By accepting all cookies, you agree to our use of cookies to deliver and maintain our services and site, improve the quality of Reddit, personalize Reddit content and advertising, and measure the effectiveness of advertising. they're listed as pending cause someone turned in teh record forms and until ipf looks into this, they're pending. why someone running a meet like this waits to the last second anyway is a damned good question. Mike Bridges' DVD series. Log in or register to post comments Reports have surfaced that the IPF will take those records from Bridges due to the fact that Texas Power Bars were used at the event instead of IPF approved equipment. I went to get up but the pin was hooked into the carpet and I couldn't move. It took him three more hours to fix the other hands. That's when Bridges competed in the ADFPA (American Drug Free Powerlifting Association). Just a few years before, powerlifters had been using PEDs in low doses to help their muscles recover; maybe they gained a bit of an edge, but it wasnt overtly noticeable. This is powerlifting not Olympic weightlifting no need for some Broz type of nonsense. Although he seldom works them, he has pressed 300lb from behind the neck and military pressed 325lb. I would hear it from him every meet when he told me if I did not get a better bench I would never win at nationals. (course they also did drug tests on mike but odds are those won't be a problem). Bench: 160kg/352.74lb(WR) But when Bridges took the stage later that year at the International Powerlifting Federation (IPF) championships in Gotenborg, Sweden, and fired off the three lifts, his typical strength wasnt there. I trained Mac for a year. This time I lowered it a bit faster. i just dont like the fact that theres not much assistance. The bar used was the correct weight & configuration. so yes, some records were set with tpb. The Hall of Fame began with just male lifters and officials, but started including female lifters since 1987. . How about a total of 2105 lb at 181lb body weight. Mike Bridges at the Central AAU Sr. Championshipos, April 1978, with a world record 585 squat He broke the world total record 3 times at this meet Lemenager photo The one finally Au- 27, 1978. My middle finger and both the fingers on each side were caught. Tony Carpino agreed to fly in and ref and help out. Trying to figure this out with the same type hip replacement as Rickey Crain. Now that is damning testimony if I have ever heard it. We did not know this in advance. What Powerlifting Tells Us About The Effects Of PEDs. After getting out of the Army I started to compete in and around Ohio. Ivanko bars are awfulthey are outrageously whippy and the non-standard knarling makes setting up for the deadlift quite confusing. not screwing up in front of the WORLD. They called Mel the king of the bench press. Its also important to note that competitions use different weight-class systems. Lou: What happened when you lifted against Paul Jordan of Austraila?Larry: Paul was talking about winning the world against my friend and fellow Ohioian Vince Annelo the greatest deadlifter. Thats what makes powerlifting such a great sport. My training as a 65er back in the day was pretty intense and with pretty good results. Kyrsten Sinema's Odds Of Reelection Don't Look Great. Or will the USAPL overlook something again? $29.95 each. What is big, strong, and is shaped like a bodybuilder? In powerlifting, competitors vie to lift the heaviest weight possible for one rep. Use was rampant, but that didnt mean every lifter wanted to pump himself full of chemicals. oh yeah and IPF who gets the SPONSOR FUNDING EVERY YEAR for keeping them APPROVED. WAS THE PAPER IT WAS WRITTEN ON WAS THE RIGHT SIZE! Many powerlifters even on high level don't train more than 3-5 times a week. it matters what the rules actuially are!!! Mike's. One would have to see the 325lb. C'mon. Thu Oct 13, 2016. When powerlifting, you train with three exercises in mind: Bench press, squats, and deadlifts. Sams donation to powerlifting is stupendous! Because 1983 was the first time the IPF drug-tested, most participants didnt risk using performance-enhancing drugs leading up to the meet, according to powerlifting historian Bob Gaynor. Every so often an athlete shows an exceptional talent in his sport that baffles the mind. They took me to Grandview Hospital where a doctor friend of the family met us. Carl said "I realize that rules are rules but, don't shoot the horse because the jockey was overweight." How many more times will you shoot yourself in the foot? Mike Bridges, age 50, captured multiple IPF Master's 2 (50+) World Records last weekend at the USAPL Men's Nationals. He went on to win seven national and three world titles. I find that while the weight I lift is less, the intensity is still high and with decent results but I stay sore longer. Perfect I went around and took off my coat made a pillow out of it then took off my watch, laid it down, and fell sound to sleep. [quote=Anonymous] well yeah they were legal when they kept the sponsorship fee up. No one expects any more of you. 2023 ABC News Internet Ventures. I met him in my first power meet in the summer of 1966just prior to being drafted into the United States Army 50 years ago. Orders shipped out within 1 - 5 business days. Just before it touched, my left pec began to tear. He saved them all. The next day I called Dr. Kunitz and he said to call my doctor. So, I think I can back my ideology up pretty well. Things like how they trained in the beginning. He sewed the two pieces together temporarily while they made arrangements for me to meet a helicopter at the University of Dayton arena to fly me and my wife Carol to Louisville, Kentucky. Rank. Louie Simmons See you in Georgia! Well, Bridges and I were using it as a workout. Benchpress: 272.1kg/599.88lb Did the meet director think for one moment all the WORLD RECORDS unassailable at the MEN'S NATIONALS? Larry: Yes. I have three kids: Jimmy who works with me at Pacifico Power, Pat who lives in Coco Beach, and daughter Theresa Nelson. Once inside and rolling, they put the piece of finger that came off in some of the ice and stuck it in my sweatshirt pocket. A week later Mac and I were on a jet headed for Los Angeles. On October 4, 1980 I lifted at a meet in Dayton, Ohio that I promoted. I'm fine Jesse! In the meet Paul tore a quad and broke an ankle. I checked my watch and I had only 10 minutes to make my flight. Tony Carpino agreed to fly in and ref and help out. Deadlift: 320kg/705.48lb. Some powerlifting meets drug test, and some dont. Deadlift: 365kg/804.69lb. Was I right! [/quote] When we competed against each other I won 575 to 505. Author: Staff. They don't specifically train to get huge muscles, but they still end up being massive. It will be a **** shame if Mike is stripped of these records. way to go!!! Another set of interesting data is world records. if indeed he's been robbed before, then he's pretty tough for sticking in there and coming back. The ProKinetics Natural Body Balance Insoles naturally help me align my feet and knees just right without me consciously having to alter my posture. If they were lifetime PR's for you as well, then even greater congratulations are indeed in order! Video of Mike Bridges' Raw Challenge Squats. The meet always attracted the very best lifters in the country and 1978's version was no exception. Power bodybuilding requires you to re-learn technique and reach new movement standards. I will be over at Jon Groves meet helping him this weekend, hope to see ya there. My hand was slipping off the bar when it hit. Powerlifting differentiates between world records set at tested and non-tested competitions. the only people who are happy with those lousy bars are benchers. The competitor in the 123-pound squat data was a dwarf and indeed hoisted 639 pounds. liane blyn, jessica o donnellyeah that's a group to want to have after you to slap you upside the head! Thats huge, because more muscle gives these athletes more power to perform with. Blood started flowing and I started to stand up, but I passed out and rolled back on the platform. I re-vamped my training to train every area only once a week. Larry Pacifico is widely regarded as one of the greatest powerlifters of all time. Looks somewhat like Sheikos powerlifting program. How To Get The Most Out of Your Westside Bands, I met him in my first power meet in the summer of 1966. Ed Baueuscroft of California. Guys felt like they had to take them to stay competitive, and that became problematic, Gaynor said. That's the most ridiculous thing i've ever heard, did they not KNOW you need to use approved equipment? Tragedy struck again on our way back to Dayton. BUT, as a lifter at the meet who is not capable of setting world records, I was very happy when I learned that we would be using a Texas Power Bar. First offcongrats M.B on the records. I stayed there for three days. Bench: 227.5kg/501.55lb I really hope the IPF overlooks this and lets the record stand. The call to drug-test powerlifters had been gaining momentum in the sport since the mid-1970s. For more information, please see our 1985 Mens Senior Nationals Here's my finger today. Mike Bridges was the Ed Coan of powerlifting before there was an Ed Coan. fed ex, several people with bars in ATTENDANCE who could have had fed ex deliver them, there's NO EXCUSE in this day and age. Mike Bridges Multiple World Champion Weight Lifter Peoria, IL Mike is a World IPF Champion, IPF World Record Holder, 2008 Masters World Champion with 4 Gold Medals, and 2007 World Bench Press Gold Medalist. they're listed as pending cause someone turned in teh record forms and until ipf looks into this, they're pending. Then he came and got me. Men (65+) 2022 open 28th Worldwide. anyway, im in agreement with most everyone here, that is, there is no way any record should be taken away because of this. We can still make new gains and new PR's well into our master careers but we have to listen to what our bodies are telling us more. Best Lifts: Then, around the mid-70s, people realized that taking huge doses increased their lifts, said Bob Gaynor, a powerlifting historian and competitive lifter from the era. I slid under it and the bar hit me just over my left eye, tearing off half my eyebrow. This happened to Mike Bridges. Fantastic story. We looked at the numbers in three of the biggest competitions: Raw Unity, USAPLs Raw National Powerlifting Championship (Raw Nationals) and the IPFs Classic Powerlifting World Championships (Classic Worlds). I was married three times.Lou: How many world records did you break in your illustrious career?Larry: 54Lou: I know you had rivals along the way. Well most know he won nine straight before making. No one ever say a word to him no matter what.The Conversation. See, they cannot make an exception for a USA lifter because USA would beef huge IF a russian had an improper bar and broke records too price of having approved bars, weights, and rules. I didn't know exactly what they were but I knew there would be some kind of difference between the bars. only thing worse than being old is being an old fart. 123-pound squat data was a dwarf and indeed hoisted 639 pounds. Brand spankin new bar, just no center knurling. If they can't get the bars right, I just wonder how the Arnold is going to turn out. Mac's first meet was two months before this when he qualified to lift in Victorville. We assumed that the manufacturer sent us the approved/correct bars. Tell the lifters the truth and say sorry, we have a problem and cant do world records. [quote=mark roskell]its not the fault of the ipf, but the stuff up of the meet directors!!! They were called Spanjam. So the facts are the facts guys stop being a bunch of cry BABIES! Bench: 227.5kg/501.55lb Joe "The Lad" Ladnier Mississippi Monster, Free Shipping with a $69 qualifying order. We landed in St. Louis five hours later. If possible, structure your training as follows: Mon - Bench day Weds -Deadlift day Fri - Squat day Day 1 (Monday) Bench day: Within the circuits of power lifting, Mike is known as The Legend. Why?? Doug Hepburn: Might, Muscle & Miracles Anatomy of Strength. I hope this does not come true. NO ONE HAD THE RIGHT BARS!! Mike Bridges, age 50, captured multiple IPF Master's 2 (50+) World Records last weekend at the USAPL Men's Nationals. In total, the lifters at Raw Unity put up about 17.44 percent more weight than the lifters at the USAPL competition and 3.46 percent more than those at the IPF meet. Squat: 395kg/870lb And tell me something about your personal life.Larry: I was vice president of Holiday and New Life Spas, there were 20 of us all total. Following this mind set I've won 10 Masters World Championships and broken 14 World Master's Records; and am also one of only 11 men over 50 to bench over 600 in competition. My training poundage started climbing again and I felt more and more like busting it in the gym again. They had time to get another bar!!! Way to go meet directors! Yeah he was right. Dans statue, not his weight, makes him unusual for the hings that he has done. Most will remember the latest and greatest like Hoff, Frankel, Conan and Bridges. Bridges came back to bench press and hit 440 pounds, good for ninth . Pacificos best competition lifts are an 832-pound squat, 592-pound bench press (without a bench shirt), a 771-pound deadlift, and a 2061-pound total. Bridges. Jeff King: An update on a Bodybuilding Legend, Consent Management Platform by Real Cookie Banner. How about a total of 2105 lb at 181lb body weight. Squat: 227.5kg/501lb Will Democrats Rally Behind President Biden In 2024? John has totaled just around 2300! Mike Bridges (1982) WORLD RECORD (181 lbs / 82.5 kg) POWERLIFTING TOTAL 954.5 KG . Michael Bridges. [/quote] Now all the anonymous guys can come on here and bash the IPF for requiring approved equipment for records. I have seen a lot in 50 years as powerlifting has introduced me to all of my friends as well as most good and bad memories. "But it weighed MORE so he should the record for sure!" Privacy Policy. 3 Star CrossFit. all of the sheiko guys seem to do well in these feds. My total at around age 46 was just under 1700. George has put his time in and i know we all appreciate Georges effort in supporting the game through his participation. John Gamble! My friend Eric Stuber and the two side spotters couldn't even react in time. Benchpress: 172.5kg/380lb RECENT:Joe "The Lad" Ladnier Mississippi Monster. And Don Reinhoudt the SHW world champ. Harold put on a great meet. Mike Bridges - 512 lb Raw Bench @ 181 lbs (232.5 @ 82.5 kgs) 2,478 views Aug 19, 2016 35 Dislike Share Save Lexington Plummer 1.52K subscribers From the 1982 USPF Sr Nat'ls, Mike Bridges. I think it'd be more like shooting the jockey because he was wearing the wrong silks lol! Mac was frantic. Lou: You had a lot of lifters come stay with you such as Mike Bridges who you said was the strongest man under 200 pounds. wouldnt u think for a comp that big, that everything would be above board, regardless of what you think the rules should be? Deadlift: 320kg/705.48lb, Lee Moran (Birth date: may 17, 1955 Died july 15, 1999). I would think you would have everything ready to go at least a week out. Third, to the IPF, if you do take the records away, ask yourself why there are all these feds and why lifters are constantly jumping from fed to fed. To many, the author included, a case can be made for Bridges being among the best three lifters in the history of the sport. Why is it so hard? 1980 IPF Men's World Powerlifting Championships. So when we landed I told Mac that I needed to find a place to sleep. @Michael_Easter, Steroids (6 posts) And it's still very hard for me to write after all these years. American Drug-Free Powerlifting Federation, 2008 American Physiological Society study, How The Federal Reserve Is The Shadow Branch Of The Government, Why Original Predictions About The War In Ukraine Were So Off. I got a shot under my left armpit and I didn't feel anything for three days in that arm (it's called an arm block). Tests are cost prohibitive. Prior to any National meet, there is a meeting held by the Technical Secretary to ensure compliance to rules. I unhooked it and stood up. The 20kg TPB used to be approved by the IPF, until they didn't pay the licensing fee, so there are undoubtedly some IPF World record which have been set using a TPB. ALL THOSE RECORDS ARE NOW DEAD TOO. Guess we will never know for sure since neither one of us heard it first hand. Wouldn't it still be a Masters National USAPL record? Carl said "I realize that rules are rules but, don't shoot the horse because the jockey was overweight." No excuses! This will be different for different people as we are all genetically different as to how we age. Jim. Lee not only squatted 1003, but he has bench presses 617.4 to give him the highest subtotal in history of power lifting. Cookie Notice A prodigy of the great Larry Pacifico. Mike gave it hus all and was a supporter of the sumo-style deadlift and is one of the first to use it effectively. I have a Texas Power Bar and it weighs 20kg. Bob Matz would judge meets and was down right scary to look at. lol. this meet director, the ipf (USAPL) refs who inspected the platform and weights, and the USAPL EC members present, tech sec, all of these should be held directly responsible for what was discovered thursday and they did not work to correct. Bridges trained all three of the power lifts in the same workout, three days a week. Best Lifts: When you see him lifting over 500lb in the benchpress in such a smooth Continue Fred has held the squat record in several classes and he has squatted 1008lb at the Budweiser meet in 1986. What was remarkable was the little guys finger was as tiny as you would expect, and with the help of microscopic lenses he worked a miracle. Lou: I want to thank you for doing this interview and for the memories you have left imprinted on powerlifting and after knowing you for the last fifty years, on me. Gaynor said most powerlifters think PEDs give them about a 7 to 12 percent increase in strength. He said, "I will be in a minute." Mike was the superlative powerlifter. While I was there, in came a man from Texas who got his hand ground up in a meat grinder. The fact that Teds total may have been low does not depreciate the astronomical effort he has left us with. Putt Houston. now with more Bom Chicka Wahwahhhhhh, http://usapowerliftingforum.com/cgi-bin/config.pl?read=12709. I'm sure if anything does happen like records being reversed, the people who are invloved will only use this as motivation to exceed their previous lifts. Of course, it would be nave to assume that some lifters at tested events werent using PEDs. the fault is with USAPL and its referees (IPF ones) and its meet director, who should have KNOWN better than to hold a MEN's NATIONALS and that women's record breaker event WITHOUT THE PROPER BARS. That being said, steroids, insulin-like growth factor 1 (IGF-1), clenbuterol and other banned substances dont make an athlete more skilled at his sport they amplify skills he already has. He started lifting at 58 and was that one-in-a-thousand who had that Special Super Strength. A meet with the quality of lifters, albeit the lack of numbers it has previously enjoyed, SHOULD have been prepared to entertain world record attempts. There was a period when the IPF decided to do drug testing. Ed did one bodybuilding show as a teenager but he did not like the idea of losing weight, he wanted to become as big as possible. Theyre close enough in the lighter classes, but the heavier guys are differentiated in such a way, for example, that an IPF lifter could be up to 23 pounds heavier than a Raw Unity competitor in an equal weight class. Powerlifting champion and Hall of Famer Mike Bridges has officially endorsed KT Tape as his choice for pain relief and muscle support. The store will not work correctly in the case when cookies are disabled. I've also, place 2nd once, and 3rd twice in the 'open' class since age 47 in World Championships. on USA SOIL! Good luck to all of them. I also was a shotput and discus thrower and won Athlete of the Year in New York in 1964. I felt good that morning and was ready to push it. I wore my ProKinetics Insoles to my first competition at the 2009 Pan American Games and I beat my previous world record in squat by 87 pounds. 1983Mens Senior Nationals in the NFL, Major League Baseball and the Olympics what were really talking about is how the drugs make an athletes muscles more efficient in terms of strength and recovery. The bigger the glass, the more of everything else you can do. All other things being equal, the stronger you are, then the quicker you run, the harder you hit, the higher you jump, the faster you throw. So, after the 1983 IPF event, he and others formed the American Drug-Free Powerlifting Federation. But when you can squat 1000 anytime you fell like it, who cares about a poor deadlift. It went all the way down except for about half an inch. Good luck to all of them. So, as a powerlifter, if you stay in the same weight class but you lose 10 pounds of fat and gain 10 pounds of muscle, you can be tremendously stronger, because fat doesnt help you lift weight. It took 29 years for someone to break this raw bench record mark, set by a man that looked like a clerk at Home Depot. Try Squatting with all that weight with a smooth middle! I just went to a baseball game and payed $18 for a lousy $10 hat. I opened with 540 very easy, then the 242 world record of 578. Mike Bridges (Powerlifter) Inger Blikra (Powerlifter) Subrata Dutta . I am aware of the wrong bar that was shipped because I warmed up with it in the warm up room. I had plenty of ice packed around my hand. Exhibition lifts include an 885-pound squat, 610-pound bench press, and 815-pound deadlift, for a total of 2061 pounds. A week later Mac and I flew to California. He was right. [quote=Anonymous]My boyfriend was in the area on Thursday afternoon when several referees told the Technical Sec that something was wrong with the bar and they were told it was OK, it was an old Ivenko Bar. Bridges missed three squats of 562 pounds. He did break the record. [/quote] Dan has benched 400lb in his class when most men in his class were approaching the 600lb barrier . And your team Power Elite with your lifters including Topsogov Studer.Larry: We had a great team back then and I will always look back to the early days without so much politics. Robert Harris SPECIAL. Best Lifts: they can replace usapl, remember? What happened? Assistance work may have consisted of a few sets of curls and little more yet in the opinion of many, me included, Mike can be crowned as one of the top few lifters of all time. [/quote] I dont drug test at Raw Unity for a couple reasons, said Eric Talmant, who organizes and competes in Raw Unity, an event considered by some to be the Super Bowl of American raw powerlifting. But there is one man that comes to mind that was contested by the fact he could be beaten on a bad day if someone else had a great day. I also know you were never cocky or arrogant, but totally confident and fun when I was around you. Multi Time World Champion. The meet director did the best he could given the circumstances and the pass given with the equipment presented for inspection. they had TIME TO FIX THIS. They had time to get another bar!!! DUMB, the man had spanking new Ivanko weights and ER rack on the platform, to think that the bar was his underminding the rules is plain stupid. and our Thats total that maybe one other lifter has approached. Go ahead, it's okay. I can attest to that because I lifted in the Master's Nat's in Charlottesville, VA and along with a IPF Cat I ref, pointed out a number of infrations which where simply explained away. My team was also lifting, including Eric Stuber, Mac Richards, John Topsoglou, and several others. BUT, as a lifter at the meet who is not capable of setting world records, I was very happy when I learned that we would be using a Texas Power Bar. Mike is a World IPF Champion, IPF World Record Holder, 2008 Masters World Champion with 4 Gold Medals, and 2007 World Bench Press Gold Medalist. they say he found out thursday. Nothing worked. they cut it fine by sending it to you thast close to a meet. Rogers post about changing the frequency of training seems to fit. Actually, I've worked at keeping everything the same since it worked before and seems to be working OK now as well. For the best experience on our site, be sure to turn on Javascript in your browser. At meets a certain aura surrounded you.Larry: My first rival was Joe Weinstein. Second, the guys that want to do drugs and get around a test can and will. On the other end of the spectrum, USA Powerlifting (USAPL) vehemently tests lifters, and its slogan is Americas choice for drug-free strength sport.. this is a joke,if anybody should be repremanded it should be the meet directors,the issue of bars cant be held against mike bridges and the records that he set,if thats the case then the entire meet results would have to be erased. Bob Matz would judge meets and was down right scary to look at. And I won the worlds. From then on and into the 80s, Id estimate that about 85 percent of competitive American powerlifters at the national level were using something in massive doses to gain an edge: anabolic steroids, dianabol, testosterone.. Mike Bridges The Peoria Powerhouse as told to POWERLIFTING USA by Herb Glossbrenner Great Form from the beginning. mark. 1980 IPF Mens World Powerlifting Championships Mel has benchpressed 535lb, squatted 535lb and deadlifted 600lb. I lifted my hands up and that's when I saw it. Well most know he won nine straight before makinga tactical error when he jumped five pounds on his second attempt on the deadlift, which nullified a third attempt, letting Mark Dimiduk win the1980s nationals and worlds.Larry told me if I would open lighter I would do better, and he was right again.I remember Larry making a 530-pound bench press and a 1,900 total in 1972 in Cincinnati, Ohio, at a body weight of 198. No one should have to put up with this BS. some even fresh from factory seem unduly "slick"! He said, "Okay, just be sure you're at the gate in time." Then came the tragedy on the bench. Hahahahah!!! I hope it wasnt 45lbs cos USAPL/IPF rules stipulate metric measures Note: During the BFCM sales period all sales are final.Thus, no returns will accepted. lift on, stay young, and live to enjoy it! Well, finally the final chapter to this event: As I mentioned, Mac Richards came back down to pick me up in Louisville. USAPL, was it "modified rules" which were in effect this time? Las Vegas, NV. 1983 Mens Senior Nationals I drove it back over my head, I guess to keep it from tearing my pec worse, and to keep the bar from sinking in my chest. I invited several well-known lifters of that time: the great Mike Bridges, Terry Dillard, Dave Waddington, Steve Wilson, and Mark Chaillet. Dan, like Ed and Fred Hatfield, has proven that the little man is in! People need to have a reality check, as if Harold thought ..hey, let me sabotage this meet and give them a non-approved bar. he did this for 10 years and kept progressing but he's unreal. You might say not bad well let me tell you this, maybe 12 super-heavies have done 630 plus, but Sam, at 275, has out-benched at least half of the twelve. I was a gymnast in New York where I grew up. Raw Nationals is drug-tested, and the Classic Worlds tests but perhaps not as strictly as the USAPL event. All of Mel's lifts are done in extremely strict style. As I'm now fast closing on 49 I find my biggest problem is not overtraining, but under-recovering. He bench pressed well over 400, squatter more than 700 and deadlifted close to that.