I drove my brother's old van a few times when its power steering pump was shot. It was ugly in corners, but I didn't run into anything...

Depends on the size of the car.  Some small cars are fine without power steering.  Larger cars can be a pain without it and slow-reacting to steering inputs.

The real test with this was trying to steer without power steering on some tough 4X4 trails. That will test your arm strength!

i can drive them but they are a pain. it takes so much effort to make them turn especially pulling out of a tight spot.

Cars without power steering aren't the exercise in torture that some folks would have you believe. Many of the horror stories that you hear are from people who removed the belt to the power steering pump in the hopes of increasing either horsepower or gas mileage. There are engineering reasons why that doesn't work, compared to a car that came without power steering from the factory. First, the steering wheel on a non power assisted car may be larger which in a sense "spreads out" your effort, thus making the car easier to steer. Second, the steering boxes are engineered differently. A gear box on a non power steering car has a wider ratio and it usually requires more turns for the steering wheel to go from lock to lock. This is another way of "spreading out" your effort which makes the car easier to steer. Third, on conventional front ends (non rack and pinion) many times pieces such as the center link, the pitman arm, and the idler arm is designed differently which also contributes to easier steering. As far as the driver goes, there are three things which you can do to keep steering effort to a minimum. (1) On those cars which have grease fittings keep the front end pieces well lubricated with high quality grease. (2) If the car is moving at all, even one mile per hour, it will be much easier to steer than if the car is standing still. A rolling tire, no matter how slowly it is moving, is much easier to steer than a tire which is stationary. (3) Keep your tires properly inflated. (recommended tire pressure is written on the side of every tire) Check the pressure when the tires are cold because even one mile of driving can increase the pressure by a few pounds and give you an inaccurate reading. Cars without power steering often have a more solid "road feel" to them (anyone who has ever owned a mid 1960s full size Chrysler product with power steering can verify this as they had no road feel whatsoever) and people who are mechanically inclined can often detect things such as improper wheel alignment or worn shocks sooner than on cars which are equipped with power steering.