Forest Carey to join U.S. Ski Team coaching staff

Forest Carey to join U.S. Ski Team coaching staff{mosimage}Forest Carey, a member of the U.S. Ski Team from 1993-97, will join the U.S. Ski Team coaching staff as an assistant for the World Cup SL/GS team in May. Carey has served as the head alpine coach at Middlebury College, his alma mater, the last three seasons.

‘It’s going to be exciting’ said Carey, who will make the move to Park City, Utah, where the U.S. team is headquartered, before mid-May, when the national team begins its spring physical testing. ‘I’m psyched to see what it’s like at the top level.’

Moving on from Middlebury, where he was a three-time All-American as an athlete before taking over the reigns of the alpine program before the 2003-04 season, was not an easy decision for Carey.

‘It’s sad for me to leave in a lot of ways’ he said. ‘I’ve got lots of great memories here. The group that’s here now, it’s a close-knit group of kids and it’s sad to leave them. I’ll miss the Snowbowl, and the ski scene at Middlebury is just so awesome. They won’t miss a beat though.’

In Carey’s first year as head coach in 2004, Middlebury enjoyed one of its finest seasons in recent memory, winning five of six Eastern carnivals and its first EISA championship. Carey earned EISA Coach of the Year that season, and has made an effort to recruit strong, young talent to Middlebury. He’s also been an advocate for collegiate skiers during his tenure.

‘I’m still a fan and an advocate of college skiing’ said Carey. ‘I think the EISA circuit is the best racing circuit in the country. I’m going to miss it for sure.’

While he’s never worked directly with the majority of the athletes currently on the national team, Carey was an assistant at Middlebury when current tech team member Jimmy Cochran was a freshman there. ‘And I skied with Schlopy way back in the day’ said Carey with a laugh, referring to 33-year-old GS specialist Erik Schlopy.

Carey said he’d return to Middlebury to prepare for the move after a visit with Kelly Brush at Craig Hospital in Colorado this weekend. Brush, a sophomore alpine skier for Carey this past season, is there rehabilitating from a serious spinal injury suffered at the Williams carnival this winter.