Joe Nordquest

Joe Nordquest

One of the true unsung strongman is undoubtedly Joe Nordquest. His name is rarely mentioned at the top of the list of all-time greats yet his strength feats would certainly rank him among them.

He could jump from a table to the floor while maintaining a handstand position, curl 180 pounds and bent press 277-1/2 pounds. He could military press 124-1/4 pounds with one hand, an American record at the time and did a "bridge press" with 388 pounds (breaking Arthur Saxon's record.) -- and he did it all on one leg, having lost a limb in the War.

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Carl Linich - Man of Iron!

Longtime reader Carl Linich has been hitting the iron for a long time, and, as you can see by his choice of equipment, has been doing so in style. Carl is quite the strongman in his own right, check out his best lifts: Standing Press - 270 lbs. Bench Press - 402 lbs. Behind Neck Press - 245 lbs. Jerk from the Rack - 310 lbs. One Hand Clean and Press - 150 lbs. One hand side press - 175 lbs. One Hand Bent Press - 215 lbs. One Hand DB Bent Press - 205 lbs. Carl was also a very good wrestler, winning the New York State Y.M.C.A Heavyweight wrestling championship twice and eventually turned pro in 1956.(Much thanks to Carl for sending in the picture.)

Carl Linich - Man of Iron!

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Bob Harley

Bob Harley
Bob Harley, of Sig Klein's Gym was one of the world's greatest masters of the bent press. In fact, Bob Harley was the winner of the New York City Bent Press contest and was one of the few men to bent press the Rolandow Dumbbell.

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Karl Abs

Karl Abs
Known as the father of German Strength Sports, Karl Abs was the first man in Germany to jerk 130 kg. He could also bent press 242 pounds and was a very good professional wrestler, often billed as "The German Oak."

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George Jowett And The Bent Press

George Jowett And The Bent Press

The great oldtime strongman and strength author George Jowett as he prepares to bent press a heavy globe barbell. Jowett was a master of many different strength feats, most notably, lifting a 168-pound anvil by the horn and other feats of grip strength Jowett's best bent press performance was 304-1/2 pounds. Note the great Milo Kettlebells in the background.

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Paul Baillargeon

Paul Baillargeon
I have said many times that Arthur Saxon's records would never be broken... and they won't be... but the man who has come the closest was Paul Baillargeon of the famed Baillargeon Brothers of Quebec.

These six brothers (who I will feature in another post), were all incredible wrestlers and strength athletes who toured their native Canada and the US taking on all comers.

Paul, who was quite possibly the strongest of the brothers, often lifted a horse as the finale of their strength performances.

Anyhow, this picture shows him oficially bent-pressing a barbell loaded to 321pounds, a feat which he achieved on May 11, 1951, in front of Harry B. Paschall and other reliable witnesses at the Apollo Health Studio in Columbus, Ohio.

Paul Baillargeon actually did succeed in bent-pressing 375 pounds in practice a few times.

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Bert Elliott - Stone Lifting

Bert Elliott - Stone Lifting

When the great weightlifter Bert Elliott was stationed overseas during the Korean War -- did he miss any workouts? No... he just lifted rocks instead of weights. That's a pretty hefty sized boulder that Bert is Bent-Pressing.

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Arthur Saxon - Master of the Bent Press

Arthur Saxon - Master of the Bent Press
It is pretty safe to say that Arthur Saxon's records will never be broken. Saxon was certainly not a large man, but the rugged, functional muscle he possessed is especially evident in these shots.

Moving or holding heavy weights in the bent press (more of a supporting feat than a lift) likely contributed to Saxon's tremendous upper-body power.

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Bert Elliott's Bent-Press

Bert Elliott Bent-Press

The great weightlifter Bert Elliott was also a specialist in the bent-press. He had a special 201-pound globe "Challenge" Dumbbell that few could budge but which he could lift with ease. It was thought by many "old time" weight lifters that due to the incredible midsection strength that was developed by the bent-press, improving that lift would also improve one's total. Sure looks that way here.

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Reg Park's Arm Workout

Reg Park's Arm Workout
Some of the most impressive arms in history belonged to Reg Park. Reg built his arms with basic exercises and focused on getting stronger through time. In his many training courses, Reg recommended a lot of overhead pressing for tricep work and the simple barbell curl for biceps.

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Circus Strongman Pierre Gasnier, The French Hercules

Pierre Gasnier
Pierre Gasnier was the quintessential Oldtime Strongman: BIlled as the "French Hercules," He performed feats of strength for the Barnum and Bailey circus in the late 1890's: tearing decks of cards, bending horseshoes, breaking chains, and lifting his special "challenge weight" globe dumbbell shown here.

The dumbbell had a handle of 2" in diameter and weighs 236 French Livres (which equals 260 pounds) Gasnier weighed only 138 pounds at a height of 5'3" yet was able to lift the weight with ease, a feat that such other noted strongmen such as Sebastian Miller, Hans Beck, and Franz "Cyclops" Bienkowski could not duplicate.

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Arthur Dandurand

Arthur Dandurand

Arthur Dandurand was yet another great Canadian Strongman. It was said that he had a 16-inch forearm at a bodyweight of only 185 pounds and it certainly looks that way in this classic shot. Dandurand was often called the "Canadian Sandow" and some of his best lifts were as follows: One Arm Press: 115 Pounds Two Arm Press: 220 Pounds One Hand Deadlift: 550 Pounds Reverse Curl: 177 Pounds Kennedy Lift: 1100 Pounds In addition to these feats, Dandurand was very good at juggling and bent-pressing human weights. He also could shoulder a 406 Pound truck engine and at a contest in 1908, Dandurand pushed a wheelbarrow loaded to 4300 Pounds for a distance of 23 feet.

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The Famous Rolandow Dumbbell

The Famous Rolandow Dumbbell
The Rolandow Dumbbell has a very interesting history. It was originally cast by the McLoughlin Iron Foundry in Brooklyn, New York in 1896 at the request of Warren Lincoln Travis who wanted to use it in his act.

The dumbbell was supposed to be 200 lbs. but came out of the mold just over it at 209lbs.

A few years went by and fellow strongman G.W. Rolandow offered to purchase it from Travis, on the condition that Travis deliver the bell himself.

Travis grabbed the bell, hopped on the nearest street car, transfered twice and carried the bell two blocks and up two flights of steps to Rolandow's office.

Rolandow then stated that unless he could lift the dumbbell, there would be no sale. And with that, we walked over to it, hefted it to his shoulder and commenced to bent-press it no less than seven times!

After several decades, Rolandow closed his gym and his famous dumbbell eventually became acquired by Sig Klein who featured it as a challenge weight in his gym.

If someone could succeed in bent-pressing the Rolandow Dumbbell, Klein put their name on an Honor Roll, here's how it looked:

(1) G.W. Rolandow...................1900
(2) John Grimek.........................1934
(3) Bob Hoffman........................1936
(4) Wally Zagurski..................1936
(5) John Davis............................1936
(6) Jack Kent..........................1937
(7) Frank Bates........................1937
(8) Bob Harley.........................1937
(9) Siegmund Klein...................1939
(10) Aurele Velleux..................1939
(11) George Hobby...................1940
(12) Elwood Holbrook...............1941

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John Y. Smith and a Unique Barbell

John Y. Smith

Gotta love some of the unique and usual weights that many of the strongmen found to lift. Here's a rare shot of the great Oldtime strongman John Y. Smith as he shoulders an unusual barbell, in his later years. Smith was a very good bent-presser (with a lift of 275 lbs. at a bodyweight of just 160 lbs.) so that is probably what he is getting ready to do.

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John Grimek Bent-Presses the Louis Cyr Challenge Dumbbell

John Grimek had his eye on lifting the Louis Cyr Challenge Dumbbell for a long time. Needless to say the ponderous weight defied his attempts to lift it, just as it had for the better part of nearly a century. Finally, Grimek succeeded in bent-pressing the thick-handled dumbbell overhead and added his name to a very short list. You can currently see the Cyr Challenge dumbbell at the York Barbell Hall of Fame in York Pennslyvania.

John Grimek Bent-Presses the Louis Cyr Challenge Dumbbell

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Joe Nordquest

Joe Nordquest

Joe Nordquest was one of those rare individuals who seemed to posses incredible strength at whatever lift he tried. He could perform a one-finger and holdout with a 70-pound dumbbell and his record 388 pound "shoulder bridge press" still stands, (at least to my knoweldge.) Here is Joe Nordquest in mid-bent press. (He could bent press nearly 300 pounds with ease.) -- Gotta love that globe barbell.

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Chuck Ahrens and Bert Elliott

Chuck Ahrens and Bert Elliot

Two fixtures in the Santa Monica, California Muscle Beach scene share a laugh in the late 1950's - Chuck Ahrens and Bert Elliott. Chuck Ahrens was a man of immeasurable power, and Bert Elliott was a champion weightlifter and bodybuilder (He won the 1954 Sr. Nationals Weightlifting Title in the 165 Plound Class (totalling 765 pounds), the 1953 "Iron Man" bodybuilding contest as well as the 1954 AAU Mr. Southern California.) At their feet is Bert Elliott's 201 pound "challenge" dumbbell which he could bent- press with ease.

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Sandow Lifts The Rolandow Barbell

Sandow Lifts The Rolandow Barbell
I've mentioned the Rolandow Barbell before. And as I also mentioned, it goes back a long way and that several famous strongmen have lifted it...

Here's a look at Eugen Sandow rocking the Rolandow Barbell back into position so that he can bent press it in 1902 or so.

The thick handle is, of course, a distinguishing mark of real "Oldtime" barbells and Rolandow lifted it many times.

Kind of amazing that a century later you can go to the York Barbell Company Museum (where the Rolandow Barbell Currently Resides) and touch the very same weight that so many great strongmen once lifted.

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Professor Attila

Professor Attila was one of the true innovators of the Iron Game. It was Attila who came up with the idea for hollow equipment which could be loaded with shot to increase the weight. Professor Attila also invented several oldtime strongman exercises such as the bent press, the Roman Chair, the Roman Column and the feat of tearing decks of poker cards in half. It was also Attila who inspired a young Eugen Sandow to start strength training after Sandow watched Attila's strongman performance -- eventually, Attila became Sandow's mentor and coached him to even greater heights.

Professor Attila

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The Rolandow Barbell

The Rolandow Barbell
The Rolandow Barbell once belonged to the Swiss Strongman G.W. Rolandow who would bent-press it each night in his performance. This barbell has been lifted by many famous strongmen, including Eugen Sandow.

The Rolandow Barbell has had many famous owners over the years. It was purchased by Professor Attila, then Sig Klein (as shown). The Rolandow Barbell can currently be seen in the York Barbell Company Museum in York, Pennsylvania.

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G.W. Rolandow

G.W. Rolandow was a Swiss Strongman who publically challenged Sandow to a contest on several occasions only to have Sandow turn him down each time. Rolandow accomplished the following lifts: One Arm Snatch - (Right Arm) 180 pounds Bent Press - 298 Pounds Partial Deadlift 1650 Pounds Tomb of Hercules Support - 3500 Pounds Card Tearing - three card decks at once

G.W. Rolandow

Rolandow could also jump over a table, 36 inches high and 25 inches wide while holding a 75 pound dumbbell in each hand.

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Oldtime Strongman John Y. Smith

John Y. Smith

John Y. Smith was a great strongman in the New England area in the early 1900's. Among his many impressive feats were a right hand bent-press of 275-1/2 pounds (which broke Louis Cyr's mark) and a left hand bent-press of 248 pounds (Which stood as an American record for many years.) It was said that Smith's hands resembled "Iron Claws" due to his extensive training with Thick Bars.

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Arthur Saxon's 2-Hands Anyhow Lift

The undisputed King of the "2 Hands Anyhow" Lift was Arthur Saxon. First he bent-pressed a 336 pound barbell with his right arm, then he reached down and lifted a 112 pound Kettlebell in the other. The total poundage was 448 pounds lifted overhead - a feat that will never be broken in this style.

Arthur Saxon's 2-Hands Anyhow Lift

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The Louis Cyr Challenge Dumbbell

The Louis Cyr Challenge Dumbbell
This incredible dumbbell belonged to the famous Quebec strongman Louis Cyr who used it in his act as a challenge for anyone to lift it.

Due to the 1-5/8 inch thick handle the bell is difficult to lift but it was specially designed for Cyr who had a very strong grip. It weighed 202 pounds empty and at its heaviest, packed with metal pellets, Cyr's Dumbbell weighed 273 pounds. Cyr handled it easily using the overhead "side press" style.

To this day only a handful of men have been successful in lifting it overhead with one arm.

Among them John Grimek, Sig Klein, and Wally Zagurski as shown above using the bent press style (Yes, that's the exact dumbbell above being lifted by those individuals at different points in time.) The Cyr Dumbbell currently resides in the York Barbell Company Hall of Fame in York, Pennsylvania.

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Louis Durlacher aka Professor Attila

Louis Durlacher aka Professor Attila
It was Louis Durlacher aka Professor Attila who trained a young Fredrick Mueller and changed his name to Eugen Sandow.

It was also Professor Attila who invented many of the feats of strength we know today, such as the Roman Column, the Roman Chair, supporting feats in the human bridge position, tearing packs of playing cards; and the the hollow globe-ended barbells and dumbbells we know today.

Attila was also the first man to bent press over 200 pounds and in addition to Sandow, Professor Attila could also list many other famous strongmen among his students:

Including: Warren Lincoln Travis, Anthony Barker, Horace Barre, Arthur Dandurand, Lionel Strongfort, George Rolandow, Louis Cyr, Bobby Pandour and Adolph Nordquest.

In 1894, Professor opened his famous Studio of Physical Culture in downtown New York city. His daughter, Grace, later married Sig Klein.

If Eugen Sandow was the "Father" of Oldtime Strongmen, surely Professor Attila, was the Grandfather.

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Casey Viator's Mr. America Workout

In 1971, Casey Viator won the Mr. America Bodybuilding Title in the most spectacular fashion in history. Not only did he win the overall contest, he won the following sub-divisions as well: Most Muscular, Best Arms, Best Back, Best Chest and Best Legs - all at 19 years of age!

And, interestingly enough, Viator did not spend hours in the gym like many other bodybuilders of the time. Instead, as trained by Athur Jones, Casey's workout took very little time and was performed only three times per week.

Here's a look at his exact workout:

Casey Viator's Mr. America Workout

1. Leg Press 2. Leg Extension 3. Squat 4. Leg Curl 5. Dumbbell One Leg Calf Raise 6. Nautilus Pullover 7. Nautilus Behind Neck Press 8. Nautilus Rowing Machine 9. Nautilus Behind Neck Pulldown 10. Dumbbell Lateral Raise 11. Barbell Behind Neck Press 12. Nautilus Curl Machine 13. Chinup w/Bodyweight 14. Nautilus Tricep Extension 15. Parallel Dip w/Bodyweight

The above workout, as performed on June 10th, 1971, took exactly seventeen minutes and fourty seconds.

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Mr. Thomas Inch of England