Tuesday, October 13, 2009
Steve Jeck and The StonesSteve Jeck had a set of stones made up in the same style as the famous Dinnie Stones and often takes them for a walk during his performances. We have actually looked into featuring stones like these (i.e. with an embedded lifting ring), but perhaps a bit more managable. Interested?
Labels: Dinnie Stones, Steve Jeck, Stone Lifting
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Saturday, September 12, 2009
Unspunnen StoneMany cultures have a long tradition of Stone Lifting. Another great example of this is the Unspunnen Stone of Switzerland. The stone is so named for the Unspunnenfest, a cultural festival held near the ruins of the old Unspunnen Castle near Interlaken, Switzerland.
This festival, which began officially in 1805, features a celebration of Swiss culture with competitions in yodeling, wrestling, and, of course, stone throwing. Unspunnenfest takes place roughly every 10 years or so, with the most recent event occurring in 2006.
As for the the Unspunnen Stone itself, it weighs 184 lbs., and the object of the Steinstossen event is to hurl it as far as possible. Pictured above is Markus Maire, a 35-year old Swiss carpenter who won the 2006 event with an overhead throw of 3.89 meters (12.76 feet).
Labels: Famous Stones, Markus Maire, Stone Lifting, Stone Lifting in Switzerland, Stone Throwing, The Unspunnen Stone, Traditional Exercise
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Thursday, August 20, 2009
Stone Lifting Without a StoneHow do you practice stone lifting inside without putting a few holes in your floor? Pat Povialitis figured out a pretty interesting way using a buch of bumper plates. Needless to say the awkwardness of this setup, combined with the fact that the plates have to be "crushed" together by the upper body to complete the lift, makes this a very effective training technique.
Labels: Bumper Plates, Pat Povilaitis, Stone Lifting, Stone lifting Exercise
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Sunday, June 28, 2009
"Ya Gotta Use Your Head!"Steve Jeck is fond of saying that if you want to be a great stone lifter then ya gotta use your head. Here, he shows what he means -- at least in one sense. I don't know the weight of that particular stone but it sure doesn't look light.
Labels: Neck Strap, Neck Strength, Steve Jeck, Stone Lifting
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Saturday, June 06, 2009
Basque Stone LiftingYou can find Stone Lifting in many different cultures but none are more famous -- or stronger - than the Basque people of Northern Spain where stone lifting is their ethnic sport known as Harrijasotzaileak.
The Basques compete in stone lifting in several ways, either the heaviest possible stone for a single repetition or a lighter stone lifted for maximum repetitions in a short amount of time. In either case, a completed 'lift' is from the ground to the shoulder or upper chest. They also lift several different standardized shapes of stones, each with their own unique challenge. I will cover those at a later date.
By the way, the current record for shouldering the heaviest possible stone is 329 kg by Mikeltxo Saralegui. - That's 724 pounds!
Labels: Basque Stone Lifting, Basque Stones, Harrijasotzaileak, Mikeltxo Saralegui, Odd Object Lifting, Stone Lifting, Traditional Exercise, Unusual Strength, Unusual Training Equipment
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Monday, June 01, 2009
Stone CarryingLooking for a good test of mental strength? Try picking up a heavy stone and going for a walk. Carry as long as you can, the exercise only ends when you decide it does. Needless to say Steve Jeck is a big fan of this one.
Labels: Odd Object Lifting, Steve Jeck, Stone Carrying, Stone Lifting, Weight Carrying
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Tuesday, May 05, 2009
Robert B. SnyderThere have been more than a few great strongmen who are not giants. A perfect example is Robert B. Snyder of Hagerstown, Maryland. As a boy he was inspired by the strongman from the Forepaugh & Sells circus and began training by lifting barrels and stones. He also taught himself hand balancing - something which he would become exceptionally good at.
At the age of 14 (weighing 116 pounds) Snyder lifted his first barbell -- a MILO barbell owned by a local strongman. Shortly afterward, Snyder began following MILO barbell course #1 and showed tremendous improvement... so much so that he was featured in Bernarr MacFadden's Physical Culture Magazine as well as Alan Calvert's STRENGTH Magazine.
At his heaviest, Snyder weighed only 139 pounds yet was incredibly strong easily performing multiple one-arm chins with each hand as well as lifting poundages well above bodyweight. Above, Snyder performs the one-arm get up lift with a human weight.
Labels: Alan Calvert, Barrel Lifting, Circus Strongman, Hand Balancing, Human Lift, Milo Bar Bell Courses, Milo Barbell Company, One Arm Getup, Robert B. Snyder, Stone Lifting, Strength Magazine
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Friday, March 13, 2009
 Stone Lifting in Ancient Greece | Every ancient culture has evidence of stone lifting as a method of physical preparation. The Ancient Greeks often portrayed stone lifting and other athletic events on their pottery. This piece of pottery dates to about 500BC and shows a young man lifting a smaller stone in either hand. |
Labels: Ancient Greece, Pottery, Stone Lifting, Stone Lifting in Ancient Greece
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Tuesday, January 27, 2009
A Congress of Japan's Famous Strong MenHere's a pretty interesting item, a poster from the Barnum and Bailey Circus advertising "A Congress of Japan's Famous Strong Men." Based on the attire, I would expect to see sumo wrestling and/or grappling such as is pictured in the top half of the poster.
The bottom illustrations are intriguing though: Sumo wrestlers engaging in stone lifting, steel scrolling, live animal wrestling, horseshoe bending... and of particular interest is the gent in the bottom right holding a kettlebell in each hand. This poster is from the 1921 Circus season.
Labels: Barnum and Bailey Circus, Circus, Circus Poster, Horseshoe Bending, Japan, Japanese Strongman, Kettlebells, Stone Lifting, Sumo Wrestlers
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Monday, December 08, 2008
Pat PovilaitisBefore he was "The Human Vise" Pat Povilaitis was just a guy lifting in his basement and getting stronger. Here's a shot of Pat from a few years back lifting a 292-pound honed granite stone. You won't find many folks of any bodyweight able to do that, Pat was only 180-pounds at the time.
Labels: Granite Sphere, Granite Stone, Human Vise, Lifting Stones, Pat Povilaitis, Stone Ball, Stone Lifting
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Sunday, September 07, 2008
David Prowse Lifts The Dinnie StonesFor over a century the only man to lift the famed Dinnie Stones was Donald Dinnie himself. The, in 1964, British strongman David Prowse came along and changed history.
To this day, the 6'7" Prowse is still the tallest man to lift the 785-pound stones (totalled together.) Prowse went on to play Darth Vader in a little film called Star Wars.
Labels: British Strongman, Challenge Weight, David Prowse, Dinnie Stones, Donald Dinnie, Famous Stones, Stone Lifting
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Saturday, March 29, 2008
 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. |
Labels: Bent Press, Bert Elliott, Odd Object Lifting, Rock Lifting, Stone Lifting
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Friday, February 01, 2008
| In 1995, Steve Jeck toured Scotland to lift many of its most famous manhood stones. Of course, the Dinnie Stones were tops on the list. Here's Steve warming up wth the smaller of the two stones which weighs 340 pounds. Did Steve lift 'em both? You'll have to turn to page 76 of his book to find out. |  Steve Jeck vs. The Dinnie Stones |
Labels: Challenge Weight, Clach Cuid Fir, Famous Stones, Lifting Stones, Steve Jeck, Stone Lifting, Testing Stone
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Monday, January 14, 2008
Sandow's One Arm DeadliftSandow was a master of many different kinds of strength feats. Don't know if he ended up lifting this 1500 lb. block of sandstone (doubtful) but he sure looked like he could.
While you may not have a stone like this around, the one-arm deadlift while straddling two benches or platforms to increase the range of motion is an excellent exercise. Normally I don't recommend straps but Sandow can get away with it when he's lifting that kind of weight.
Labels: Eugen Sandow, Oldtime Strongman Feat, One Arm Deadlift, Stone Lifting
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Tuesday, January 01, 2008
| Stone lifting is a traditional sport in many different cultures that goes back thousands of years both as a test of strength and as a method of training. Most of the examples of famous stone lifting that you hear of come from European countries but there are examples of it all over the world This commemorative stamp, which features stone lifting as a traditional sport, was issued in French Polynesia. |  Stonelifting in Polynesia |
Labels: French Polynesia, Lifting Stones, Stamp, Stone Lifting
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Saturday, November 17, 2007
| I've mentioned before that there is evidence that stone lifting has been a part of nearly every ancient culture around the world. Here's a look at a piece of pottery from ancient Greece, circa 500 BC, showing a young man lifting a large stone to build his strength. |  Stonelifting in Ancient Greece |
Labels: Ancient Greece, Stone Lifting, Strongman Feat, Testing Stone
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Tuesday, November 13, 2007
The Dinnie StonesDonald Dinnie was one of the greatest all-around athletes who ever lived. I will go into some of his feats of strength and Scottish Highland Games prowess in another post -- this entry is devoted to one feat in particular...
Outside the hotel in Potarch, Scotland are two boulders with heavy iron rings embedded in them. These boulders were used for tethering horses in olden days.
The smaller boulder weighs 340 pounds while the larger boulder weighs 445. In the 1860's, Donald Dinnie was able to lift and carry both of these stones at once for a distance of 15 feet -- which is why they now bear his name.
Athletes have come from far and wide to attempt to lift the stones and duplicate Donald Dinnie's amazing feat -- most can't even lift the smaller of the two off the ground with one hand!
Labels: Challenge Weight, Dinnie Stones, Donald Dinnie, Highland Games, Stone Lifting, Strongman Feat, Testing Stone
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Monday, November 12, 2007
Basque Stone LiftingStone lifting is the official sport of the Basque People, an ethnic minority who live in the Pyrennees mountains between Spain and France.
In their stone lifting contests, they lift four different kinds of stones: spheres, cubes, cylinders and irregular shapes. Depending on the type of contest they may lift for a single heavy maximum or for reps in a given period of time.
Their records are mind-boggling.
The lifter above is mid-way through what is called a "Basque Necktie" where a stone sphere is shouldered, then rolled around his neck as many times as possible.
More on Basque Stone Lifting at a later date...
Labels: Basque Necktie, Basque Stone Lifting, Challenge Weight, Ethnic Sport, Stone Lifting
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Tuesday, November 06, 2007
| "There is strength and permanence to stone. And because stones last, the stories of the men who lift them as well. When one embraces an ancient testing stone, he also embraces the history of that stone. He must exert that same Herculean effort and his body will suffer the same toll as all those hearty lads who dared to hoist the same load. He will also know, if victorious, the same exilaration and pride felt by his worthy predecessors." |  Steve Jeck |
Labels: Challenge Weight, Steve Jeck, Stone Lifting, Testing Stone
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Sunday, November 04, 2007
Bybon's StoneNearly every ancient culture has evidence of stone lifting as a form of physical training for athletes and warriors.
The large sandstone pictured above dates to the 6th century B.C., weighs 315 lbs. and the inscription on it says: "Bybon, son of Pholos, threw this over his head with one hand."
You can find out more about ancient stone lifting here: Of Stones and Strength by Steve Jeck
Labels: Ancient Greece, Challenge Weight, Steve Jeck, Stone Lifting
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Saturday, June 30, 2007
| Every culture has it's own "meaning" for strength. Here are a few pictures from a stone lifting contest held at the 7th National Ethnic Games in Yinchuan, Northwest China's Ningxia Province. At the games, which are held every four years like the Olympics, over 3,700 ethnic athletes from 34 delegations competed. The rules of the stone lifting contest are a bit unlike most stone lifting contests you probably have ever heard of. Theses Tibetan giants lift the stones any way they can, either to hold in their arms, placed on shoulders or put up on their backs. They then walk in a circular path and the one who walks the most circles wins. The stone pictured is said to weigh 160 kg. To learn more about Stone Lifting in other cultures, check out Steve Jeck's book: Of Stones and Strength |   |
Labels: Stone Lifting, Stone Lifting in Tibet, Strongman Feat
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All Contents, Including Images and Text, Copyright © 2010 by John Wood and Thunderdome Media Inc., Not to be reproduced without permission, All Rights Reserved
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