Strongman Chris Rider

An 8″ long adjustable wrench is what is known in strongman circles as an “odd object”. Due to the awkwardness of the piece and it’s inherent strength, these types of items are normally bent over the thigh. Recently my friend and fellow performing strongman Aaron “Mighty Mac” McKenzie bent one of these brand name wrenches at chest level. Inspired by my friend, I decided to give one a go.

Driving a 4″ long 20 d nail through an 11″ frying griddle and a thick board with only a wash cloth to protect my hand. After the drive is complete and I unfold the wash cloth you can see that the nail head has pierced through the top layer of padding completely.

Being able to tear an entire deck of plastic coated playing cards is very difficult. Tearing cards while handcuffed takes this feat to a whole new level.

In my performances I demonstrate a wide range of the oldetime feats. This one is always a crowd pleaser – bending a solid steel 1/2″ x 18″ hex bolt.

Here’s a classic for you, hammer levering. This hammer weighs in at just over 15 pounds with a length of about 39″. This turns into an estimated 585 inch/pounds of force on the wrist.

In my travels I am constantly asked about the things I can do. One of the feats that always comes up is tearing phonebooks. The way I like to tear books the best is like a hydraulic shear press would, hands pushing in from opposite directions to shear the book with a crisp & clean tear.

A traditional feat of strength is bending a 60 d nail with just the hands. In this video I am bending a much larger and more difficult 3/8″ x 7.5″ bolt. Notice the difference between the 60 d (1/4″ x 6″) and the big 3/8″ bolt when I show them together.