Chris Gribbin, 90, died in March. In 1943, he was a founding member of the Ski Instructors Alliance of Canada and its first paid employee, running the office and training programs from 1949 to 1962.
An English instructor at the Universityof Montreal, Chris also coached its ski team through the 1950s, and covered the sport for the Montreal Star. He was active in organizing theCanadianSkiMuseum inOttawa, and was inducted into the Laurentian Ski Hall of Fame in 2007.
Chris had a parallel career in golf. He served as executive director of the Quebec Golf Association from 1959 to 1989, and in 1978 was elected president of the International Association of Golf Administrators. He translated The Rules of Golf into French, and in 1996 was inducted into the Quebec Golf Hall of Fame.
Gribbin is survived by his sister, Madge Klodniski, and his three children, Phil, Christine and Michael, six grandchildren and one great grandchild.
Photo caption: Chris Gribbin (left) in 1960, with Elton Irwin, Ernie McCullogh and Réal Charette.
SethMasia
Seth Masia is the online editor for the International Skiing History Association. He began skiing at Chamonix in the summer of 1968 and joined the staff of SKI Magazine in 1974. He now teaches skiing at Vail (see Ski Younger Now). In real life he is editor of SOLAR TODAY magazine (http://solartoday.org).
