What A Revelation On Hub Lifting...steve Stanko Claimed 90 Lbs. Insigh

[1stCoC]

I was looking through my old Strength and Health magazine collection today and ran across some beautiful hard bound years. I don't know who had them done but they are awesome. I always have heard about two men in the past with huge hub lift numbers. Karl Norburg doing around 60 total ( deep dish old York 45 with plates added and the great Steve Stanko York weightlifter of old. First man to total 1000 in weightlifting. I ran across finally a picture of him ( Stanko)demonstrating his hub lift style with 55 on a unique setup. The plate he used was a 1930s first edition straight sided hub York 45 with large letters saying YORK on it NOT the tapered hub deep dish 45 plate that followed from 1940 to 1972. And what totally blew me away he had the plate resting on a short crude wooden utility bench that was one of the 3 personal seats reserved in theOld York Gym for Terlazzo, Stanko, and Grimek the "big dogs of the era." What just stunned me was now finding out for a year I had that very bench of Stanko right in our facility on display!Talk about the connection and odds of that happening! Stanko in his spare time used HIS bench to make lifting belts for York on and the punch marks were still visible along with the distinct shape particular to this small seat bench. It was said they also used the short benches to do the first form of early bench presses on. The bench came straight out of the York Gym artifacts.Little would I ever think I was to find how and what he( Stanko) used and did in his" famous "hub lifts. 90 lbs sure was a lot!

[Eric Roussin]

What a cool discovery!

[Shoggoth]

Wow! That's really cool

[Hubgeezer]

Richard,

Yes, in 2005, Dale Harder did much digging and then decided that the most ever lifted by anyone on a legit "hub" lift was Steve Stanko. And, if I am not mistaken, John Grimek was a witness to it.

[1stCoC]

The 1930s straight sided 45 York seemingly pretty broad hub would be a great one to try. Mike ,would in your expert opinion be any advantage or disadvantage to using that particular early plate?After close looking at York gym pictures there were MANY deep dish generation 2 45s in that gym(1940-1972) and only two of the 1930s plates in the whole place. I wonder why he used or sought out those particular plates to use in his big hub lifts? I also wonder what year the 90 was done. In the magazine I saw his picture in it had said Stanko had done the 90 already. Hmmmmm

[Hubgeezer]

The 1930s straight sided 45 York seemingly pretty broad hub would be a great one to try. Mike ,would in your expert opinion be any advantage or disadvantage to using that particular early plate?After close looking at York gym pictures there were MANY deep dish generation 2 45s in that gym(1940-1972) and only two of the 1930s plates in the whole place. I wonder why he used or sought out those particular plates to use in his big hub lifts? I also wonder what year the 90 was done. In the magazine I saw his picture in it had said Stanko had done the 90 already. Hmmmmm

The photos I saw of Stanko were "broad and shallow". You know, from my perspective, that is really impressive. There are some of us who seem to only be good at the IM Hub. There are others that are good at plates, bad at the IM Hub. And there are some who seem to be able to do everything. I am more in awe of Stanko's lift and Aaron C's hub lifts than I am with IM Hub lifts. But that is because I am not good at them...

[1stCoC]

I found the magazine article this morning pretty good grip insight for 1958! So ,Stanko hauled up big hub lifts prior to that date . The Strength and Health issue was Jan 1958. All we have to do is secure a pre 1940 big letter YORK 45 from a collector and let Mike have at it!

[Hubgeezer]

I found the magazine article this morning pretty good grip insight for 1958! So ,Stanko hauled up big hub lifts prior to that date . The Strength and Health issue was Jan 1958. All we have to do is secure a pre 1940 big letter YORK 45 from a collector and let Mike have at it!

I think a guy like Jedd Johnson would do well on something like that, or Chad, or Aaron...

[1stCoC]

It was a pleasure on two levels Saturday afternoon first being greeted by a modern day hub monster Mike Corlett ( I still marvel at his hands and finger tip " look of power" and catching a great speech on the life and times at the York Barbell Club by 91 year old Frank Spellman. He was privy to much of the actual hub lifting he and Stanko did on the York plates, some thick bar lifts using the ends of a heavy loaded Olympic bar and one man on each end , the verification of Stanko building belts on his short wooden bench I was for a while lucky enough to display and enjoy , and his answer who he thought had the strongest grip he ever saw. His answer....Shemansky. With his never using a hook grip in lifting and being one of the few to lift the Apollon Bell in a true clean fashion gave him Spellmans nod. I did enjoy a conversation with Hubgeezers brother on how supportive and pleased he was to to get Mike interested in using his natural strength and ability to excel at grip.