BLACK IRON: THE JOHN
DAVIS STORY

If you've read DINOSAUR TRAINING, you know I'm a big fan of John Davis, who may have been the greatest Olympic weight lifter of all time - and who is one of the true legends of the Iron Game. So it should come as no surprise that I've put together the most detailed and most complete biography of John Davis ever written. And in every respect, it's the book that Iron Game historian Leo Gaudreau envisioned more than 30 years ago. It's a tribute to John Davis, Super-Athlete. In keeping with its topic - because John Davis was truly larger than life -- it's a BIG book - a giant 7 x 10 book - with close to 500 pages - and it includes a number of photos, including previously unpublished photos of John Davis at the height of his lifting career. And it gives you the details of John's actual training - including the EXACT training program John Davis used in 1940 when he was named the very best weight lifter, pound for pound, in the entire world!

Young John Davis, training in York, PA

It's a program that's never before been published. John dictated his training program to his training partner while they were having dinner one day. His training partner took it down word for word as John gave it to him. He wrote the program on a note card more than 70 years ago. Sometime back in 1940. To prepare this book, I visited John's training partner and interviewed him. During the interview, he gave me the old, yellowed note card. "Here," he said. "I want you to have this. It's the John Davis Course. This is how John trained." I took the note card, looked down at it, and read it carefully from start to finish. I think I've read everything ever written about John Davis, and I'd never seen this program before. It was OLD GOLD. I felt as if I was holding a piece of history in my hand. And I was. That exact training program now appears in BLACK IRON: THE JOHN DAVIS STORY.

And quite frankly, for lifting fans, for serious lifters, and for anyone interested in iron game history, this program alone is worth the price of the entire book. But that's not all you're going to see. I interviewed other friends and training partners, and John's teammates on World and Olympic Championship teams. I learned EXACTLY what it was like to lift with John, to train with John, and to go to dinner with him. I've been given photos of John that have never before been published. You'll see them in the book. I even received photos of John's Olympic Gold medals. You'll see those, as well. And if you've never before seen an Olympic Gold Medal in fill color, be prepared to say "Wow!" They're pretty spectacular. And in addition to the interviews, I meticulously researched John's lifting career: His legendary battles with Steve Stanko... His World Championship showdowns... His Olympic victories... The Pan-American Games... His battles to beat the Russian champions and bring the team championship in Olympic weightlifting to the United States... His National, World and Olympic records... The day he lifted the ponderous Apollon wheels... The greatest winning streak in the history of Olympic weightlifting - spanning a period of 15 years!

Black Iron: The John Davis Story
- $34.95 + s/h -