Robert Mahan

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February 4, 2012

Robert Cary Mahan - 1969-2012
Steen Funeral Home-Central Avenue Chapel
The Independent The Daily Independent Sun Feb 05, 2012, 12:49 PM EST

ASHLAND - Robert Cary Mahan passed away Friday morning, Feb. 3, 2012, with his mother and father at his bedside.

Rob was born Aug. 11, 1969, in Columbus, Ohio. He was a 1987 graduate of Paul G. Blazer High School. After graduating high school, Rob moved to Snowshoe, W.Va., to pursue a career as a skiing professional. Rob was a ski racer and instructor who became the director of Snowshoe Resort's Ski and Snowboard School for many years.

Rob was an active member of the Professional Ski instructors of America. He achieved the highest level of certification awarded by that institution. In addition, he was an examiner and trainer for PSIA and a member of their Eastern Regional Demonstration Team, traveling and representing PSIA around the country.

Rob was a professional athlete of the highest caliber. In addition to his ski career at Snowshoe, he was a PGA teaching professional for the Hawthorne Valley Golf Club of Snowshoe Resort.

In 2004, Rob moved to Colorado to become a supervisor of training for ski instructors at Beaver Creek Resort in Avon, Colo. At Beaver Creek, Rob was a member of the National Champion Beaver Creek Synchronized Ski Team. He also competed with that team in the Synchronized World Championships for several years in Switzerland. Rob skied all over the world, from Australia and New Zealand to France, Italy and Austria. Rob was diagnosed with brain cancer in 2009. Even after his diagnosis, he became the director of training for ski instructors at Vail Resorts in Vail, Colo., the largest ski school in the world.

Rob is survived by his mother, Sudie Davis, and father, Danny Mahan, both of Ashland. He is mourned by his brothers, Cade Mahan of Ashland and Case Mahan of Brooklyn, N.Y. His sisters, Colleen Mahan Small, is a resident of Lexington. Mr. and Mrs. Henry T. Mahan of Rocky Mount, Va., and former longtime residents of Ashland, are his surviving grandparents.

Rob had dear friends all over the world, and he was an inspiration to all who knew him. He was a dedicated skiing teacher and trainer who touched many lives, and he will be sorely missed by his family and friends.

A graveside service will be conducted at 11 a.m. Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2012, at Rose Hill Burial Park by the Rev. John Roof. Burial will follow in Rose Hill Burial Park.

Friends may call from 6 to 9 p.m. Monday, Feb. 6, 2012, at Steen Funeral Home-Central Avenue Chapel in Ashland.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Ashland Community Hospice or the Snowshoe Ski Team Parents Association for the Rob Mahan Memorial Scholarship Fund, 13102 Princeville Court, Silver Spring, MD 20904. The scholarship was established this year to cover the cost of lift tickets, equipment and training for local West Virginia youth chosen for the Snowshoe Ski Team.

Condolences may be sent to steenfuneralhome.com.