Strongman Feat Archives - www.oldtimestrongman.com

Carl Busch

Posted on Wednesday, April 3rd, 2019 by John Wood

Another look at Carl Busch as he performs a Crucifix lift with a pair of German Kettlebells. At one time Busch had an act where he wrestled a bull (Busch always won.)

Steve Justa: The High Plains Heavy Metal Iron Master

Posted on Friday, October 19th, 2018 by John Wood

Out in the Nebraska cornfields you’ll find a man who lifts anything he can get his hands on — barrels, rocks, scrap iron, even trucks. He will push, pull, carry and drag the heaviest weights he can, and regularly moves half a ton, if only a few inches, its still impressive. Steve Justa is his name and his training philosophy is anything but conventional… “Don’t Have a Weight Set? – Lift a Tractor!”

The Inver Stone

Posted on Sunday, August 19th, 2018 by John Wood

Scotland is famous for it’s Clach Cuid Fir or manhood stones… In Crathie, Aberdeenshire, in the shadow of the Inver Hotel, you’ll find one of the most famous manhood stones of them all: The Inver Stone. This famous stone has challenged men for centuries. It is smooth, round, and unusually small for its 265 pounds. Lift it to your chest, like Steve Jeck here, and you’ll entitle yourself to a free pint at the Inver Pub and a place in the record books.

Barrel Lifting Strength Feats

Posted on Tuesday, August 7th, 2018 by John Wood

It has been well written that many so-called “feats of strength” had their roots in manual labor. Back in the beer halls of Bavaria and old, Old, OLD Vienna I’m sure a couple of robust beirmeisters once sat around shooting the breeze when one bet another that he could lift the biggest barrel — and it’s all been down hill from there.

Many of the old timers were well-known for their barrel or keg lifting feats, including Louis Cyr (who was said to have been able to lift a 400 lb. barrel to his shoulders) and George F. Jowett who included a Barrel Lifting Course in his Molding a Mighty Grip training guide. I would imagine the “Cincinnati Strongman” Henry Holtgrewe lifted a few barrels and kegs in his time. He owned a tavern down on 6th street in downtown Cincinnati just after the turn of the century.

Several modern day strongmen have included barrel lifting in their training. Probably the two most well known are Steve Justa and Brooks Kubik who wrote extensively about barrel lifting in Dinosaur Training. Keep in mind that lifting a 200 pound FULL barrel is actually easier than lifting a 150 pound HALF-filled barrel.

The Scottish Hercules William Bankier

Posted on Monday, June 18th, 2018 by John Wood

William Bankier, also billed as “Apollo, The Scottish Hercules” Was born the eldest son of a weaver and after becoming fascinated by the idea of becoming a circus performer, ran away and did just that at twelve years old. At first, Bankier did hard labor and whatever else the circus life required to earn his keep. Bankier was particularly enamored by the strongman and kept a close eye on his act. One day, when the strongman had a little too much to drink, Bankier stepped in and gave a satisfactory performance. He was fifteen years of age at the time.

The bosses were impressed and his reputation spread. Over the next few years, Bankier performed with several different circuses. Among other feats, for his act, Bankier would harness lift an elephant and perform a backward somersault over a chair while carrying a 56 lb weight in each hand. Bankier had a rather interesting method for building bicep strength and size which is covered here.

Carl Busch

Posted on Friday, February 2nd, 2018 by John Wood

Carl Busch was a great strongman and wrestler who was active in the early 20th century. After winning the 1901 German national title, he toured Europe performing feats of strength and wrestling all comers. He even wrestled the great Frank Gotch to a draw under Greco-Roman rules. Busch also wrestled the likes of George Hackenschmidt, Professor Roller, Heinrich Weber, Yousef Holusane, Fred Beell, and even Farmer Burns. As far as feats of strength, Busch could bent press 250 pounds at a bodyweight of only 175 pounds. In 1891, Busch started his own circus which is actually still going strong today if you can believe it.

Dennis Rogers’ World Record Dumbbell Curl

Posted on Tuesday, January 9th, 2018 by John Wood

At 5’9″ and a bodyweight around 160 pounds, Dennis Rogers sure doesn’t look like your average strongman… But when it’s time to lift some iron, Dennis can do some things that will shock and amaze you. One of Dennis’ unusual abilities is his incredible bicep strength.

At Memorial City Mall in Houston, Texas, Dennis Rogers’ established a World Record One Arm Dumbbell Curl record of 98 pounds x 10 Reps with an Iron Master Dumbbell- he weighed 148 Pounds at the time. Not many heavyweights can even come anywhere close to such a display.

The Iron Neck of Alexander Zass

Posted on Tuesday, December 12th, 2017 by John Wood

The old rock-on-the-chest-pounded-with-a-sledge-hammer routine is a popular one in strongman lore but here’s a whole new twist: “The Amazing Samson” Alexander Zass has a thick stump split residing on his noggin split with the hefty swing of an axe. This one is no walk in the park no matter how you slice it. You’d have to be pretty sure of yourself even just to try it. — I’m certainly impressed.

Card Ripping in Oven Mitts

Posted on Sunday, December 10th, 2017 by John Wood

Ok, so you can rip a deck of cards … but can you rip a deck of cards while wearing oven mitts like Dennis Rogers? …And not only can Dennis Rogers do this, he makes it look easy.

Master Hand Balancer Professor Paulinetti

Posted on Monday, December 4th, 2017 by John Wood

Handbalancing goes back a long way although the man that took it to a whole new level was Professor Paulinetti. He perfected many of the most difficult hand balancing feats — and was the first man to accomplish the incredibly difficult one-arm planche. Professor Paulinetti was also the mentor to famed hand balancer Bob Jones. In fact, the image above once belonged to the personal collection of Bob Jones. On the back it is written that this photograph was taken in Italy around the year 1900.