November 13th, 2006
Folks,
My posting 10 months ago Re The World's Strongest Archer has drawn recent interest. It appears that Den Erickson claims to have bested Mark Stretton's record by 30 pounds.
I am communicating with Den to see if he might like to come to Dartmouth to set an official world record there. The above photo was sent by Den today. Stay tuned. I will also have some current info Re the strenth of "warbows" and the armor that they penetrated in a future posting.
Cheers,
Dr. Ron
Don Ballard:
From where is most of the strength required...arms? shoulders? back? or a combination of all? What would hurt me the most the next day after practicing this activity? Is there an online source for supplies for quality grade instruments? What kind of costs are involved? Do you know of any archery clubs one could speak with to get more information? Are there any records on greatest distance an arrow was shot? Sorry for so many questions.
Bill:
The victorian style pulls straight back using the rear deltoids. The most I can pull with this is 110. The medieval style requires you to lean forward, point the bow down and pull back in a circular motion using the larger latisimus dorsi muscles "lats". These are the same muscles you use when doing pullups. Not only are they big but they also have excellent leverage because of how the attach to the body in reference to the sholder joint. This is not an easy way to draw. It requires practice. I think of it as doing a one arm pull up into the bow.
With regard to not getting hurt, anytime you stress a muscle more then 70% you must give it 4 to 5 days to recover. In a manor of speaking, when you are working out or other wise stressing your self you are tearing down tissue in order to build it up stronger. If you don't allow recovery time, you are only tearing down and never building up.
With reguard to world recods set for pulling bows, I believe that we are at the very begining. There are powerlifters that I suspect could pull drawweights upwards of 500 lbs if they put their minds to learning the technique. You can look at pictures in the following forum to get an idea of where the upper limits of humman strength have reached.
http://www.fortifiediron.com/invision/index.php?showforum=15
I have a webpage that will give you some of the basics to get started on pullinga heavy bow.
http://mysite.verizon.net/tsafa1/workout.htm
littlebowman:
any update on what's going on with this mans claim yet?
Den Erickson:
I will Honor this request , and come to Dartmouth , settle the claim for all the world to see .
Guiness has been contacted and we will proceed when they have agreed to a date .
Any questions Please email .
Varbogen@aol.com
Thanks ,
Den Erickson
canebrake:
Well, it’s been over a year. Any new developments with this?
Richard Stiefel:
I have communicated with this clown and have found him ( den ) to be full of crap. This photo depicts a fat out of shape person, not muscular. He has told me of his martial arts training, yet his knuckles look like mine before my training. They now look like small golf balls. I have a degree in metalurgy, yet Den seems to know more about the properties of steel than me? At 33 years of age, he seems to have accomplished what would take a lifetime for anyone else. Lets see, 12 years through high school, 4 years of college, 4 years in the military, powerlifting and at least 7 years to reach his 6th Dan in martial arts. WOW!!!!!!!
Gotcha :
After our last conversation, this is how it stands:Den is 33 years of age, bachelors degree in business, 13 years in the military, 6th degree black belt. You do the math. At least 24 years old for BA, plus 13 years military. that alone would make him 35 years of age. How do you fit in the 8-10 years it takes for the 6th degree black belt. This guy is a FRAUD,LIAR and is starving for attention. I was a member of the Howard Hill Longbowmens and droped out because of this JERK.
Strongman:
The bow in the above looks like a piece of balsa wood. There is no grain in the bow.