Vic Boff Archives - www.oldtimestrongman.com

Charles Phelan and His GIANT Kettlebell

Posted on Wednesday, December 5th, 2018 by John Wood

How about that kettlebell? Charles Phelan billed himself not as the World’s strongest man but the World’s most entertaining strongman as he told jokes between his strength feats while he performed at Coney Island. He weighed only 140 pounds but held five world records: a one-finger lift of 506 pounds, 700 pounds with two fingers, a hand and thigh lift of 1125 pounds, a hip lift of 1600 pounds and a backlift of 2500 pounds. Phelan was taught how to be a strongman by Warren Lincoln Travis and was a good friend of Vic Boff.

Young Vic Boff

Posted on Saturday, September 23rd, 2017 by John Wood

Vic Boff’s tremendous contributions to the Iron Game stretch far and wide but no doubt his biggest was to endeavor to keep the past alive. In 1983, Vic Boff organized a birthday celebration for Sig Klein. This celebration went over so well that it became an annual event which continues to this day. Thus the Association of Oldetime Barbell and Strongmen (AOBS) was born. As a young man, Vic developed an interest in weight training, calisthenics, boxing and strongman stunts and, as you can see here, he clearly practiced what he preached.

In addition, while rehabbing a shoulder injury, Vic began to study the healing powers of cold therapy and winter bathing. This led him to join the Iceberg Athletic club of New York where he was eventually recognized as “The World’s Greatest Winter Bather.”

“The Brooklyn Strongboy” Charles Phelan

Posted on Friday, February 21st, 2014 by John Wood

“The Brooklyn Strongboy” Charles Phelan was the American Professional Lightweight Champion and also performed a strongman act for many years at Coney Island and around the New York area. Notice the outstanding show weights: the unusually large kettlebell and the thick-handled globe dumbbell.

Charles Phelan was a protege of Warren Lincoln Travis and eventually taught much of what he knew to Vic Boff.
Phelan told jokes between feats of strength, also billing himself (quite uniquely, I might add) as “The World’s Most Entertaining Strongman.” Phelan only weighed 140 lbs, but could backlift 2500 lbs.

Dennis Rogers’ Death Defying Airplane Human Chain Feat

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

The strength feat that put modern-day Oldtime Strongman Dennis Rogers on the map was when he successfully prevented a pair of Airforce T-34 airplanes from taking off in “The Human Chain” feat.

That’s 285 horsepower on each arm! — and one wrong move meant they would have to scrape Dennis off the runway. This amazing feat earned the Association of Oldtime Barbell and Strongman’s (AOBS) highest award from founder Vic Boff.