It is said idle hands are the devil’s play things, and although death (August 28, 2007) finally idled the hands of inventor and businessman Arthur Jones, he managed to pack a lot of life into his 80 years.
Jones was the father of high intensity training and can be credited with changing the way we workout. Many bodybuilders such as Casey Viator, Mike Mentzer, Ray Mentzer, Dorian Yates, etc. were converts to the Arthur Jones revolution which started with his Nautilus weight machines. Now if you have ever used or seen a Bowflex, Schwinn bike or Stairmaster or any of the weight station Nautilus equipment in many gyms you’ve been seen the results of Jones’s inventions. Jones proved that high intensity training could be more effective than hours, and hours spent working out.
After Nautlius Arthur Jones moved on to Medx which has a more rehabilitative focus and has produced machines that can test a person’s functionality, range of motion and aide in rehab. It is rumored that even President Ronald Reagan used an Arthur Jones machine to rehab after his gunshot wound.
Along the way Arthur Jones passion for life spilled over into her personal life and he was married and divorced multiple times, including marrying a then teen model, who became Nautilus’s model and eventually, at age 18 Mrs. Terri Jones. Arthur Jones and Terri married when he was 55, and on the heels of his divorce from his fourth wife. They were married nine years and during that time Arthur took Terri under his wing and shared his passion for flying.
In fact, the two had an estate together Jumbolair, which had a large air landing strip which was used to bring to his Florida home another passion of Arthur’s animals. And was named after the African elephants he rescued from a drought stricken Zimbabwe. He also had gorillas and a one eyed alligator.
Arthur Jones died of natural causes at his home in Ocala, FL. And although they divorced many years ago Terri remains in Ocala and with her husband and their two children, they have been in the process of developing Jumbolair into a fly in estate, which includes actors such as John Travolta as residents.
Arthur Jones Obituary