Zach Even-Esh
Founder, Underground Strength Gym
Creator, SSPC Certification
April 2 & 3, 2027 · Varsity House Gym HQ
The Anti-Influencer
Event Of The Year
Underground Strength Con is a one-of-a-kind strength event. We've intentionally designed it to stand apart from the typical bloated workshops and uninspiring conferences.
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What
2-Day Coaching & Learning Event
Where
Varsity House Gym HQ
337 Blaisdell Road, Orangeburg, NY 10962
When
Friday, April 2nd & Saturday, April 3rd, 2027
Interested in Sponsoring?
Click Here To Become A SponsorEvent Speakers
Joe Riggio
Founder and President
of Varsity House Gym & Business Of Strength
Dan Goodman
Partner and CEO
of Varsity House Gym & Business Of Strength
Click here for Underground Strength Con travel info.
Hilton Pearl River
500 Veterans Memorial Drive, Pearl River, NY, 10965, USBook Your RoomUnderground Strength Carnival
The Strength Carnival is an homage to the early days of physical culture, bodybuilding and strongman circus lifting — the era that captured imaginations long before the internet, and gave birth to the strength culture we train in today.
Feats of strength have been a rite of passage across human history, from the ancient Greeks and Egyptians to the Vikings and Celts. Strongmen were revered, feared and mocked in equal measure — and only now can we fully appreciate the boundaries they broke.
This year, test your might against those old-world standards in honor of Dr. Ken Leistner, whose dedication to hard training helped carry that legacy forward.
The Competition Rules
- Have fun and lift within your means
- Drink beer
- Eat big… lift big
- No barfing in the gym… please step outside!
In Honor Of Dr. Ken Leistner
This year's Underground Strength Carnival is an homage to Dr. Ken Leistner — chiropractor, strength coach, powerlifter and an unmistakable voice in old-school strength. To those who trained with him and learned from him, he was simply “Dr. Ken.”
Long before strength training became a fixture in athletics, Dr. Ken was building programs with the tools he had — and making better ones when he needed to. In the late 1960s, while coaching high school football and track and field, he brought a comprehensive strength program to Long Island. His hands-on approach carried through to athletes at every level, from high school competitors to Olympic record-holders, and to his work with university programs and NFL coaching staffs.
With his wife Kathy, he founded Iron Island Gym, a home for serious lifters from 1992 to 1998. Beyond the gym, Dr. Ken shared what he learned in more than 1,100 published articles. His legacy lives in the people he coached, the words he wrote and the belief that every rep should mean something. Today we lift in his honor.
“We all train for our own reasons and if enjoyment is one of them and using equipment that is different, more challenging, fascinating, and inspiring to you makes each rep a bit ‘better’ then that’s what you should be using.”
Train hard. Train smart. Remember Dr. Ken.
Questions, Answered
- What is Underground Strength Con?
- Underground Strength Con is a 2-day coaching & learning event for coaches, gym owners and lifters. It is intentionally designed to stand apart from the typical bloated workshops and uninspiring conferences — hands-on coaching, real training, and no influencer theatre.
- When does it take place?
- Friday, April 2nd & Saturday, April 3rd, 2027.
- Where is it held?
- Varsity House Gym HQ, 337 Blaisdell Road, Orangeburg, NY 10962.
- Who is speaking?
- Zach Even-Esh (Founder, Underground Strength Gym), Joe Riggio (Founder and President of Varsity House Gym & Business Of Strength) and Dan Goodman (Partner and CEO of Varsity House Gym & Business Of Strength).
- Where should I stay?
- Hilton Pearl River — 500 Veterans Memorial Drive, Pearl River, NY, 10965, US. Full travel details are available in the event travel guide.
- What is the Underground Strength Carnival?
- This year's carnival honors Dr. Ken Leistner and the old-school strength culture he championed. Attendees test their might against classic feats of strength. Lift within your means, and have fun.