Category Archives: USAWA Daily News

Ben Edwards – Meet Director of the Dino Grip Challenge

by Al Myers

Ben Edwards, of the Dino Gym, FINALLY closes the Dino Gym's OLD #3 COC Gripper. This was one of the very early COC grippers and noticeably much harder than other #3 Grippers. Ben was certified as closing the #3 COC gripper in May of 2005, and has been working on closing this #3 gripper since. He held the handles together for several seconds. He is only the third person to ever close this gripper - and many have tried. Congratulations Ben!!

When Ben Edwards asked me several months ago if he could sanction a USAWA Grip Meet at the gym, I didn’t hesitate in answering YES.  It has been a few years since the USAWA has had a grip  competition on the schedule – with the last one  being the Supergrip Challenge hosted by Kevin Fulton 5 years ago.  The USAWA is loaded with grip events, several of which never get contested in competition.  I really feel the beauty of the USAWA is with the great diversity of lifts – and ANY lifter should be able to find a niche. Meets like this exposes new lifters to the USAWA who might not have otherwise.

Ben has picked a good lineup of lifts – from the Weaver Stick to the Inch Dumbbell Deadlift.  From what I have heard, this meet may have a GREAT turnout.  Ben is still taking entries so get your entry sent in to him!   Over the next week I will be running stories on the lifts that will be contested at the Grip Challenge.

Guinness Record Set by Steve Schmidt


by Al Myers

Last weekend at the Zercher Meet in Columbia, Missouri, Teeth Lifting Superstar Steve Schmidt found ANOTHER Teeth Lifting record to break.  This one was a Guinness World Record for repetition Teeth Lifting.  Steve did 50 reps with 100 kilograms (220 pounds) in one minute. His record performance was judged by Bill Clark.  The previous record was 24 reps, set on August 22nd, 2005 by Georges Christen of Benodet, France. Every repetition was lifted a minimum of six inches, which was confirmed by the weight touching a rope positioned at this height.

Steve holds all the best Teeth Lifting records in the USAWA – both with his hands supported on his legs and with his hands behind his back.  He uses a leather bit attached to a chain that attaches to the weights.  Steve also has pulled heavy trucks and trains with his teeth.  Bill Clark wrote a column about Steve’s amazing record yesterday in the Columbia Tribune.  Bill summarized this event way better than I can – so Click Here to read it.

Below are links to a couple of other newspaper articles covering this momentous occasion. And by the way Steve, the USAWA is very proud of you!

KOMU Article Columbia Tribune

Bill and Dolores Clark Awarded the Columbia Value Diversity Award

by Al Myers

Bill Clark

Recently, Bill and Dolores Clark were awarded by the city of Columbia the Columbia Values Diversity Award.  This is a great honor for Bill and Dolores, and a well earned award.  In a recent column in the Columbia Daily Tribune by Janese Heavin, in which she writes about this prestigious award she said, “Bill Clark doesn’t necessarily set out to promote diversity when he writes his columns for the Tribune.  No, Ol’ Clark just tells it like it is, even if that ruffles some feathers.” Her column can be read here. Mayor Darwin Hindman used Bill’s own words from his acceptance of the Peacemaker Award in 2004 to make the Values Diversity Award, “I have long followed the personal philosophy that conflict resolution must begin with communication. Once communication is achieved, only then can there be understanding. With understanding comes compromise and peaceful resolution. It works in sports officiating, in politics, in government, in business, in marriage, and in life.”

If there was a Values Diversity Award for weightlifting, Bill would be the first one to receive it. Bill broke the gender barrier when he first introduced women’s weightlifting.  This was at a time when weightlifting was a MAN’S sport and the public opinion was that women shouldn’t be lifting weights. Bill was also very integral in bringing Masters weightlifting to the forefront. He promoted some of the first Master’s Weightlifting Meets at a time when most lifters thought the old guys should just give it up, as weightlifting should only be for the young, strong lifters.  Bill Clark went against the grain, and in return, has given thousands of athletes lifting opportunities they might not have had.  Bill Clark has always been ahead of the pack as a humanitarian, and is greatly deserving of this award.

Bill’s Columbia Daily Tribune Column in recognition of this award

Date For Nationals

by Al Myers

2010 National Meet Director Denny Habecker

Our USAWA President and this year’s National Meet Director Denny Habecker has announced plans for this year’s Championships.  Denny has planned a two day National Championship, like it used to be several years ago, on June 26th and June 27th, 2010.  It will be held in Lebanon, PA  at the same venue site as this past year’s World Championship. This is an outstanding venue site that has plenty of room for lifting and warming up.   Denny continues to be the driving force in the USAWA, as this is his THIRD National Championships he has promoted since 2000.  He has picked a GREAT selection of lifts for this meet, with a little something for everyone.

Remembering Chuck Ahrens

by Al Myers

The most famous picture of Chuck Ahrens, from "The Super Athletes" by David Willoughby. In this picture Chuck Ahrens is muscling out a 75 pound girl on one arm at Muscle Beach, California, on August 1957.

Word has come to me that the great Muscle Beach legend Chuck Ahrens has passed away earlier this month. This was reported on the IronMind Website by David Shaw. I have not been able to find an obituary, and don’t even know what day he died on. But I want today’s story to be about REMEMBERING Chuck Ahrens and what he has done to promote weightlifting. During the late 1950’s Chuck was a mainstay on Muscle Beach, and created a mysterious legend of super strength without ever competing in a competition. He was a huge man – with very wide shoulders measuring 26 5/8″ across. Some people said he had a bigger upper body than Paul Anderson. He often wore long sleeve shirts and long pants when working out and very RARELY ever displayed his huge 20 inch plus arms. He didn’t like his picture to be taken. Chuck didn’t train much on legs, and spent most of his time training his arms, shoulders and chest. In researching this piece on his lifting accomplishments – I found so many differing reports about what he lifted that it is hard for me to report anything with accuracy. So instead, I am going to list some of these “reports” that you may take any way you want:

– Triceps Press with 345 pounds

– Crucifix with pair of 150# Dumbbells

– One arm dumbbell press with 320#

– Bench Press 400# for 28 reps

– Clean and Press pair of 205# Dumbbells

Chuck Ahrens left the muscle scene by the early 1960’s. It has been reported that he hurt his shoulder and discontinued weight training after that injury. Not much has been reported on him since. But he did something very few others did – he created a legacy with his strength feats that other lifters would talk about and debate in their gyms for years to come. Thom Van Vleck told me that he remembers his Uncles discussing Chuck’s lifts in the early JWC Club – both skeptical and in awe of him. Chuck Ahrens inspired many lifters to “take on the impossible” and get stronger. As Thom said, “Ahrens was probably the most famous lifter that never actually lifted in a meet.” From what I have read about Chuck Ahrens, it is obvious to me that he was a very humble and private man and most of his “lifting stories” were propagated by others, who had the privilege first hand of getting to see him lift amazing poundages. Chuck Ahrens will go down in history as a HERO in the weightlifting world and stories of him, hopefully, will continue to be told.

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