GLENS FALLS, New York ??” The author of an important and colorful new history of skiing will be at Inside Edge Ski & Bike on Saturday September 30th to sign copies of his book.

John Fry is the author of “The Story of Modern Skiing,” the most definitive account ever written about the revolution in ski equipment, technique, resorts and competition that took place over 60 years after World War II, a period when the sport changed more rapidly than in all of skiing’s previous 6,000 years.

Fry will appear from 4PM to 6PM p.m. at 643 Upper Glen Street (Route 9) on the Glens Falls/Queensbury border on September 30th, along with Inside Edge/Reliable Racing Supply founder Tom Jacobs. The store is selling copies of The Story of Modern Skiing at $27.95 each, and the author will be available personally to inscribe copies. The 408-page book contains 86 pictures and maps locating major resorts, records of ski champions, a timeline, bibliography, glossary, and index of more than a thousand names and places

The Story of Modern Skiing encompasses the beginning of freestyle, snowboarding, extreme skiing, and the surge in cross-country skiing. It traces the origins of the carved turn and the shaped ski, the intimate link between equipment innovations and ski technique change, and Reliable Racing’s role in developing the hinged slalom pole that revolutionized alpine racing.

Consummate insider Fry, who was the chief editor of Ski Magazine and Snow Country, chronicles the rise of a ski culture and its environmental impacts. The book is laced with revelations from the author’s personal relationships with skiing greats such as triple Olympic gold medalists Toni Sailer and Jean-Claude Killy, double gold medalist and environmental champion Andrea Mead Lawrence, first women’s World Cup winner Nancy Greene, World Alpine champion Billy Kidd, Sarajevo gold and silver medalists Phil and Steve Mahre, and industry pioneers such as Vail founder Pete Seibert, metal ski designer Howard Head, and plastic boot inventor Bob Lange. Skiers of all ages and abilities will revel in this lively tale of their sport’s heritage.

Elected to the U.S. National Ski Hall of Fame, Fry launched NASTAR (National Standard Ski Race), The Nations Cup of alpine ski racing, and the Graduated Length Method of teaching. He has received the FIS (International Ski Federation) Journalism Award, and lifetime achievement awards from the International Skiing History Association and from the North American Snowsports Journalists Association.