Cohee finds his groove at Silver Star

Douglas High student Nick Cohee has endured a tough skiing season, battling two tough injuries at the outset.

The 2005 J2 National giant slalom silver medalist finally got on track last week, earning a podium fifth-place finish and was top American at the Pontiac Grand Prix Series in Silver Star, British Columbia. The top four finishers were all present and former members of the Canadian National Ski Team.

"I'm glad to finally get a big finish under my belt," Cohee said. "It's been my toughest year ... trying to compete on a national level without having any training time.

"I think this will give me the momentum I need as I head into the second half of the season."

In October Cohee, who will graduate from Douglas in June, broke his fibula. Shortly after getting back on skis in mid-December, he fell and developed a massive hematoma on his leg, which extended from his knee to his ankle.

The combination of the two injuries eliminated any chance of training prior to heading off on a 35-day racing schedule that spanned four western states, including Utah, Montana, Colorado and Wyoming.

"You can't compete at this level without time to train," said Guenther Birgmann, Austrian and Kirkwood Elite team head coach. "Nick got back on skis for one day and headed off to compete against the best ski racers in the western United States, including the top NCAA Division I racers."

Upon returning from Canada, Cohee, Birgmann and teammates Bryce Wehan and Shane Collins continue their busy schedule with racing in North Tahoe, Canada, Maine, Mammoth and finally to Norway at the end of April.

Troy Cohee, the second-youngest of the five Cohee boys, finished eighth among all 12-year-old racers in California and Nevada at the J4 Festival in February at Sugar Bowl Resort on Donner Summit.

He is training for the J4 Far West Championships to be held at Mammoth Mountain March 30-April 2, featuring 100 of the region's top seventh-grade athletes. Troy is a seventh-grader at Pau-Wa-Lu Middle School.