ANDY Ellison is flying high after becoming the British champion of a model-aircraft sport known as slope racing.

Andy, aged 37, beat off 30 competitors when he took to the Welsh mountains for the British National Slope Racing Championships on August 1.

The competition saw "pilots" racing radio-controlled £1,000 model gliders round a 1,000-metre course against the clock.

Andy, who has only been flying model aircraft for two years, raced round the course in around 45 seconds as his hi-tech glider touched speeds of up to 150 mph off the famous 1,000ft high cliffs of the 'Bwlch Mountain' near Bridgend.

He said: "There were people there who have been doing this for longer than me and who beat me on a regular basis but it just came together on the day.

"It's quite a technical sport but very fast and tactically driven. Basically you launch the glider off the side of a mountain into the wind like you do with a hang-glider and pray there's some wind.

"Then you fly 10 legs of a 100 metre course and the fastest time wins."

The gliders have a three-metre wingspan, reach speeds of more than 200 mph and are made from kevlar and carbon fibre -- the same materials used in Formula 1 racing.

Andy, of Lower Landedmans, Westhoughton, is the president of the Tyldesley Model Flying Club and recently represented England in the Norwegian Slope Racing championship, finishing fourth overall.

His triumph in Wales ensured he will go on to represent Great Britain at the World Slope Racing Championships in Germany this coming October. He said: "Model flying is a sport kids can be into for as little as £250 and have a lot of fun with."

Anyone who wants more information on flying model planes can visit the flying club's website at www.tmfc.org.uk.

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BACK AT BASE: Andy has only been flying model aircraft for two years

TOP OF THE WORLD: Andy Ellison, also pictured inset, with his model aircraft