Thomas Inch and the Inch Dumbbell

Thomas Inch (1881-1963) was a famous weightlifter from England. He is most famous for having a 172 pound dumbbell that nobody else could lift off the floor with one hand. He would offer large sums of money to anyone that could lift it. It is possible, however, that his act was a scam, as he had 4 dumbells that looked the same but were different weights (bait and switch?) and he never challenged a handful of lifters that were considered stronger than him. He was also very careful in how he phrased his own lifting of the weight as he never really mentioned putting it overhead with just one hand.
You can read an interesting biography of his life (in multiple pages)
Part 1
Part 2
Part 3
Part 4
Part 5
Part 6
Part 7
Part 8

Posted By: fyshstyxx | Date: Thu Jun 25, 2009 | Comments (1)
Category: Exercise and Fitness, Frauds, Cons and Scams, Human Marvels

About Weird Universe

Weird Universe explores every aspect of a human and natural cosmos that is not only "stranger than we imagine, but stranger than we can imagine."

Suggest a Link — Are you a member? Log-in here.
Not a member? Consider registering. Or perhaps you've forgotten your password?

Search

All original content in posts is Copyright © 2008 by the author of the post, either Alex Boese ("Alex"), Paul Di Filippo ("Paul"), or Chuck Shepherd ("Chuck"). All rights reserved. The banner illustration at the top of this page is Copyright © 2008 by Rick Altergott.