Lee Stone is a man with the freestyle world at his feet, and who is now getting the recognition he deserves. Tom Isitt reports.

Here’s a top-tip: don’t Google ‘Lee Stone’ on your office computer. Instead of getting info about the four-times World Freestyle Champion you are more likely to come up with listings for Lee Stone, star of Maximum Thrust 3, Tatooed & Tight, and around 1100 other movies of an adult nature. I know this because my 13 year-old son, excited that his dad had spent the day photographing a four-times World Champion Jet Skier, went on the internet to find out more (note to self: must tighten up Parental Controls on kids‚ computer).

Lee Stone, the freestyler, has achieved quite a lot in his modest 19 years on this planet. Although he has only been skiing competitively for six years, in that time he has won the World Championship four times, he's won the European title three times, and he‚s won the British title three times (not to mention titles in Russia and Austria). Yep, our Lee is a well-travelled young man, and the scary thing is that he's only 19 he could be doing this for at least another decade, possibly two! He is seriously handy when it comes to grabbing big air on a stand-up. And what a stand-up. It is an Eric Malone 1105cc Q8 that puts out well in excess of 200hp. Endearingly it’s an engine from the dark-ages, a stinky old two-stroke with reed-valve induction, but the power-to-weight ratio is awesome and it has bags of low-down grunt, precisely what you need for launching into the air from practically nothing. It also has some clever stuff going on with the pump and nozzle, but every time I went near it with my camera one of Lee’s associates came dashing over to shoo me away. Apparently there some trick stuff going on here that Lee doesn’t want the world to know about.

Lee is the exception, rather than the rule, not just because he’s a teenager with a hatfull of titles but because he’s a PW competitor with a proper sponsor and nose for publicity. We caught up with him at the beginning of June at a media event laid on at Lagoona Park near Reading, where Lee was meeting the media. And I don’t mean some bloke (me) from Jet Skier & PW magazine these were proper media types from the national Press and BBC TV.

There was even a proper PR girl in attendance, making sure I was bountifully supplied with food and drinks while Lee did endless pieces to camera and performed dozens of back-flips for assorted TV cameramen. In between all that he found the time to teach various Press numpties how to ride a stand-up. Well, he tried I’m not sure he was entirely successful, but then it took me more than one attempt before I achieved the legendary stand-up status I now enjoy.

From a PR perspective it was a good day journalists, notoriously reluctant to stray too far from the pub, engage in any form of physical exercise, or wear tight-fitting rubber, turned up and seemed to enjoy themselves. Not only that, but Lee’s sponsors, Multipower (purveyors of sports nutrition products to the athletically-inclined) got some good publicity, although I’m not sure the BBC’s VT editors will allow some of the more blatant product-placement to slip through to the final edit. And Lee is an engaging bloke with an ability to talk about himself and his sport on all levels, from kids TV, to grown-up fitness magazines, to this esteemed organ.

What next for Lee, I asked. After all, you‚ve won pretty much everything there is to win, several times.He grins his disarming grin. Just keep on winning, I guess. And I, for one, wouldn’t bet against it.
Suitable for Work Website: 
www.lee-stone.com