A NINE-YEAR-OLD boy is aiming to be yards ahead of the competition when it comes to the latest playground craze.
Loom bands have taken the nation by storm – and St John's Primary School in Caterham is no exception.
The small plastic wrist bands are all the rage this year, adorning everyone from football icons to princesses.
And young Joshua Maher is leading the way at the school in Markfield Road.
He has created a chain measuring more than 200 feet long, comprising about 8,000 linked-together bands.
It fills the whole playground when it is fully extended.
The craze has taken the country by storm. And more than 3 million units have been sold by Amazon UK.
Children spend hours using plastic looms – or their own fingers – to weave coloured bands into items such as bracelets, necklaces, animal shapes or things like skipping ropes.
Joshua's mother Carla Flute said: "He was given a starter kit of about 1,000 bands for his birthday a month ago.
"Within a day he had looped them all together.
"Each day as he waited for his supper Joshua would add more on.
"The chain got so big that it would not fit inside our living room and so he had to take it to school.
"Other pupils crowd around him in the playground and help him unravel it.
"When it was measured on Tuesday, it was 206 feet long."
Alister Moses, deputy head at St John's, said: "Joshua has taken it to the ultimate degree, setting himself the challenge of making it as big as possible, and is very proud of what he has done.
"The loom bands craze is sweeping across our school just as much as it has affected the whole country." Mr Moses said he has own loom band creation.
A pupil made it for him and it adorns his set of keys.
Joshua told the Mirror: "Other children bring them in to school, and I want to make sure I've got the longest loom bands.
"It really keeps me busy."
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Loom bands - a history
Loom bands were invented last year in the USA by a father-of-two. Since then his company, Rainbow Looms, has sold more than four million kits worldwide.
Celebrities to have worn them include presenter David Beckham, the Duchess of Cornwall, One Direction's Harry Styles and pop star Miley Cyrus.
Loom bands can be used to create various accessories and toys, including key rings, phone cases and even shoes.
The Duchess of Cambridge was given bracelets by two girls in April, and both she and Prince William wore them afterwards. Since then suppliers Hobbycraft said sales have soared by 330 per cent.
All 30 of the best-selling toys currently on Amazon UK are either looms or loom-related. The products top the sales list for every age group except the under-twos.
Children use the looms, or their own fingers, to weave coloured bands into items such as bracelets, necklaces and charms. There are dozens of different designs including the "fishtail", the "dragon scale" and the "inverted hexafish".
