To win another state title, he must outlast other male competitors and hold a five-pound stein of beer the longest without spilling a drop. Sometimes, he said, toward the end of an event, when the competitors get weak, they shake the stein and spill beer.
“That’s a sin,” Planert said with a laugh.
Steinholding, which is an old German feat of strength contest, has been a formalized sport in the United States competition since 2015 when the U.S. Steinholding Association was formed, but competitively, the sport has been around since 2011, he said.
The state championship program started in earnest in 2021, and more and more have been organized. This year, there are 14 state championships.
Planert, a UPS driver, started competing in 2011 because his granddaughter urged him to try the sport. He’s one of the best stein-holders in the nation, and for the past three years, he has been the best in Ohio.
Prior to working for UPS, he worked for 46 years as a driver for a moving company, and part of that job was folding moving pads. He estimated he folded about 600,000 pads (weighing about four pounds) over the decades, like performing 600,000 reps for steinholding.
In his first competition, he held a stein full of a liter of beer for five minutes, 30 seconds. His personal best came in 2019 when he lasted 12 minutes, four seconds.
Planert carries 295 pounds on his 6-foot-3 frame, but that size didn’t guarantee would be an accomplished stein holder. He said some of the strongest men have a difficult time holding a five-pound mug in front of their bodies because it’s “a static lift” that requires different muscles.
He expects his stiffest competition to come from Chris “The Oak Tree” Emanuele, Jason Berge or Skipp Darby.
The U.S. Men’s National Record is 21 minutes, 17 seconds, set by Michael Tyler at the 2018 Lenny Coyne Memorial Hofbräu Masskrugstemmen Championships at the Steuben Day Parade and New York City Oktoberfest.
The U.S. Women’s National Record is 6 minutes, 10 seconds, set by Taylor Handy at the 2022 Lenny Coyne Memorial Hofbräu Masskrugstemmen Championships at the Steuben Day Parade and New York City Oktoberfest.
STEINHOLDING STATE CHAMPIONSHIP
What: The Ohio State Steinholding Championship
When: Women: 2:30 p.m., Men: 4:30 p.m. Oct. 12
Where: Moerlein Lager House, 115 Joe Nuxhall Way, Cincinnati
More info: ussteinholding.com
HAVE A STORY TO SHARE?
The Journal-News periodically runs a “Good News” story on weekends. If you have a story idea, send it to contributing writer Rick McCrabb at rmccrabb1@gmail.com.
About the Author
