Latest / The Platform: a Michigan High School Powerlifting Association Podcast / Dennis Reinhart, USPA Record Holder & Coach, Montrose HS Pt 1 | The Platform Episode 13

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Dennis Reinhart, USPA Record Holder & Coach, Montrose HS Pt 1 | The Platform Episode 13 · The Platform: a Michigan High School Powerlifting Association Podcast

• Chris Whittaker: Ladies and gentlemen, the bar is loaded, and we're back for another episode of the platform, your Michigan High School Power Lifting Association podcast. my name is Chris Whitaker. As always, I am here with my co-host, our executive director of the Michigan High School Powerlifting Association, who, if you're watching on video, is wearing one of our brand new platform t shirts. available soon to everyone on the MHS PLA store. we are here and Coach Gillam is going to introduce our guest with a man who needs no introduction, I don't think, around our around our association that we've heard a lot about, and one of the pioneers of the MHS PLA, Mr. Dennis Reinhardt, is here. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. So our guest today you betcha our guest today is a true legend. He's a power lifter himself, and three years ago he set a state record in the USPA for bench press in his weight class and age group. Maybe we'll talk about that a little bit. He witnessed some early days of the MHS PLA. He was instrumental in steering the Michigan High School Powerlifting Association in the nineteen nineties. He developed a state powerhouse football program. Chris Whittaker: Coach Gillum. Tell us more about our guest. Chris Gilliam: and a nationally recognized powerlifting team. Did these two accomplishments go hand in hand? Let's ask Welcome Dennis Reinhardt to the platform. All right. Coach, good to have you with us. Dennis Reinhart: So thank you. Thank you guys. Chris Whittaker: I should have had the sound effect queued up, coach. There it is, there it is. Chris Gilliam: You should have had those applause codes. Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: All right, that's good. Thank you much. Chris Whittaker: So we're gonna we got a bunch of questions for Denny. We're gonna have have a lot of fun talking with him and and learning from him. so I have the first question here, coach, and it's what brought you to this sport of powerlifting? Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: Well, and actually my senior of high school, which would have been way back in nineteen seventy-eight, we touched weights for the first time. And my head football coach at the time was Bob Hayes, and he introduced us to a guy from Fenton who moved to Montrose. His name was Tim Stiverson. And he was a national power lifter at that time. And we started going down into his basement, lifting you know, four or five of us on the football team. And basically Tim is the one that turned me onto it. And I said that would have been back in 1978, but I didn't start competing until after college and stuff like that. But that's how we really got turned onto it. Chris Whittaker: Now that Stiverson name, like I've I've met and and you know, we talk about it with the guests all the time. I'm from New York, so I'm learning learning learning who's who here around the state. but I've met I I believe his first name, Adam Stiverson. Dennis Reinhart: Yeah, that would that would be that would be one of his sons, yes. And then there there's Adam, and then there's an Adam Junior, et cetera, et cetera. So there's there's several of but Tim is the father and he's the one that really got us in Montrose turned on to it. Chris Whittaker: More of Tim's sons. That Adam's daughter there's bombing the shop putting discus. Well that Dennis Reinhart: no, she's not good. She's just she is tremendous. She's gr I mean, she is what you call great, elite. Chris Whittaker: Yeah. Absolutely. A Addy, right? Shout out Addie Addie Addison Stiverson. Shout out Addie. so you said that you got brought in by Coach Stiverson and you know, how did you you know, what was your motive for starting a program at Montrose? That was your your first program was at Montrose, always at Montrose? Dennis Reinhart: Yeah, Edison. Yeah. Yeah, what what happened, yeah, obviously once I got out of college and et cetera, I was still lifting, but I wasn't actually competing until I had hooked up with Russ Husted doing my student teaching in eighty seven. And I had never really truly competed. I was always inspired by it, but Russ Husted was a big original power lifting guy from Mount Morris and back in the day when the MHS PLA was kind of different than what it is now, but it was kinda back then. And Russ was real big into it. And worked out great that I did my student teaching under him. And then I got working out with him. And then he got inspired by me. And some of the kids in the class were teasing him that I was stronger than him. And da-da-da-da. And so it went on like that. So all of a sudden, you know, we started going to powerlifting, actually just bench press meets and lifting, lifting then, and it kind of got turned on. And then me and Russ and a few other guys just started going on, started traveling the country just competing in powerlifting meets. And so in that time frame, then I got to Montrose with Tony Anise, who was the head coach at the time. And we obviously got there. And Montrose was kind of in a down phase of football. And first thing we said, you know, we're weak and we got to get physically strong. And I said, you know, and he was also doing varsity basketball. I said, I got it, I got the weight room all winter and you know, and stuff like that. We'll take care of it. And we got him in there. And I started with a couple kids, just took them to a power lifting meet the first year we were there. Up in Elma, Michigan. I think it was at Burke's gym. I think it was Dave Burke, ran the gym back then. And we did a meet there. A couple kids got turned on, and then a couple more, a couple more. And then Dave Burke calls me and says, I'm not gonna run the ADFPA meet anymore. Would you be interested? So then I jumped on it and we started running ADFPA sanctioned meets, and that's kind of how it grew from there. So we grew from a couple kids to, you know, I I don't even know the numbers. We And again, it wasn't to build a powerlifting team. We built it for our our our football program. Because, you know, obviously in the off season, you know, football is a long time away. So we just would like train for the next meet, then the next meet, then the next meet. And then before you knew it, you know, football season rolled around. And that's how we kind of looked at it. And then that was great because I was now competing and, you know, then in full meets and stuff like that. And that was great. I could work out with the kids and get my training in, they get their training in. And we had we had it rolling, man. We had a good thing going. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Yeah, you did. 'Cause I'm from that area, Whitaker, you know that, and I just remember reading the articles in the Flint Journal about the powerlifting program. you know, and their football program too, but they usually had some stories in the sports section in the summer based on their powerlifting teams doing national meets and stuff. So so back in the eighties, like you you mentioned A D FPA meets. and with Russ and that that's awesome. We'll talk about Russ a little more later. But were these were all the meets equipped? Dennis Reinhart: Yeah, b b back at that time, yeah, everything was equipped. you know, it not everybody, but most people would wear the squat suit, some would wear bench shirts, some wouldn't, and then the the original knee wraps, which you you still can go to meets with those stuff today. I think they call them classic, you know, whatever. They got so many different names now, it's unbelievable. But again, that was kind of what it was known. And of course our kids did it. And then you know, when we started going to the national meets, I mean, if you didn't Chris Gilliam: Mm-hmm. Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: you know, have the suits or the knee wraps. I mean, you honestly you couldn't compete. And after a while, I mean, that's where is actually several years after that, but it got to the point where, you know, we got the best who had the best equipment, you know, usually were the most successful. And I had an example of our own kids that we could probably get into it later on that convinced me that, you know, to be fair, Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: you know, in high school that we gotta push to raw. And then I made a big push for raw at a certain point. And like I said pr you could probably go to this a little bit later on in what's going on. But I mean this is kind of com going from the beginning. Chris Gilliam: Mm-hmm. yeah. Yeah, for sure. So, w you mentioned the gym, so where their high schools were meets were taking place. I mean, I believe, you know, I I looked up some stuff like well Millington was hosting a state meet back then under the MHS PLA moniker. did you guys go to that state meet at all or did you Dennis Reinhart: Well, what what really was going on in the ear early through the mid eighties with Russ Husted and and and Tim Fernell and them, they run they did and Tim called to meet the MHS PLA, which it is right now. And they were kind of the big ones in at Millington and Mott Morris and South Lion were the main dogs back back in that era. And they competed and I mean I did my student teaching with Russ, they were still competing with it. And then when, you know, I got to Montrose, you know, we more I was more pushing our kids to to try to compete nationally. And to, you know, to go we c and that's how we started running the ADFPA, which is the American Drug Free Powerlifting Association. It's no longer really an organization, it's it busted off into certain ones, but that was the big one back in the day that truly drug tested. And so we would we pushed to to go to those national meets. And so that's why I Chris Gilliam: Mm-hmm. Dennis Reinhart: was running the AD FPA and AD FPA state meet in Michigan. And as I said, the first one we went to, I think it was like eighty seven with Dave Burke. And I think from eighty eight on, I ran them up until gee whiz, I don't even remember the last one it was. like I said I was trying to get in the up and top of the trophies and see what year we stopped doing those meet. But that's kind of where we kinda got together the one and kind of kind of reformed the MHS PLA because at one point Chris Gilliam: Depois. Sure. Dennis Reinhart: Our ADFPA meet started growing and growing and growing and growing. And then the MHSLPA started getting smaller and smaller and smaller. And so at some point, I think in the early 90s, 92, 93 range, you know, we got a meeting together and was kind of like, let's kind of form, you know, do one, you know, instead of having a ADFPA one and this one. And it was like, you know, yeah, we're for it. But I mean, also if we're gonna do it, we got to drug test it. It's it's only fair to drug test it. And so when we did we did sort of combine it, drug testing was a p part of it, just like it was to be a sanctioned meet, you obviously in the ADFPA, you had to drug test 10% of your lifters, et cetera, et cetera. And then when we first start formed the MHSLPA for the state meets, we still kept the drug testing in up until a certain time. And I'm not really sure when that kind of got pushed away. And I was on the board. And that's kinda where at that time I was on the board and I kinda kept pushing, we gotta start drug testing again, drug testing again, and it kinda, you know, really didn't happen. And so that's kinda where I kinda, you know, slowly stepped back from it. Chris Gilliam: Sure, I understand. Yeah, I mean that's that's pretty interesting to to hear that. And so the MHS PLA, even though it it was kind of separate from what you were doing, they were also equipped, correct? Dennis Reinhart: They were they were fully equipped and and then we all stayed fully equipped until I guess I'll get the story right now. We were down at a qualifier. You could we used to set it up where we had to do regional qualifiers like to do now. And Denny Hopkins down at Linden was running one. And I had two of my own kids in there. And there was one kid who was, you know, he they both were strong. But the one kid had was quite wealthy and he had a top of the line bench shirt. And you know, he was I mean, I had another kid who was benching, I was right by him, and he did I don't know, like 325, 330 bench, and he struggled with it, but got it. And and I, you know, I left and went to help some other kid and I came back and I said, What are you going? He I think he don't quote me on the numbers, but it was something like 390. And I said, Are you? And I guess that's where one of those bombs came out, stupid. There's no way in the world you're gonna get it. I said, Why would you take such a jump? He goes, I'm wearing, you know, Mark's shirt. I said, I don't care what shirt you got on, you are not gonna get it. You can't that much of a difference. And anyways he puts the shirt on and boom, he blows it out of the water, like, my God. There's just no way. And of course that shirt at the time, I think that time was like a three hundred dollar bench shirt. And I just said, No, this ain't right. This ain't right, you know, 'cause you got the funds and this kid doesn't. It ain't fair. So right then there, it was two of my own kids just said, We gotta go raw. We've gotta go raw. And then if these kids wanna start going nationally again, that's fine. You know, you can do that stuff, but For this thing, it's it, you know, I mean, yes, it you gotta be strong, but I mean that was helping too much. I'm I'm sorry. And yeah, and it did, and you know, to this day, and that's where we really started pushing the raw. And then I think it was in seven, they had to meet over at Muskegon High, is the first year we went raw, and we had a quip division on a Friday night and then a raw division on Saturday, and that's how we did it. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, that that's a lot, yeah, for sure. Yeah. Yeah. yeah, we'll talk a little bit more about that later 'cause I I you know, I remember certain specific things that happened at the previous year's state meet at Plainwell, you know, so that we kinda voted to go raw and get rid of rid of things. So but yeah, thanks. I appreciate that. That's pretty good information. Dennis Reinhart: yeah. Chris Whittaker: So we talked a little bit about how, you know, kinda in the eighties, Millington and Mount Morris were kind of the top dogs. You guys were active from with a Montrose team at that time. how many different schools would you say were involved back then? Dennis Reinhart: wow. Man, you're really drawing back on me. I just I remember well okay when we started getting the ADFPA going, my the meets I was having there with the sanctioned ones, God, you know, it was Montrose, Goodreach, Bendel, Lyndon, DeWitt, were some of the first ones. obviously Millington was involved, but more in the MHL PLA. West Side the State Bill I think Bill Holdsworth was with some people down. Back in the day, Matt Prisk was people down from Traverse City. And but each year they just kept growing and growing and growing is what it really started out. But that was like the main way. I mean, I think my first ADFPA meet I ran, I think maybe I had 120 lifters. The first one, you know, which would have been 1988. I think it was like 120. And then like the last, geez, the last ADFPA meet, I think. Right around ninety four, I think's when we truly ninety three was the last teenage AD FPA meet I ran or state meet in ninety three. Then we went to the H P L I think in ninety four. I think the last one in ninety three, I think I had roughly three hundred, three hundred and fifty to four hundred right in that range at the state meet. Chris Gilliam: Wow, that's pretty awesome. How many platforms were you guys running then? Dennis Reinhart: Well, we started out I think the first meet we did, we ran two, then we went to three, and then we ended up and we originally started out using hydraulic powerlifting mats from Bill Stiff out of Fenton with Tim. And they worked great. We had those ones, those big ones. You know, they'd hydraulic in and out, up and down and stuff, but when they got stuck, boy, they were tough to move. And then what was his name? Bill Sti not Bill Stiff, over from he was from Bendel. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, I was gonna talk to you. Yeah. Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: their their industrial arts teacher, he made six squat racks out with jack stands. And he yep, he made three of them for Bendel and three of them for us. And then we just, you know, we'd share them. So then we had the six and then we just kinda so then with six platforms and eventually it went more and more and just, you know, kept growing from there. But for the longest time we only had that we the six platforms with those old jack stand jacks we had and they're still floating out there anyways Chris Gilliam: Yep, I remember those. Dennis Reinhart: Eventually there became twelve of and then we used to share back and forth. And that one year somebody in the west side of the state took six of and never returned them. And then, you know, we're we're missing six of them for a while. Then all of a sudden they were they were painted a different color. And I was at one of the meets, I said, Wait a minute. They started chipping off and I said, These are our mi you know, whatever. So kinda went like that. So there are still twelve of those around somewhere. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, I remember them being like blue and red and then then all of a sudden they they ended up green one year or something. Dennis Reinhart: They were blue. Yep. Yeah. yeah. Whoever whoever took them last. Yep. Whoever took last would end up changing her color and thinking nobody would notice. I'm like, come on, you know, the you know the yeah. Yep. Chris Gilliam: Pretty unique. Yeah. Those those were pretty sweet. a lot easier. You didn't have to undo the weight, Coach Whitaker, on the bar to raise them lower 'cause you they were jack stands so you could raise them lower that way. Dennis Reinhart: Yep. And they they they were they they they did good. They were heavy duty. They were some big sturdy racks. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Yeah, they were pretty sweet. So each upright was independent from one another. So that a wide base. It was pretty nice. And then we brought in like regular bench presses to bench on. So it wasn't like you know, a utility bench brought out to the rack. So yeah, it was those were good old days. Sweet. Chris Whittaker: Mm-hmm. Dennis Reinhart: Yep. Mm-hmm. Yeah. Chris Whittaker: And so like the competition style rack that you see now in like a USAP L meet, you guys basically built that. Yeah. Now w within that time, Coach, I mean I'm sure most of the participants were boys, but what was the participation for girls like back then? Chris Gilliam: Yeah, similar. Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: Well, again, we we had girls competing. I think our first girls, a few of started competing right around eighty nine. 'Cause I was looking at some of the trophies up there and we got pictures of the girls in in that. and again it was small and it gradually kept growing and growing and growing. you know, and obviously nowhere near the the amount of participants now, but I mean it grew. And, you know, if to give me you exactly a figurehead right now, I I I couldn't really tell you that, you know. I would have to pull out an old sheet which is somewhere in my filing cabinet, which I do I do have the results of a lot of our old meets in the filing cabinets. I just didn't be able to pull them out, but they're in there. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. No, for sure. So I've been doing a lot of research on the MHS PLA. I told you that when I talked to you previously. in my research, you know, you told me you about certain schools and you had mentioned Swartz Creek, but you couldn't remember the guy's name. And so and th then I found the name. So Lloyd Kuhn from Swartz Creek was massively successful. Dennis Reinhart: Lloyd Coon. Chris Gilliam: with his women's powerlifting team in the in the eighties. did you know him? D Dennis Reinhart: Yes. Yes. Lloyd Lloyd at the time, he was the ADFPA state chairman. And so so anytime I had to go through one of my Zice Sanction Meets, I had to go through Lloyd to get it signed off by him. And then he would come to the meets as a sanctioned person to make sure we were drug testing and all that sort of stuff. And he still would run meets and that and our kids would go there. And sometimes where time of year it was, he would run qualifiers just to get kids able to till they could go to nationals and he'd run qualifying meets and stuff like that. Chris Gilliam: Okay. Dennis Reinhart: So yeah, I knew Lloyd real well and Lloyd was a great, great person, mentor for powerlifting. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, I mean, I don't know a ton of detail. I know he was a big power lifter himself. He's originally from Flint. I think he's in the greater Flint Sports Hall of Fame, if I'm not mistaken. And one thing that I learned, like they won eight straight national championships as women's team from eighty three through ninety. I believe that was through the USPA. And I don't know if that's because it was, you know, they Dennis Reinhart: Yes, he was. Chris Gilliam: had meats specifically for teenagers in high school. But I found that kinda interesting that USPA and that's kind that's what you lived in now, right? Is the USPA? Okay. So Dennis Reinhart: yeah, the USPA, yep, yep. And actually the actually Adam Stiverson is the state chairman of Michigan now for the USPA. Chris Gilliam: Okay, great. And you guys I'm getting sidetracked a little bit, but you guys are hosting a USPA meet soon, right? Dennis Reinhart: Yeah, actually actually people still can get enter it. I think the deadline it closes tomorrow to enter in it. But yeah, we're doing one or actually we I'm judging it spot Adam's actually running it and we're running it at our auditorium up there and just kind of just a dress rehearsal dry run because we want to try in the future run a a national and possibly even a a world competition there. And they're trying to get away from running at small gym venues. Getting more like like auditoriums like it is. You know, our auditorium will see five hundred and fifty people, it'll be up on an elevated stage and stuff like that. So we're gonna do this kind of like a as a dry run of it and then obviously videotape and send it out to the national offices and then say, Hey, this is what we got, this is how it would be run, this is what it would look like, and it's a great place to to run a national event and then hopefully a a world event. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, I think that's cool. I wish you guys luck with that 'cause that would be pretty cool to have something like that basically come in our backyard for all of our Michigan people. Like that that's that's a huge event to have a national meet, let alone a world meet. That would be awesome. so what do you remember specifically about Lloyd Kuhn? Was he like You you said that he was the state chair and stuff, but like w what was his forte? Did he have an expertise in one area or another or? Dennis Reinhart: I just knew Lloyd as just being a just a knowledge board, like like bac basically like a history book. I mean, he just had so much knowledge and anything you you you had any questions, you'd go to Lloyd. Lloyd had the answers and and stuff like that. And obviously he knew the power lifting. I mean he obviously w was coaching it and and and competed in it and things like that. So he knew what was going on. But you know, Lloyd was just a just a great person to have around with all the knowledge and And friendly, you know, everybody just they knew Lloyd. Lloyd walked in, it was kinda like he was a magnet. And people would come up to him, people you know had lifted with him, against him, et cetera. You know, twenty, thirty years prior would still go up to him and you know, Lloyd was you know, everybody knew Lloyd. Chris Gilliam: Sure. Well, and I just find it amazing, like back you know, you're talking when he was doing this with Swartz Creek, it was late seventies through the eighties. It's not like this it's not like the sport was super popular. I mean, in a nutshell, being from the Flint area myself, it sounds like a lot of the big time powerlifting movement for the state was occurring in that area and then expanding outwards as time has gone on. Would you agree with that or Dennis Reinhart: yes he was. Yeah, I I th I think it was. I think it was. You know, people I obviously like, you know, Lloyd and even Bill Stiff down at Fenton originally, which we got to Stiverson in in into it, and then obviously, you know, we you know, obviously Tim Fernell was doing it up there at Millington and that and Russ Houston at Mount Morris and even I can't remember the guy's name down at South Lion. They were real big in it at the time. And then we got together and obviously I I got in there at Montrose and it just seemed ki seemed to kind of grow from that point. Chris Gilliam: Okay. Awesome. Chris. Chris Whittaker: so you brought up Bill Stiff from Fenton. What else could you tell us about him? I mean, you've shared a little bit about him already. Dennis Reinhart: Well, I I didn't know Bill real well. He was more, you know, connected with Tim. He was Tim Tim Stiverson's coach and stuff. And then obviously Tim introduced me to to Bill and obviously we would borrow his c his equipment and I lifted in a couple of the meets that that Bill ran. In fact my first my first full meet was actually down in Fenton at one of Bill's meets. And actually my first full meet, I think it was in nineteen it was nineteen eighty seven, was my first full meet, 'cause I was really specializing in the bench press at the time 'cause I knew my deadlift was it was way behind just the way I built I was built and so that. But then I eventually got into all the full meets and everything like that. And then you know, that's how I knew Bill, but I didn't know him super well. Chris Whittaker: I'm learning all these people for the first time, Coach. So I'm you know. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: No, no one problem at all. Chris Gilliam: Well, I mean, and I'm trying to think when, you know, Bill's been, you know, passed away for a while now. I think two thousand twenty one maybe, somewhere around there. But for our listeners, our viewers, you would probably remember him if you've been around, 'cause he he wore the red tracksuit jacket around the meets and it had all of his national titles that he won, all his records. Dennis Reinhart: Yep. Chris Gilliam: That he had set, and then it you know, also listed how many like national champion lifters he had coached because he owned Stiff's gym in Fenton, Michigan, and that was like from what I can tell, people from all over the state would come there to talk to him and learn from him because he was a world class lifter himself. and he just happened to live in Fenton and that's where he had a gym. And it was called Stiff's Gym. So but those that were can remember the the older gentleman a little hunched over wearing a red tracksuit jacket. And one of the last people I remember him coaching was Crystal Krupp from Fenton High School. She set all kinds of records. when my oldest daughter was like in middle school, she was I think she still might even have a state record for us right now. in the one eighty one she might still have the bench record or I don't know. Or it hell a a Stiverson might have broke it, but she might have a one sixty five record, I think, 'cause Stiverson I think was eighty one this year. But yeah, he's a pretty good guy. so you talked about Russ Usted before, and you told us that you student taught with him. what kind of guy was he? I mean, I've met him Whitaker has never met him. so like what could you tell us about Russ that stood out? 'Cause he's wrote a lot of books from what I can understand. You can find him on Amazon and all kinds of stuff. Dennis Reinhart: Russ, if you didn't know him, very intimidating guy. Big man. Big man. Very strong man. and you know, competed obviously, full mates and stuff like that. But he's also back in the day, I'm talking like in the must be late sixties, early seventies, he was in power lifting and bodybuilding. And he would compete in both. And both venues and then obviously eventually he had severe back injuries and stuff like that. And so then he kinda got out of the power lifting, but he kept training the people at Mount Morris. And you know, like I said, then he got back into competing at just bench meets when I did it got doing student teaching with him in the winter of eighty seven. But again, he was an intimidating man and he had the the goatee and everything and he always wore a headband done down, brought his head his hair forward and the headband around him and just, you know. Very big man, is you know, massive arms and just intimidating. And he knew his power lifting and he was very strict. I mean, it was his way or the highway and the way he trained his kids and they were but they were very disciplined and they did it the way he wanted and that's the way it was. And again, there were some some tremendously I mean, tremendously strong Mom Morris powerlifters when Russ was coaching them. I mean, they were some strong kids over there. They were national kids and they've also won national rec or national meets in the with Russ is in that ear and everything like that. But one thing with Russ, though, he was always there was always some fighting with administration at Mott Morris. 'Cause he wanted to make it a varsity sport at the time and Mott Morris didn't, so they would bicker back and forth. So then he was coaching, not coaching, but he he's a coaching, but unofficially coaching and things like that. And I got in there, you know, in some of it and you know, so I got to see the inner work he's done. But he was a great person. He got me obviously doing it. Then I got I started training strictly with him. Chris Gilliam: Mm-hmm. Dennis Reinhart: You know, we would go into we call it the s he called it the six AM Animal Club and he had a big, you know, T shirts made out l or wife beater, you know, tank tops with his face on it and everything like that and stuff like that. And then we I'd go down to his house and train on Saturday mornings when we started hitting all these national bench meets and stuff like that. So he was a great man. Chris Gilliam: Okay. Yeah. He he I I looked up and I can't remember specific numbers, but he has a lot of or at one time he had set a lot of records nationally in various weight classes 'cause, you know, he just got to different weight classes 'cause he just kept getting bigger and bulking up. So he he was a a big dude. Yeah. The bandana. honestly for Coach Whitaker who's a Dennis Reinhart: Yep, yep. Chris Gilliam: a wrestling entertainment guy, I would say he would remind you of the Undertaker when he was the American badass character. So that that's that's what Russ you said would remind you of. Yeah. So yeah, great. Yes. Yeah. He he was a very knowledgeable guy. Very knowledgeable. Mm Morris used to host a lot of USA P. L meets. Chris Whittaker: yeah. Right right into the meat on a copper. Dennis Reinhart: And he he had a motorcycle too. Chris Gilliam: And some MHS PLA meets every now and then too, so great. And he ended up going to powers at the end of his career, right? Chris Whittaker: Yeah, I looked at Dennis Reinhart: Yeah. Yeah, he ended up getting with John Zin's Master a little bit and doing some of the power stuff and yeah, he did. And then like I said, we Chris Gilliam: Yeah. They they turned into a pretty strong team in a short period of time. Dennis Reinhart: They they did. Yes, they did. I said whoever Russ would coach at, they would be they'd be rock solid if they would listen to him. He went Russ went to Grand Blanc for a short period. And it didn't go real over there because, you know, they would not I mean Russ was his way or the highway and they wouldn't go his way. So he says, Adios. And I think that's when he went to powers. Chris Gilliam: Okay, gotcha. Good. Chris Whittaker: said looking him up quick said he had the the world record in the bench press raw five hundred and fifty five pounds and he helped Chris Gilliam: I think he's he's r one of the first guys to ever bench over five hundred raw, is what I've read. Dennis Reinhart: That one was probably the one there is is that the one that's in like the late sixties? Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Chris Whittaker: I can find out when he did it. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, I'm pretty sure it was like around sixty eight or somewhere. Chris Whittaker: A published published books on it. I got a bunch of stuff in the Husted Power Pack. All kinds of Dennis Reinhart: Yeah, that's what that's what I'll be honest. Chris Gilliam: That's the morning club, right? The power pack, yeah. They had T shirts made up like you were saying, yeah. Dennis Reinhart: Yeah. Yep. I still got some of those. In fact, my one son, he has the the tank top with the six AN animal club and then I said another one with the Housted Power Pack. Chris Gilliam: I gotcha. Nice. Chris Whittaker: powerlifting records or bench press records and one hundred ninety eight, two twenty, two forty two, two seventy five and super heavyweight. two hundred seventy five and super heavyweight classes. He broke national records in nineteen sixty eight is w world record bench press in the two hundred forty two class, at five hundred and thirty pounds. And he hit a personal best five hundred fifty five pounds, had a body weight of two sixty five. Chris Gilliam: Well. That's awesome. Chris Whittaker: So yeah. Wow. Crazy. Crazy. Crazy. Dennis Reinhart: Yep, he was a good one. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, and you were you the kids were arguing on get trying to get you guys against each other with the bunch press and stuff. Dennis Reinhart: Well, that's when I was doing my st you know, Russ at had he would just was kind of working out, you know, in the s in the morning, stuff like that. And I came in as, you know, the the fresh out of college doing my student teaching stuff, whatever. And I had never done his workout. He he was notorious. I he's the one that kinda invented the four sets of six, four sets of three stuff. You know, I had never trained with that, you know, that type of stuff. And anyways, we I would just, you know, give him Chris Gilliam: Yeah, yeah. Mm-hmm. Dennis Reinhart: Whatever like that. And he said, You could never do my workout. And I said, Okay, you tell me what it is and I'll do it. So one day I you know, we did it. He says, Okay, this is what you could do for your sixes, this is what you could do for your threes. And I did it and I I kind of blew it out of the water. And then he just kind of gave me this like eyeball. Then when the school day was done, he pulled me aside and says, he always called me the pup. And he goes, Pup, I can make you a national champion. You train with me, you'll be a national champion. Then in the meantime, the kids are all teasing, What's the matter, Mr. Husted? Is the is the pup stronger than you, et cetera, et cetera, and doing all this sort of stuff. So it kind of got him fired up a little bit. So then he started training again. As I said, I started going down to his house and we started training together on Saturday mornings and stuff like that. And eventually we just started going to bench press meets and we ended up, you know, starting with one in Grand Rapids. And then we you know, we started going around the country. We went to St. Louis, we went to Wolkes Bar, Pennsylvania, we went to Chicago, we'd go all these different places and Chris Gilliam: No. Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: We'd pile in this van, and it'd be five, six, seven of us going a van and go to these national meets. And and numerous times we were we were the national champions and we had all set national records. And it was quite the time. It was it was it was it was good. And there was one time we happened to go out to Wolkes Bar, Pennsylvania, the one year, and we were all coming off injuries and you know, something here or something there. And we're going over some big bridge somewhere in Pennsylvania. I don't even know. I mean it's a massive bridge, and you know, we had all these trophies that are like, you know, I mean, there's Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: Three, four, five foot trophies, you they're big trophies. And only a couple of us, I don't, in fact, I don't even think any of us took first because I know I had a shoulder injury and I was second. I think Russ was second. And I had I had a young, young kid with me from my high school, yeah, and he was like 18 years old. And he was a senior, and it was his first trophy he ever got. And he I think he was runner up and he was proud as a peacock, you know. And we're going down and Rush says, if you ain't first, get rid of the trophies. And the guy next to me said, Roll your window down. Russ throws his trophy out the window and you can hear it going ding ding ting all the way down off the off the bridge and like that. Who's next? Next you know, everybody's throwing their trophies out the the off the bridge. And then of course it comes Ron's turn to throw the trophy off and you could just see him. He's like ready to cry. And I was like, No, dude, you can keep your trophy. No, I can't keep my trophy. So he throws his out. And so we end up throwing off our trophies off the bridge here in Pennsylvania. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, I know. that's crazy. That that's a good story. That's like a if you ain't first your last mentality. Dennis Reinhart: That's what it was. That's what it was. But y the usually most times we we we came back with first, but you we're not always, but that that was a time it it didn't happen. Chris Gilliam: That's a pretty good story on Ross and your whole little crew there. That's cool. Chris Whittaker: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: Well, there's some other ones, but there's one I don't think we probably want to say here on this podcast. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, maybe when we're off the show you can share a couple Dennis Reinhart: Yeah, exactly. Chris Whittaker: Yeah, well, hey, we do have the power of editing, Coach, so don't worry don't worry about that. so when our in the early nineties, we you've talked a little bit about stuff that's happened in these these years, but in all of our kind of preparations, it's been hard to find much information regarding powerlifting in high school in Michigan. but you were the one that you know, kinda in all of the l the research kept coming up as you know, one of the most influential people at that time in high school lifting within our state. so how is it that your involvement started and developed as a person of influence for the sport at the high school level specifically? Really? I mean, you kind of talked about you brought it with kids, but how did you become like a a person in the state that everybody knew? Dennis Reinhart: I I think I started probably when I was competing. 'Cause I was competing at the same time I was running these meets because there there was a stretch where I was the I think it was four years in a row, like eighty nine, ninety, ninety one, ninety two, I was the eighty FPA national bench press champion and I was also competing in f got to competing in full meets and you know, I'm embarrassed to say I never was you know el super elite nationally just 'cause I my deadlift was so god. There's high school kids that are better deadlifters than I was. But I was elite to squatting and benching and stuff like that. I think that's what kinda got people to know me somewhat. And then obviously running the the meets. And then, you know, obviously at the time our kids were you know very, very strong. You know, when our kids went to meet, I mean, they would walk in and they would know, you know, they're they they who they are. I mean there's the the one year at the The MHS PLA, I think where our kids, you know, all the ten lifters, that t time you had to declare who you're putting points on. It wasn't your ten best finishers, you had to declare that was the old rule that they used to be best unady FPA. And then we j first started that in the MHS PLA. And out of the ten ten people you could put points on, our kids, you know, won ten all ten weight classes. And I think that was the meet over at Lowell in I think it was ninety eight. 'cause that was the year we won our our first state title in football. And that was kind of correlation. Then I had to speak down at the the coaches clinic there in Battle Creek at the time. And it was kind of a you know, put together a presentation of the power lifting relating to the football field, and that's kinda how how it it went across. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, that that you mentioning that so Coach Whitaker being a strength coach, it was probably one of the first like sessions I recall, but I was a young coach just starting out then. Like there was you know, it wasn't a football session, it was a about strength, which, you know, tied into football obviously, but it wasn't an X's and O's session. So I remember him doing that and and a few years later Todd Miller doing that at the state coaches clinic. So Dennis Reinhart: Yeah, because it's at that time, you know, that was our ninety-eight state championship team. We ran, you know, we were double tight, split back veer. And you know, our our front our front seven out of the front seven, six of them were over 500 pound squatters. And I had two running backs that were both squatting over 500 pounds. So, you know, so we were we were pretty strong. We were at that time we were 98, so we were class C C. You know, at the time when we won the state title that year. So I mean we had some very strong, powerful people on that football team. I'll take, you know, even today, you know, if our strength, you know, that many numbers, you know, doing over five hundred and then we're not talking like, you know, five hundred hot. We're talking about these are all competition depth. These they had one of the national power lifting meet that year. You know, that the that team did. And because we used to go to all the national meets, I mean we had run nationals several years in a row or runner up several years in a row. So these kids were all national, national lifters. Chris Gilliam: That's pretty awesome. Chris Whittaker: Strong. Strength is never a weakness. Cra crazy enough, coach, right? If you were one of the first people to present on strength at the football coaches clinic, Chris Gilliam: No. Yeah, b in my career at least, so Chris Whittaker: I I just got to do that this past year. Like that's crazy that's crazy that that you to get to talk to one of the first guys to to get to do that. So Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Yeah yeah, I mean almost thirty years ago he did that and you get to do it, so there's something you two have in common. So y you mentioned earlier the AD F P A, you know, and for our listeners that is what the USAP L it turned into the USAPL, the AD F P A. So what percentage of lifters had to be drug tested at those meets that you were hosting? Is it Chris Whittaker: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: Ten percent. Ten Chris Gilliam: Ten percent of So when you said Dennis Reinhart: percent of the listeners. Chris Gilliam: your last one that you hosted as an AD F BA had over like three hundred lifters, man, that that can be pretty expensive to test it. Dennis Reinhart: Well, the d I mean it is, but also you're you're making you're making quite a bit of money on it. now I I honestly I don't remember what our drug tests were at the time. I know they were under a hundred dollars. in fact I had talked to I had talked to Big Adam, you know, Stiverson, you know, what 'cause obviously with the US PL like right now what drug testing are is. And I said to this, I mean, they're right now on the USPL. I can look it up real quick, like. Chris Gilliam: Sure. Okay. Dennis Reinhart: say here a hundred hundred and fifty sh per drug test is what what it is nowadays so i'm assuming that many years ago hell it might have been 75 dollars maybe less than that i mean it wasn't a tremendous amount Chris Gilliam: Okay. Okay. Yeah. But it's still I mean you know, that's a cost and and then it's like you you're you're not testing a handful of people, you're you're testing three dozen people. Dennis Reinhart: Anyway, it is. It is. Well, if you gotta meet that big, yes, yes, yes, yes. But even even to keep it going, I mean, obviously we're you're talking nationally, that's different. But I even think you know, locally or even you know, state, if it's not a you know, sanctioned or by an organization, just testing a few will keep it keep it you know more straight or more honest. You know, is some people gonna get through? Yeah. People get through right now with the drug testing because again, if you're only testing ten percent and people Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: People take the chance. And I you you know what happens. I mean, cheating's gonna take place in everything. But you know, I think it's you know, you it helped keep some of the people honest. Chris Gilliam: Sure. yeah, for sure. And the the thing I find interesting is like, you know, you you were hosting this because you wanted your kids to be able to qualify for nationals, right? That's that's why you were doing it. Okay. So then the transition into the MHS PLA, so drug testing still taking place, right? As you're going through stuff. so we're would you say those meets were still sanctioned by the ADFPA, even though it's true. Okay. Dennis Reinhart: No, no. When when we went when we basically we end up hit I did I we cover the part where we had a meeting in Lansing and try to bring the organizations together. Chris Gilliam: Y yeah, you s you briefly talked about it. You can give them some more details if you have Dennis Reinhart: Well it was just I like I said in the early nineties there, you know, Tim and them and Tim Fernal up there at Millington and you know, go called us 'cause, you know, we were the main ones running the AD FPA stuff, wanted to kinda unite the the things and do it together. And so we kinda talked about it and did some things and and eventually it it did all come together. I think I think ninety four might have been the first time it was the MHS P L A. At least that's of the trophies that I could see that Chris Gilliam: Yeah, yeah. Dennis Reinhart: or my weight room. I have one that says MHSPLA first place in 94. And then I have another one that says ADFPA team or state state championship ADFPA, which was 93. So I'm figuring, okay, the transition must have been right there in 94, you know, is where we kind of then formed that. And then we still did the national meets, but then we would we would run a qualifier and just say this is a ADFPA qualifying meet. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: Just for those that wanted to truly qualify since we started doing MHS PLA, because not everybody wanted to compete nationally. And then I think then at that time, you know, like Plainwell and them were then competing and they were going to national meets and people were going to different organizations, and each organization has different qualifiers and different sanctioned cards and and and such. And you know, so we were doing it. I think our last year of actually competing nationally. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: I think was roughly two thousand just because it got to the point where I mean, you know, again, we're not the highest social economic area and it was getting so costly, you know, again, competing, you know, buying the the the cards and the entry fees and then the suits, the knee wraps, the bench, ev all the stuff you needed and then making the trip. I mean, when we went nationally, my gosh, we went Port Charlotte, Florida, Wilkesbury, Pennsylvania, St. Louis, Missouri, Fort Hood, Texas, Minneapolis, Minnesota, Saint Louis, Chicago. we w one somewhere in Louisiana. We and you know, we have all those different places. And it it's expensive. And Nebraska we went out to. So Yep, yep. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. yeah. yeah, Omaha would would be a very popular stop back in the day, especially for teenage competitions. curious, like with the the transition as you went and I you said you know s some of your kids weren't gonna compete nationally. did you ha have a different strategy with some of those kids? Like did they not do very many high school Dennis Reinhart: Yep. Chris Gilliam: meets because they were training nationally. Was there ever years that there was a conflict? Because when we were talking to Todd Miller, there was one year state meets at Goodrich, the national meets the same weekend. He'd sent his one w half of his kids to nationals. The other half went to the MHS PLA state meet. Dennis Reinhart: Well, what what we always did when we were competing nationally, we would go to whatever meet was the latest in the year. So we tried we tried to get the ones, you know, in if it was in late May, June, we would try to hit that just so the kids again, we were training for football, and it was like you lift to a meet, then you lift for the next meet, then the next meet. So we were doing this and we weren't even thinking football. We're thinking train for the nationals. And that's why some of our national titles that we had Chris Gilliam: Okay. Dennis Reinhart: Some of them were high school nationals and some of them were teenage b depending on which was run where. So I mean, I know the one we ran, it was Memorial Weekend. And I know the one we won in Fort Hood, Texas, was like June twenty first of ninety eight. And I think that was a teenage and junior national, if I remember right. actually it was because I got the the the ones we were national titles in written down. And that was that was in two or nine yeah, nine teenage one. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: And then the other ones were high school. It just it varied. We tried to go the latest one we could so we didn't have to conflict and also miss as much school as we we could, 'cause you it's also time. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, no, that's understandable. I mean, you got anything you wanted to ask regarding that, Coach Whitaker? Because to me it sounds like the powerlifting wasn't just the winter season for you guys because you were training for football, but you were trying to find whatever meat you could to get as close to to the start of like summer so that those kids are getting ready and getting as strong as they can. to lead right into summer workouts and right into the season. Dennis Reinhart: That's ex that's exactly what's our model, that's how we tried to do it. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, so the MHS PLA season was just kind of part of the the process, like maybe a third of it. Okay. Interesting. Dennis Reinhart: Exactly. Yep. Chris Whittaker: Well, I mean and we see people doing that, you know, still today. Like Ron Ron Roberts just took took one of his guys and a girl down to the world meet, like way after our our season. So it's you know, we still see people that want to go and compete at that that next level and you know we talk about all the time. Like I think what we wanna do as the MHS PLA now is Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Chris Whittaker: be that gateway that allows the kids to experience the sport and then go on to those bigger levels if that's what they desire from it, you know. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Chris Whittaker: So I think the the next one is you, Gillum, if you want me to the question ten there. Chris Gilliam: Okay, gotcha. Yeah, we did cover that one. You're you're right. All right, so who are the board members? You know, you said you transitioned and to MHS PLA in ninety four. who are some of the guys in addition to yourself that kinda were trying to get things organized? Dennis Reinhart: Not a hundred percent sure in the early stages. I know one and I don't think he even classified itself as a board member, though, was John Zince Master. And he was the powers guy and he was the lawyer. And we met in his office to set up basically rules and regulations, especially this whole situation with drug testing, you know, as far as legalities. And he says they signed the waiver, the parents signed the waiver. Chris Gilliam: Okay. Dennis Reinhart: Your butts are covered. You've got nothing to worry about. You know? And that was the biggest Chris Gilliam: That's the waiver that's still in our stuff today. Dennis Reinhart: Exactly. those were the original stuff that we did in John John's office. And I think at that time, I I I think it was obviously John was in there, but he wasn't classified as a board member. I think it was obviously Brian Lemons, myself. And from there, I I even Brian, he wasn't a hundred percent sure. I think at that time we only had like four of us. You know, and then we kind of started kind of adding more, and then I know Chris Gilliam: Right. Dennis Reinhart: For a while there. And I'm not sure when Eric Jennings came aboard because Jerry is there and Mike Holes came aboard. And then Todd, Todd Miller there. But I know at one point Noel Dean was real big with it. And then when Noel, when Bendel, Bendel was very strong and competed against us, you know, head-to-head in national events. Then Noel left and went over to Lowell and got it going over there. And then Jeff Setsky took over for Noel at Bendel for a few years. And then he moved on to Fenton. And then so it was kind of like that. And that's kind of how it grew. And eventually Bruce Edwards from Goodrich was a part of it. And I know some of the other guys that were involved, but I don't think they were on board, but they were so big part of it. It would have been big Kevin Langs or the older Kevin Langs down at Climax Scott. And you know, Rob Zimmerman was a part of it for a while down there at DeWitt. And so there was a lot of different people that were a part of it. But the original board, I mean, the only ones I can on even Lemon said, geez, Danny, I think it was you and me. You know, but I know there's I know there was a couple other ones, but I honestly I I I'm not really positive how it was. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. And was Brian was that one like 'cause he's a Lind a Linden guy, so was he still associated with Linden at that time? Or was he at Whitmore Lake? Yeah. Okay. So yeah, 'cause tracking back records, Coach Whitaker, w we talked to Coach Miller and, you know, plain well women were like eight straight state titles, and then Whitmore Lake took over and won like four or five straight. Dennis Reinhart: He was actually down at he was down at Whitmore Lake then. Yep. Chris Gilliam: You know, and so that that was lemons being there and they they hosted a state meet. That was probably two thousand fourteen I remember them hosting a a state meet 'cause my daughter would have been an eighth grader that year. So that was the state meet at Wentmore like their their school was kinda brand new that they had built. So yeah, that's cool. We'll have to probably get with lemons at some point in time. Al also. Yeah, it's it's funny how all the the people that were so integral in that time period and hardly anyone's around anymore. But you know, then you start looking, it's like, Well, it's been quite a while. You know, everybody steps away at some point in time. But yeah, that's that's cool. Chris Whittaker: I'm gonna see Lemons week one of the football season. Okay. Yeah, we opened with them last year there and now they come to us this year. So I didn't get to talk to last year, but I'll catch I'll make sure to catch them this year. Chris Gilliam: you guys open with Nice. Nice. Dennis Reinhart: Yeah, he's good. He's got a nice running back. Chris Whittaker: Yeah. Yeah. La last year went went our way very well for us there. So it was it was a a really cool way for us to open up against school of that caliber. Yeah. Chris Gilliam: Mm-hmm. Yeah, probably built your guys' confidence. Yeah, and 'cause you guys ended up in the state final, so that's pretty good. Chris Whittaker: Yeah. Yep. Yep. No and and like you all these names keep coming up, like Nol Dean's at Chelsea now. So we you know, when Todd was talking about him, like I I just know him as the head football coach of Chelsea and that he was at Lowell before he went to Chelsea. So now when I see them and when we play these teams, can make the power lifting connection. So it's pretty cool. It's pretty cool to again, this has been very educational for me. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Yeah, for sure. Chris Whittaker: you know, talking with you, Denny and and talking with Coach Miller. that was helping me learn learn who's who around the state. in your time, right, you've had so many great power lifters at Montrose. many have set and still have set national records. can you tell us a few of those people and tell us a little bit about Your national record holders and state record holders. Sorry, Dennis Reinhart: geez. I honestly, the the national, I don't even know who had, you know, I haven't stayed on top of the records. You know, because obviously when they we were in the ADFPA, we had a lot of them. And I don't even know if those records are anywhere to be found anymore. And when you change organizations and all that, just like there would they when, you know, on the MHSPLA, there was a ton of them had records until we went to the raw, you know, so then the the equipped ones then were kind of pushed to the side. We kept track of both of them for a while. Now we just got the raw ones. And and so I I don't know. I just know we we we had some tremendously strong people. I mean just we had I don't know we had Corey Lake who was a hundred and fifty five well at that time he has one hundred and fifty five. You know he's pulling a what was it a six five deadlift back in that time which was was awesome. We had Martin Zelensky at two forty two, I think weight class he did a four, I got a what a four twenty bench You know, but again that was one of the guys that trying to turn me off on the equipment, you know. you know, 'cause then his other buddy did something else, but we had some. And then we got you know, I don't wanna toot a horn, but like my son, you know, has still a lot of the squat records. you know, and he was a legit squatter and and you know, even has records to this day you know, in men's divisions and stuff like that. You know, he'll train for a while and cut off and stuff like that. So we have a lot of kids with it, but I mean You know, we also, you know, at times we would also kind of get away from, you know, we'd be a big push to get it into the into the lifting. And then we'd get away because at times a lot of our kids then would say, I'm a power lifter. And I'm like, No, you're not. You're a football player. No, I'm a power lifter. No, you're not. And so then we're kind of fighting the what are we actually trying to do here? So then I'd kind of pull the reins back and step away. And I'm just like, okay. Chris Gilliam: Yeah. Dennis Reinhart: go power lift, whatever, but you know, so stuff like that. So it would kind of go up and down with that with us. And so like that. But still, you know, we've had a lot of strong kids over the years, you know, because like on going back to those things, I think we've got I think we won like six national titles, you know, and then like five times as runner up in over the years. But I said we haven't competed nationally as a team since two thousand. I mean, that's a long time. And part of it was, you know, obviously the cost factor and then, you know, basically the burnout factor of of me. you know, you know, trying to do all the fundraising and and this and that. And then it was the point, if you're just, you know, training, you know, I'm good. We're good. And that's kinda where where it is. Chris Gilliam: Well the ADFPA at that time there was no raw division, right? It was all equipped. Yeah, and so the yeah, the equipment alone is expensive. I just remember like seeing a lot of your kids back in those days and and Mr. Stivus Stiverson being at Meets and like you guys had the Enzer gear. You had all the the top notch stuff, you know. And Dennis Reinhart: No. No, it was all equipped. yep, all equipped. but but I'll tell you what though, a lot of it would be hand-me downs. Some kid bought it and we kept it, and five years later that same squat suit or same bench shirt still being used. It may not have much flexibility in it, but it was still being used. You know. they were. They they were, you know. In fact, up in my cage in my weight room, I still got some of the stuff. They Well, what's a squat suit? So I'll pull one out. This is what it is, you know, stuff like that. What's a bench shirt? This is a bench shirt. Wow, you know. Chris Gilliam: Sure. Yeah. Well yeah, because they're too expensive to keep buying, you know. Nice. Dennis Reinhart: And stuff like that. Chris Gilliam: yeah. Yeah, for sure. No, it and it's interesting. I mean, we talked to Todd about it. It's like the there's an art to putting on that equipment 'cause if you put it on wrong, it really doesn't benefit ya. So you gotta know how to put it on or it is a waste. You know, you wasted your money, you wasted your energy because if you don't put that bench shirt on just right, it's not gonna help you like you think it would. So Dennis Reinhart: You get out of the groove. You know, it's like like some of the kids will go by when, I'm gonna be able do this now. Well, you also gotta have some strength first. You know, this ain't like the magic all of a sudden you're gonna put a hundred pounds on your bench. I mean, come on now. You know, you're you're a hundred and twenty-five-pound bencher. You think you're gonna do two hundred and twenty-five overnight? No. Bencher ain't gonna give you that. Chris Gilliam: Ha ha. Yeah. Right. Chris Whittaker: Yeah. Well, and I think I've never done it myself, but it's like the equ I I heard somebody say it. It's more of like the equipment became a skill that you then needed to acquire on top of the lifting, right? Lifting raw and that technique, then the skill that goes into utilizing the equipment. Chris Gilliam: so Dennis Reinhart: Some some of the equipment, I mean, my lord. I mean, I you know, judging now the USPA and some of these meats, some of the the the stuff they wear, my gosh. I don't know how they could do it. And you know, you know when we when I was competing and when our kids did, we just did the original blast shirt, you know, the thirty six dollar shirt. But then at that time there was even shirts that were two hundred and fifty to three hundred dollars. Like, no way, you they putting that much into it. But obviously, you know, with the raw makes it a lot makes it a lot better and you know, but you know, times are different. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, and I've watched people the, you know, bunch with the bench shirts. And like some of them are so the tension in them, like you have to have a certain amount of weight on the bar in order for it to get to your chest. Because if you if you if you think you're gonna put on a bench shirt and do warm-up sets, the the weight on the bar ain't enough for you to touch your chest because the tension in there is so great. Chris Whittaker: Even touch. Dennis Reinhart: Yes, exactly. Chris Whittaker: Yeah. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, because I wa watched a lot of guys at Flint Barbell who were competing in the equipped and and stuff, Bruce Edwards being one of those guys and those guys knew how to wear those things and they y they would train with the what you call the slingshot. You know what that is? Yeah, I'm sure Danny you do, but you know, it's interesting. But so going back to the equipment, two thousand six state meet is that plain well in between the one of the meets, you know, 'cause you know, back then there was a Friday night meet and a Saturday meet. So I remember having a meeting, all the coaches in a classroom and everybody going, We gotta get rid of the equipped lifters 'cause there it got to the point where like there was equipped lefters still, but more of were raw because, you know, not everybody could afford it and we just talked about let's make this more affordable. You're forcing people, you know, to kind of do that. But so we all bunch of us in a classroom, I remember pretty much every coach in there, you know, n I'm sure not everybody. I think Russ might have been upset to be honest. And Todd maybe at the time. But you know, 'cause they're dominating with equipped lifting, but we decided we're going totally raw in the MHS PLA the following year. And you mentioned that we still let some kids lift equipped at you know, that next year, but they were kind of their own different meat, you know, because you know, people still needed to like, you know, compete like that because that's what their schools are doing. So, what what were your thoughts at the time when they decided to to do that? You said you're there was a push from your own kids, but you personally, was it a relief to go raw? Was it Didn't care. Dennis Reinhart: I I I wanted it to go raw. I wanted it to go raw just for the fact, you know, the cost of everything. 'Cause you know, obviously we're getting to that time where, you know, bestie being where we're from, just the cost of things and then we were gonna hit economic times at that time. General Motors was, you know, having hard times and layoffs and this and that and just trying to keep it you know, costly so the kids could afford to do it. And I think even at that time, I think we still even had Ten dollars a meat, if I'm not mistaken. You know, and you know, just trying to keep it affordable. And then if the kids truly wanted to compete, then you, you know, you would go find a qualifying meat and you know, to do it. And then by that time, you know, we weren't really pushing you know, the national meats or anything like that. Other people were, and the meats were still out there, you know, and so I mean I was pushing for for raw, just for the fact that I those two kids of my own that I saw. Chris Gilliam: Yeah, probably. Dennis Reinhart: I said no, I mean we we gotta change. Chris Gilliam: yeah, I mean I I I can relate watching kids warm up. I remember one of my kids who who used we were always raw. We could we didn't have equipment and stuff. And one of my kids was a pretty good bench presser. I mean, at in the one fifty five weight class, I mean he he could pause bench about three twenty five and it's like that's pretty damn strong for a high school kid and you know, and the guy he's competing against, like he's like, I can beat him and then That kid's struggling with warm-up weights and my kid's doing really well. And then that sucker puts on a bench shirt and he beats my kid by like thirty pounds in the bench. And it's like, man, if he were raw, we'd probably have have a twenty pound lead on this kid. And now we're instead we're trailing by twenty, you know. So it it was kind of a little frustrating. But you know, I I I thought it was a good move. I mean, myself, and obviously that's where we're at now. Chris Whittaker: That's all we got for part one, folks, with Denny Reinhart. Make sure you tune back in on Thursday of this week for part two of our podcast with Coach Denny Reinhardt from Montrose High School.