Wired spoke with the incredibly affable Kurt Steiner, the Guinness World Record holder for the most consecutive skips of a stone on water. Steiner explained that while it’s a very physical activity, he loves the unique sport immensely.
Kurt Steiner is record holding champion stone skipper—and a master of the physics that underpin the sport. A labor of love that’s evolved into a world-class passion.
Steiner shared his favorite place to find skimming stones, the qualities he looks for in a stone, his form for varying skips, how he relies on natural elements such as wind to guide the stones, and what it all means to him.
I think what’s not understood is how impressive it can be when it’s taken above the level of a picnic. A simple thing, through a mastery, becomes a really visual, spiritual kind of art form. [spectators murmur] It’s a way of making joy out of nothing, and that can’t be valueless.
