In modern day powerlifting, where 1000 lb squats and 800 lb benches are becoming more and more common place due to improved powerflifting gear and questionable regulation, it is easy to forget the giants of years gone by that blazed trails and broke barriers that were thought impossible at the time. One man whom I think embodies this spirit is Pat Casey. Pat is unique in that he was in many ways the whole package; he set records in almost every lift and was also extremely strong in many accessory exercises. He was also a truly massive human being often tipping the scales around if not over 300 lbs at his heaviest.
He had many major accomplishments along his career, breaking through one record before continuing on to the next. Pat is widely regarded as one of the best raw bench pressers in history, being the first man to break both the 500 lb barrier, and then the 600 lb barrier as well.
Pat built his impressive bench pressing power in a very basic way, utilizing the bench press as a main lift and pushing specific key assistance exercise as well. A few of his favorites movements were chins, seated press both in front and behind the neck. However, he had two that were his by far his calling card. On both the dumbbell incline bench and dips, he worked up to truly herculean weights. Here is show below performing dumbbell inclines with a 220 lb dumbbell in each hand and dips at a body weight over 300 lbs and with external weight added.
But as previously stated, Pat was by no means a one trick pony. In addition to being a world level raw bencher, even by today's standards, he was also an impressive squatter and all around lifter.
While he often lagged behind on the deadlift for various reasons ranging from a lack of motivation, poor leverages due to his body weight, and even a pinched sciatic nerve, he was a king when the bar was on his back. While trianing the lift infrequently, only once every 10 days, Pat was none the less quite adept at the lift and eventually worked his way past the 800 lb barrier, becoming the first man in history to do so.
Thanks in large part to his strong squat and bench press, Casey was a great all around lifter, being the first man to total over 2000 lbs on the three powerlifts. One of the most surprising things to learn about this former record breaker was that he trained in a fashion that is contradictory to most modern lifters. Rather than training more often, Casey believed in hitting the lifts hard and capitalizing on rest. Upon his retirement, when reflecting on his training, Pat said that if he had it all to do over again he would drop training back to only two days a week, use less total volume than he did, and prioritize resting over lifting.
Pat Casey was a truly great lifter, changing the face of powerlifting and breaking down barriers that no one thought would be touched. He helped to make powerlifting what it is today and still impacts the sport to this day; I couldn't think of a better candidate for my first Forgotten Legend.
