Ed Zercher – Page 2

Tag Archives: Ed Zercher

Oldest USAWA Members

March 1, 2011 Al Myers

by Al Myers

Jack Lano performing a Snatch. Is he the oldest current or past USAWA member?

After last weeks quiz, Tom Ryan presented some additional questions on the USAWA Discussion Forum. Tom’s questions were quite a bit harder than mine, and after much discussion on the forum, the group has came to a unified conclusion on the answers. I think these should be shared in the USAWA Daily News because I know not everyone follows the discussion forum. The answers to these two questions are a very important part of USAWA history. These were Tom’s questions:

I’ve got another quiz question for you regarding USAWA members. Actually it is a two-part question:

(a) What deceased USAWA member was born before every other person who has at any time been a member of USAWA?

(b) Among current and past USAWA members who are still alive, which one has the earliest birthdate?

Immediately, I thought I knew the answer to the first question without looking anything up. How could it be anyone other than the St. Louis Strongman Ed Zercher I ?? Ed competed in the first years of the USAWA and was in his early 80’s at the time. I couldn’t imagine anyone who was a member born before Ed Zercher. Ed Zercher I was born on 8-19-07. But I was wrong on this, and Tom pointed it out to me. The legendary, ageless powerlifter Henri Soudieres actually has the oldest birthdate among any past USAWA members. He was born on 8-5-06. There was some discussion that another lifter, the longtime well-known AAU Weightlifting official Jim Messer may have been the correct answer because he had an older birthdate ( he was born on 10-19-05), but his past membership in the USAWA could not be confirmed. He competed once but it must have been just exhibition.

The second part of Tom’s question was even more difficult. Everyone knows that the current active member who is the oldest is none other than Art Montini (Art was born on 10-11-27). But surely there is a PAST USAWA member who is older? Lots of names where proposed, and many lifters with older birthdays than Art were mentioned. But are they still alive? That is when the difficulty in answering this question comes into play. My guess was none other than the man of many talents – Jack Lano. Jack was born on 4-17-22. No one came forth on the forum to prove me wrong on this – so that is the answer I’m going with. However, Tom is still skeptical. That is just how he is about confirming the facts (he will have to visit all past lifters gravesites before he is convinced), but it is a good thing because he keeps me in check from giving out wrong information. He is right in that several lifters were mentioned that had older birthdates, but confirming they were STILL ALIVE was the question. I will gladly print a retraction of this story if someone proves things differently. Please check out the discussion forum if you want more details concerning the discussions that led up to these answers.

And finally – thank you Tom for asking this question! It was very thought provoking and brought up many names of lifters that I have heard about.

Coming tomorrow

Since we are in the discussion mode of talking about old lifters, I want to mention a past USAWA member who was the oldest lifter to EVER compete at a USAWA National Championship. He was 90 years old at the time. This is a question that I have personal first hand information on, since this lifter was very close to me. But that’s tomorrow’s story!!

Heart of America Festival – Day 2

February 9, 2011 Al Myers

(Webmasters note: This is a reprint of the meet report covering the Heart of America Festival that occurred in August 1963 as published by the oldtime lifting magazine, the Lifting News. Dale Friesz passed this along to me to share, which characterizes one of the early-days All-Round Weightlifting Meets. Dale’s brother, Leonard, is included in the results as he was a member of the Columbia Athletic Club at the time. Our very own Bill Clark served as Meet Director, Head Judge, and Meet Reporter. He also competed! Past meets such as these are the reason why Bill organized All-Round Weightlifting into the USAWA. You will recognize several of the “meet stars” as they are legends in All-Round Weightlifting today. The meet was a two day affair, so I will divide the story into two parts, one covering each day. Enjoy!)

by Bill Clark

On the second day the squat and dead lift marks of Saturday are used and four other events are added to test a man’s back, endurance and will power. The front squat opens the second day and Miller was very unhappy with his 390 front squat. Wachholz made 385 and Friesz 380. The Jefferson lift was next and Wachholz almost caught the lanky Kansas wheat farmer. Miller did a straddle with 650, but Wachholz surpassed him on bodyweight with a 640 and moved within range with two lifts remaining. Paul was able to make “only” 600 in the hack lift, but Miller endured with a 650 effort. In the Zercher lift, Miller made 425 while Wachholz was good for only 365. The meet was Miller’s once again. This time with a total of 3320 and 2148 points. Wachholz was close behind with 3020 pounds and 2072 points. Your writer was third and felt happy with a mediocre performance after not working out more than five times since February. He squatted 470 cold, made a 530 dead lift, front squatted 320, straddled up 560, hacked only 500 (has done 600) and Zerchered just 420 – 40 pounds under tops. This was the meet he had planned to make a 600 squat, but baseball took care of that boast. Maybe next year. Too much umpiring this year and not enough time in the gym.

Lifter	Squat	Front Sq	Deadlift	Hack	Zerch	Strad	Total	Points
Miller	530	390	675	650	425	650	3320	2148
Wachholz	455	385	585	600	365	640	3020	2072
Clark	470	320	530	500	420	560	2800	1817
Friesz	445	380	490	450	385	475	2625	1790
Hahn	400	320	475	475	385	475	2530	1771
Hamilton	280	205	420	420	315	440	2080	1714
Witt	470	295	525	315	335	500	2400	1596
McPheeters	375		475			500
Lewellen	385			500		500
B. Fellows	420				315

Meet Director: Bill Clark

Officials: Bill Clark, Don Wickell, Ed Zercher

The question here, then, is how these two great lifters rank with strong men of the past. Surely, in two days, few men of this size have ever lifted more. To dead lift 675, hack 650 and straddle 650 along with the others is a phenomenal performance, and Wachholz was superb. His 640 straddle must rank with the best.

These men are not goons, as power lifters have often been called. Wachholz has done over 800 as a mid-heavy in the Olympic lifts and won the 100 yard dash, final event of the meet, in an amazing time of 11.3 seconds, running on asphalt in tennis shoes after a hard day on the platform. Wachholz also throws the discus well over 160 feet and has a beautiful frame, placing high in every physique contest he enters. He’s married and has two children. He works in a bank and travels thousands of miles a year to meets. (No relation between his work and his ability to travel). The marks he set at the Power Festival were all personal records. In addition, he entered several of the side contests and won them. He was best in the bench press with 315 pounds and did a stiffarm pullover with 110.

Miller was impressive as always. He stands 6’3″, and weighs 235. In high school he was a top miler and turned down a track scholarship at Kansas University after finishing his senior year at Ensign (Kansas) High School. In his final high school race, he covered the mile in 4:33.6 and wound up third behind two great runners – Wes Santee, who later ran the mile in 4:00.2 and was America’s greatest miler until barred by the AAU for excessive expense money – and Billy Tidwell, a half-miler who represented the U.S. on many international fields. Miller has done 930 in the Olympic Lifts and was second in the Junior Nationals this year. He won one other event in the Power Festival, doing an abdominal raise with 105 pounds. When the meet was over, a side bet came to pass concerning Wilbur’s ability to lift cars. He promptly picked up the rear end of a Volkswagon, engine and all, and held it a foot off the ground. He made the lift from the normal deadlift position.

Ed Zercher Sr., an old-timer who has moved enough weight to kill an elephant in his forty years on the platform, refereed all the lifts and branded Miller and Wachholz as two mighty strong youngsters. He pointed out that their lifting was different from that in the old days when bars were not machined, but allowed the pair could have held their own with many of the greats. Zercher, at 56, proved to be a horse even yet. He took 600 pounds on his feet, and without any supporting devices, made 10 reps and held his balance perfectly in the leg press. He then built a Roman Chair all by himself with 235 pounds balanced on his feet: 145 pounds in his hands and 130 pound Art Tarwater sitting astride the chair doing presses with 100 pounds. When Tarwater lost his balance, Zercher held the chair steady – much to the amazement of the onlookers.

This meet was held in a shelter house the first evening and on the grass under a large shade tree the second day. People driving through the park would stop and watch the lifting until they grew tired. The crowd changed many times and townspeople still talk about the show they say in the park – for no charge. It seems until someone comes up with a better performance, this must go down as one of the greatest ever.

Heart of America Festival – Day 1

February 8, 2011 Al Myers

by Bill Clark

Wilbur Miller, the Cimarron Strongman, and Paul Wachholz, an outstanding athlete from Englewood, Colorado, waged a duel in the Heart of America Power Festival, August 3-4 in Columbia, Missouri, which brought nostalgia to the hearts of the old timers in the crowd and may have established an all-time record for weight hoisted in a two-day period. The Power Festival, in its third year, is sponsored by the Columbia Athletic Club, Inc., and is a fun meet all the way. Many lifts, pets of various lifters, are contested and except for eight established events, the meet follows only a vague pattern. Often more than one contest is under way at the same time. Last year Homer Lewellen, a mid-heavy from the host club, lifted in 34 different events and totaled well over 15,000 pounds during the two-day session.

This year, however, the number of events was cut down by the tremendous interest in the Miller-Wachholz battle. There are two sets of trophy lifts in the meet. On the first day, a Saturday, the contest is the jerk from the rack, squat, and dead lift. The entire meet is on a bodyweight formula basis because never more than 15 hardy souls enter. Medals are given for each lift and trophies back five places overall. Leonard Friesz won the jerk from the rack with a 350 jerk at a bodyweight of 198. Miller was close behind with 370 and Wachholz was third with 320.

Lifter	BWT	Jerk	Squat	Dead Lift	Total	Points
Miller	235	370	530	675	1575	1014.30
Wachholz	195	320	455	585	1360	932.96
Friesz	198	350	445	490	1285	876.37
Witt	214	225	470	525	1225	807.98
Hahn	187	275	400	475	1150	805.00
Tarwater	130	230	260	410	900	801.00
Fellows	160	265	345	400	1010	776.69
Hamilton	145	230	280	420	930	766.32
Skinner	129	230	280	340	850	760.75
McPheeters	232	260	375	475	1080	698.76
Lewellen	190	280	385
B. Fellows	238	305	420

Meet Director: Bill Clark

Officials: Bill Clark, Don Wickell, Ed Zercher

Friesz, an army captain stationed in Columbia, stayed in the running with a 445 squat, but Miller made 530 to grab the lead and Wachholz came up with 455. In the dead lift, Wachholz shot ahead of Friesz with a great 585 effort and a near miss with 600. Miller opened with 600, a weight he does five reps with, then jumped to 675. He held the listed world amateur heavyweight record at 672 1/2 and made the 675 so easily that 700 or more seemed quite possible. Miller is a perfect deadlifter. The weight never touches his thighs as it goes up. His shoulders are back before weight and thighs get together. The 700 broke loose twice and went easily to the knees but Wilbur couldn’t get his shoulders back after such a fine effort and the lifts were no good. He vowed that he would make 700 in Leavenworth in September.

Miller thus won the first day’s trophy event with a 1575 total and 1014.3 points. His dead lift was a world mark and his lifts and total were all Missouri Valley records. Wachholz made a 1360 total and established himself as a strong young man. He strengthened this fact considerably the following day.

COMING TOMORROW – DAY 2 OF THE HEART OF AMERICA FESTIVAL

Bed of Nails: A Classic Strongman Feat

March 12, 2010 Thom Van Vleck

By Thom Van Vleck

Thom Van Vleck laying on the Bed of Nails

The first time I ever remember the “Bed of Nails” feat was hearing my Uncle’s talk about it after a JWC trip to a lifting meet where Ed Zercher performed the feat. I remember being amazed at it and how only someone “special” could withstand the nails without being punctured. Now I realize it is a trick of physics and virtually anyone could do it, but not everyone WOULD do it! And if they did it once, they might not want to do it again! It is currently a regular feature in the JWC Christian Strongman Shows and I am always the guy on the bottom. Why? Because one time I wasn’t able to make it and Brian Kerby did it and swore he’d never do it again. No blood was drawn, he just found it so painful and mentally challenging that he refuses to do it again!

I was introduced to the “Bed of Nails” when I first performed with Randy Richey’s Omegaforce Christian Strongman team. We were setting up the script for the show and Randy said, “Who wants to lay on the bed of nails?” Interestingly, there were no takers! That should have been my first clue. I then volunteered and that night found myself on a bed of 500 sixty penny nails with another guy on top bench pressing a 440lb engine block for 10 reps! After that, I built my own “bed” and it became a regular feature in the JWC strongman shows as it is a real crowd pleaser….although I honestly don’t think of it as a real feat of strength.

At an “after contest” get together at my place, I got the Bed of Nails out and only Chad Ullom wanted to give it a try. Chad was able to handle everything we put on him. I think this is partly because Chad is a top notch strength athlete and his pain tolerance is amazingly high. But it also may be a comment on his (and my own) mental state!

If you have ever wondered, here is what it “feels” like. When you first lay on the nails, they hurt surprisingly bad. I have lots of people lay on the bed after shows, but none go beyond that because of the pain. The funny thing is, they never hurt worse than that! The compression is what gets you worse. Usually, I try to get my self as flat as possible. Then we usually will put my 150lb anvil on my stomach and pound it with hammers. Believe it or not, that hurts worse than what is to come. I think it’s because the hammer pounding drives straight thru the anvil and drives me into the nails. But as the weight gets put on, you “flatten” out on the nails and the weight gets distributed. Then, we usually break blocks, which the worst thing is pieces hitting you in the face so we usually use a shield to block my face. Finally, we will have someone lay on me, then someone will climb on top of them. Usually, Brian will lay on me and Brett Kerby or John O’Brien will stand on Brian’s stomach and bend a nail or rip a license plate in half. Sometimes we’ll put a large board on me and invite people to come and stand on me and I’ve had well over 1000lbs of people on top.

I do a couple of “tricks” to help. One, is I try to keep the weight more on my hips than my chest. Second, I then grab the board on top of me and “bench press” it to try and get some room for my chest to breath. Because with all that weight, you really CAN’T BREATH and that’s the thing that got Brian that time he tried it. You feel like you are drowning and you really have to keep your cool! The compression coupled with the pain make for a miserable, helpless combination. You are literally trapped on there until everyone gets off! If you start to panic and try to move, you will get yourself cut up fast! Another final “trick” is that you need to flatten yourself out, not like you are going for a bench press, but you are trying to “roll” your back onto the bench and make every inch of contact you possibly can. One final comment is that I usually feel better after the feat, I think it’s because of the endorphins released by my body caused by the pain and the immense relief at it being over!

That’s the “Bed of Nails” and if you come to the JWC sometime, ask me and I’ll pull it out for you to try! Just sign the waiver first……just kidding!!!!

USAWA Daily News

The Unsupported Leg Press

January 24, 2010 Thom Van Vleck

by Thom Van Vleck

Ed Zercher performing an Unsupported Leg Press. In 1952, Ed Zercher did 200 reps with 250 pounds in 7 minutes, 30 seconds. In 1962, Ed Zercher did 10 reps with 605 pounds.

Recently I did a story on the “Zercher Lift” and “Zercher Squat” for Milo Magazine. I had been looking for a good picture of Ed Zercher doing a Zercher lift when I came across this photo (supplied to me by Al Myers). It is really quite a picture and you will find it in the rule book illustrating how to do the “Leg Press-Unsupported”. If you go into the average gym today and ask about the leg press, you will likely be pointed towards the “leg sled” or some variation of it which involves using the legs to press a sled loaded with weights at what is typically a 45 degree angle. Maybe, just maybe, you’ll find a leg press that is vertical where you lay under it and press the weight straight up in the air. But by USAWA standards, these lifts are not a true LEG PRESS!!!!

The rule book lists the rules as such:

D19. Leg Press – Unsupported

The lifter will lay on the platform, with the back, shoulders, and buttocks flat on the lifting surface. Padding, such as a towel or mat, may be placed under the lifter’s body, but must not exceed one-half inch in thickness. The bar will then be placed on the lifter’s feet by spotters, with the legs straight and the legs positioned at a 90 degree angle to the platform. Boots with heels are allowed to be worn. The spotters must not touch the lifter’s legs, the bar, or plates during the lift. Once the bar is motionless and under control, an official will give a command to start the lift. The lifter will bend the knees to lower the bar until the top of the thighs touch the torso, and will then recover and straighten the legs. The hands must not be braced or touching the legs during the lift. The lift ends on command. The bar may be removed from the lifter’s feet by spotters.

I recall doing these as part of my early training program in the late 70’s when I was a teen. I did these in a power rack, lying in the rack and taking the weight out like you would for a standing press out of the rack…..just with my feet! I did them with the pins in so I wouldn’t drop the weight on my self and close enough to the rack itself that if I lost my balance I’d drive the bar into the rack and press it up against the uprights for leverage (not really good on the bar and it’s always a must the power rack is secured to the floor if you are going to attempt this!). I didn’t do them because I was “old school”, I did them because I had no leg press to use in the first place. I learned them from my Uncle Wayne who learned them from Wilbur Miller.

I fell the unsupported Leg Press can have a lot of added benefits. First, you have the “feel” of a free weight. I’ve always felt the balance involved in a free weight lift makes one more athletic than any machine type lift. Second, you won’t likely use more weight than you can handle. Third, it will hit your legs more than your hips….at least it did mine. And finally, fourth, you will be familiar with the lift should you go to a USAWA meet that contests it some time.

There is also a variation on the Leg Press in the USAWA rule book called the Leg Press – Self Loaded. The rules of the Leg Press – Unsupported apply except the bar must be loaded onto the feet from the platform by the lifter only. The lifter may do so in any manner, but must not be assisted. I’ve never tried this one, but it sounds interesting and difficult….which could explain why I can’t find a single record on it! Like everything in the USAWA….it’s not the easy way!

« 1 2