Nathan Say Posted March 22, 2002 Share Posted March 22, 2002 I've never heard of Hermann Goerner lifting heavy thick dumbells. Did he do anything with them or not? Was he as good as Apollon or Marx? (probably not or else we'd have heard of his lifts) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roark Posted March 22, 2002 Share Posted March 22, 2002 Offhand I do not recall any thick dumbell lifting by Goerner, but he had a barbell which weighed 330.75 lbs which had a handle 2.75" in diameter, which means the circumference was 8.63, which was the same size as Marx's right hand snatch with 154.25, and of Marx's dumbells which weighed 132 and 143. This barbell, and take this for what it is worth, which isn't much in my view, was the one Goerner could 'hook grip' and put overhead like it was a feather. Then he dropped it into the crook of his arm (not arms). One of the Saxons said that Goerner's hands were larger than their own, and we know that Arthur's was 9" long, and of course it would require a very long hand to hook a 2.75 bar. On the other hand, one report gives Goerner's hand length at under 9". Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
OldGuy Posted March 22, 2002 Share Posted March 22, 2002 There seems to be lttle info on Goerner outside of the book Goerner the Mighty. I have not seen any pics of him lifting anything. His weight is given as anything from 220 to 290. In the few pics of him that I have seen he appears to have a very powerfull upper body and relatively thin legs. I am more inclined to believe his grip feats rather than his deadlifts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 23, 2002 Share Posted March 23, 2002 Edgar Mueller who wrote and studied Herman Goerner was a stickler for the truth from what I have read about him. It's not apparant that Goerner lifted thick dumbells!? Maybe but he lifted some monstrous thick bars: "Right Hand Snatch or Swing, keeping the arm straight, of 77kg(169.5lbs) on a 60mm(about 2 3/8") in diameter. This evidently was not his limit poundage" (Super Athletes) Plus for those who think he just used a hook grip: "Right Hand Deadlift of 251.5kg(554.5lbs) on a 30mm bar(1 3/16") straight, non-revolving, barbell handle, using a regular (unhooked) grip."(Super Athletes) I personally believe Goernor would have done a One Arm Swing with the Inch dumbell had been able to get his hands between the globes. Even if he couldn't get all his fingers on the 'bell he'd have given it a good shot with 3 fingers squeezed in there! Goerner was a STRONGMAN and a very rare breed indeed. His lifting was unorthodox for sure but his strength was mammouth! If you look at Bob Peoples another great deadlifter you'll see similarites in his and Goerner's physiques. Goerner outweighed Peoples by 40-80lbs so I think he would have been lifting what Bob could and then some - which was infact the case. Just because it happened years ago doesn't mean it didn't happen and with Edgar Mueller's meticulous documentation I for one believe it all. Nick Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AP Posted March 23, 2002 Share Posted March 23, 2002 i don't believe that anyone EVER could hook grip a 2.75 diameter bar. remember that even though the total circumference of the bar would be under 9 inches, you cannot use the entire length of your hand to grab(much less hook) the bar. the max circumference that you could possibly hook would be aprox. the distance from the final knuckle on your index (all but the finger tip) to the final knuckle on your thumb (again all but the tip). i have about 7in hands i can hook roughly 4in circumference which means that i can hook a normal oly bar comfortably or a power bar just barely. a person with over 9 in hands couldn't possibly hook a bar over 6in in circumference which means that even a person with some of the largest hands in history would have a hard time hooking even a 2in bar. - 2.75 cannot be done Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Roark Posted March 23, 2002 Share Posted March 23, 2002 Documentation in Mueller's book on Goerner? Were not all his notes destroyed or lost and was not the book written from memory? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Horne Posted March 23, 2002 Share Posted March 23, 2002 Jim Wylie (CoC) can hook grip a 2" bar quite easily, also his brother Marc can. David Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest baldy Posted March 23, 2002 Share Posted March 23, 2002 Bunch of genetic freaks, those Wylies... Marc, are you fully recovered from your injury yet? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AP Posted March 23, 2002 Share Posted March 23, 2002 how big are their hands? 2in is very impressive but still along way from 2.75... what's the max that they can hook? i would be plenty happy if they(or anyone) proved me wrong... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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