A look at a a training session at Father B.H. Lange’s Gym, at the University of Notre Dame. Lange was a great carpenter and made much of the equipment (i.e. benches and racks) shown here. Father Lange’s Gym began in 1941, when two students who were lifters were leaving to go join the Royal Canadian Air Force and entrusted their weights to Father Lange and it started building from there into one of the premier gyms and programs in the land.

One of Lange’s star pupils was Mike Burgener, who came to Notre Dame as a 165-pound freshman halfback looking to gain size and strength in order to compete on the collegiate gridiron. Under Lang’s tutelage, Burgener grew to 182 pounds, a key contributor to the 1966 National Championship team, and set an American record of 400 pounds in the press. Rather interestingly, Burgener also went on to become of the the “founding fathers” of Crossfit.