The Bartlett strandpulling family.

[peter yates]

Jim Bartlett and his family were at the forefront of the sport of strandpulling for many years. Jim was a weightlifter, contest organizer, gym owner as well as being a top strandpuller and strandpulling coach. His whole family were involved as can be seen from clip of their appearance on the Blue Peter TV show in the 1970s. I have written a full article on Jim and his exploits which will be posted on the site in the near future.

youtu.be/diISDPx3WPI

[Jarett Hulse]

That was a very unusual video. Not sure what to say....
That's not going to make strand pulling popular.

[David Gentle]

Re the Strand pulling on Blue Peter, i had never seen that before, and now wish i had not. They are a beautiful family and Jim has spent his life attempting to make the sport popular, but that Blue Peter rubbish didnt do it any favours at all. what finally killed it off were the hair styles and flair trousers. ugh. David Gentle. I still actually train with stands or more likely springs, but only light stuff after coming back from a walk .Strands similar to gym cables are supreme for developing the triceps and deltoids. As for legs, you have to return to the weights.

[peter yates]

Hi guys,
in all fairness we have to put this video into perspective.As regards hairstyle and attire we have to remember that this was the 70s and the style as bad as it was, was popular at the time.If we saw a photo of an early strongman wearing tights, roman sandals and a a leopard skin we would probably say it would do little to promote weight training today. True the presentation was not at all the best but then again this was a kid's TV program. I am sure if it had been a sports program it would have been presented in a more professional manner. Knowing how these programs work Jim probably had little say in the way it was presented. Now let us examine this from an historical perspective.As far as i know this is the only video of the sport of strandpulling and it is including a world record attempt.As a lesser known strength sport it is being featured on national TV, even if it is children's show.It features one of the most famous families in the sport of strandpulling. Without doubt Jim Bartlett has contributed enormously to PC in general and strandpulling in particular,and i feel it is no exaggeration to say without the Bartlett family strandpulling as a sport would not have lasted as long as it did.Although the video may leave much to be desired it must be precious to the family to see themseves all together on the show especially since Linda, the younger daughter has passed away.Jim now in his 80s continues to train with his trusty springs in his backyard gym,a true pioneer and Physical Culturist.
Regards,Peter.

[David Gentle]

Having just seen an old photo of me looking like a poor imitation to Elvis, with black hair even,(oh how embarrassing) I bow to Peters philosophy. peter is right when he says the Bartletts almost single family (is that a word?) kept and indeed encouraged strand pulling as a competitive sport, even introducing the brilliant idea of the adjustable handles. Most early strand pulling champs were in fact short, ie. had short arms and less length to stretch the cables. I guess what really put me off was John whats his-name and his commentary So i stand chastised and will do three extra sets of triceps stretches tomorrow or maybe the day after. David Gentle p.s. I think you can still buy graded springs from Jim if you ask.

[peter yates]

Hey David,
you must post that Elvis look alike photo now you have let the cat out of the bag. Yes Jim and his family are lovely people but the whole presentation of the show was wrong and did not do them justice.
Regards,Peter.

[Tom K]

How do you get in touch with them to get graded strands?

Thanks

Tom

[peter yates]

Hi Tom, i will contact them for you and see if they are still doing this and get back to you. Also i lost all my favorite saved sites so could you please post a link to yours again?
Regards,Peter.

[hammerhead]

I like to get those handles-is he still selling them? If you could find out that would be great!

[peter yates]

I have just heard the sad news from Gil Waldron, that Malcolm Bartlett has passed away after suffering with a brain tumor. A tragic loss to the Bartlett family especially parents Jim and Sheila who have already lost one daughter to cancer. Condolences to the whole family and friends of the Bartletts. RIP Malcolm.
Regards,Peter.