pupil at Lomond School, threw a distance of 97 metres – a massive 19m clear of his nearest rival – at the British Stone Skimming Championships at Lydbury North in Shropshire on Sunday to retain the title he won in 2017,

Alex told the Advertiser: “It was absolutely fantastic to return and retain my title and show that my training and practice is paying off.

“I was really pleased. I had some really good throws. I had four throws, two were over 80 metres and two were over 90, so I was glad that they were consistent and that all my training had paid off.”

Alex explained that the water conditions have a significant impact on how you perform on the day.

“It was very breezy, so that stopped big stones going in but I had the top throw,” he said.

“It was very funny. The water was up a bit, so the water was quite rippled.

“If the water was calm then you can get quite nice long distances but when it’s up in waves it can slow them down.”

Alex added: “There was a huge number of families there that day just because there was good weather and loads of people were out having picnics.”

The Advertiser previously reported that Alex only started stone-skimming competitively two years ago after someone mentioned that he was very good and should consider entering a competition.

However, he had been practising since the age of five, when his dad taught him how to skim stones.

In last year’s British Championship, held at the same Shropshire venue, Alex threw a distance of 107 metres, equalling the current world record distance, earning him the crown.

He previously told the Advertiser: “It was a fantastic feeling to win. It was a great surprise to get so close to the world record.”

“Getting a title and to be a known name in the world of stone-skimming is great too.”

Following this year’s success in the men’s 16-65 category of the British Championship, Alex is looking to develop his talents in the sport by placing in the International Championships in Japan in August, where there are 250 competitors in the men’s category alone – compared to the British championship, which has 200 competitors overall.

To prepare for the event, Alex explained that he goes to the gym regularly alongside practising various forms of stone skimming.

“I’m really looking forward to it,” he said.

“I was asked by one of the organisers who was at the international championships last year. He said I should come to the championship, and I have been offered free accommodation by the organisers.”