Dennis Rogers

Grandmaster Strongman

When I think of the term Master in strength sports or martial arts, I think of someone who has an extremely focused Mind, a positive Attitude, enduring Strength, one who has spent countless hours Training, is committed to Excellence, and is Relentless in his/her pursuit of knowledge. This description, without a doubt describes Harinder Singh.  

I first met Harinder in January 2017 when he attended my annual Oldetime Strongman University seminar. He, as was Bruce Lee, Jeet-Kune-Do’s founder decades before him, had been on a continuing quest for knowledge. A man who was already a master at his craft, yet had continued (and still is) to search for methods to expand his skills. In principle, performing strongman feats is much like martial arts: one must learn to fine tune his/her focus, learn to overcome the pain governor, build explosive strength, maximize body-mechanics and muscle recruitment to apply optimum force, and master the techniques required to make your opponent (in this case steel) yield.

Bruce Lee said, “Knowing is not enough, we must apply. Willing is not enough, we must do.” That day Harinder did just that, standing tall as bent spikes, steel bars, and twisted horseshoes lay at his feet. As you might guess, that mangled steel spawned his interest even more. Because of this, and the fact that he teaches Jeet-Kune-Do around the world, I suggested that Harinder come to my studio in Houston so that we could work on displays of power and speed that combined his martial arts skills and strongman feats. He agreed, so I suggested some exercises to prepare for his visit.

Harinder arrived that May, full-on ready to go. 

That day we focused on a handful of feats with him achieving the following results:

• Drove a nail through a board with a quick four-inch punch.

• Pushed a nail that was positioned with the point against the board completely through with a slow punch.

• Snapped a 1/2” thick rope that had a working load limit of 360 pounds, with one blow of his open hand.

• Side kicked a 3 foot long, 3/8ths inch thick piece of flat steel, which was secured between two posts, striking it so hard that in flew through, landing on the floor displaying a significant bend.

While it is true that I have never participated in martial arts, I recognize a true master when I see one.