A Clayton man has tapped his way into the record books, by keeping a steady beat. As WB 22's Ric Swiner tells us, if you're going to march to the beat of this drummer, you better march fast.

When it comes to making music, Eric Okamoto turns to this electric drum set to bang out the beats, but when it comes to making world records, all he needs is a practice pad, a drumometer and focus-- lots of focus. Last month, Okamoto came in first place in closed double stroke rolls, tapping out 1,559 strokes in a minute.

"It was such a struggle at first because I was preparing incorrectly," he says. "Then, when I found out how to do it correctly, then it got a lot easier. Then, it was just more of a relief."

He says training for the World's Fastest Drummer competition was like preparing for a major sports competition and he says he got a little advice from everyone.

"I asked my students, I asked friends, colleagues, track coaches, anybody because it is kind of like a sport. They were telling me how to train as far as for endurance and speed and you can't leave one without the other."

Okamoto teaches percussion at Burt's School of Music in Cary. He says while he's noted for being the man with some of the fastest hands in the land, speed isn't what you need to be a great drummer. It's patience and discipline.

If you think this is just as simple as tapping on a practice pad, think again. This is a whole lot harder than it looks."

So, for now, we'll leave the playing to the pros. Ric Swiner WB 22 News at 10.

Okamoto is also ranked sixth for single stroke rolls. He says, at this point, he plans to break his new record next year.