Bent Horseshoes Archives - www.oldtimestrongman.com

Another Look at the Iron Shoe Exerciser

Posted on Monday, November 13th, 2017 by John Wood

Another look at the “Iron Shoe.” There’s nothing better than an Iron Shoe for building “short-range” strength and learning how to bend horseshoes. The full course for this apparatus is posted in The Iron League

The Human Vise Strikes Again!

Posted on Wednesday, November 8th, 2017 by John Wood

Why do they call Pat Povilaitis the Human Vise? This collection of bent steel should explain it: about a hundred pounds of bent, mangled steel: nails, spikes, horseshoes, rebar, bolts, wrenches, drill bits, screw drivers, ripped card decks… nothing is safe when “The Vise” does his thing.

J.C. Tolson ~ The Young Mighty Apollon

Posted on Thursday, November 2nd, 2017 by John Wood

J.C. Tolson, of Yorkshire, England, took the stage name of “The Young Mighty Apollon” after his hero the original Apollon”, the great French Strongman. Tolson was a master of many different strength feats, including bending steel as shown here. The image above is actually from the Apollon Bar Bending Course which is posted in full in The Iron LeagueTolson was not a large man but had tremendous full-body power. In 1927, at a bodyweight of only 185 pounds, Tolson easily deadlifted 550 pounds, one of the first men to do so. .

Joseph Greenstein ~ The Mighty Atom

Posted on Saturday, May 26th, 2012 by John Wood

His real name was Joseph Greenstein but he was better known as “The Mighty Atom” …and he became one of the greatest known “Strongmen” of all time despite the fact that he stood only 5 feet 5 inches tall and weighed in at 140 pounds. As a young boy in Poland, young Joseph Greenstein was befriended by a Russian champion named Volanko, who taught him the secrets of strengthening his mind. as well as his body.

The Mighty Atom bent horseshoes, broke chains by chest expansion, bit nails in two, held back airplanes and even once stopped a bullet… The Atom’s student Slim “The Hammer Man” Farman also went on to perform strength amazing feats of strength, many of which will never be duplicated.