Sophomore Morgan Cerny has big hope for the next years of her ski racing career.

“Oh, you know, I’m just going to the Olympics,” Morgan laughs. “I’m joking. I’m hoping next year to maybe get on varsity. If I can manage to improve a little bit more, I think it’s definitely possible. And I hope to continue skiing for the rest of my life, but probably not ski racing.”

While Morgan may not be going to the Olympics quite yet, she already has loads of experience under her belt.

Morgan began skiing around twelve years ago, despite her racing career only taking off in 2022.

“I was about three and my dad would take me to the bunny hill,” Morgan said. “There were many falls, but it was worth it because I learned to ski at a young age. I think it has improved my ski racing skills.”

Learning from a young age has only grown Morgan’s love for the sport. But to foster this passion, she has to continue to hit the slopes.

To influence her to ski more, Morgan joined the ski team during her freshman year. 

“I started not so great,” Morgan said. “And it was definitely an experience because ski racing is so much different from normal skiing. Slowly, I’ve become more confident and aggressive on the hill. [Racing] made me better, but I still have a lot of room to improve.”

This improvement comes from getting time on the hill, which is what Morgan ventures out to do.

Skiing in Michigan is few and far between. There aren’t many ski areas near FHC, but Morgan has been raised to find ways around it.

“Usually [my family] would go [to Schuss Mountain] every year,” Morgan said. “We do it right around New Year’s time, but this is the first year we haven’t gone up there which is very, very sad. I miss Schuss. I love it.”

While Schuss might be Morgan’s favorite place to ski, it’s not the biggest place she’s been.

In the past few years, Morgan has had opportunities to venture out of the mitten state to experience a whole different type of ski run.

“I had an amazing opportunity to go with one of my favorite people,” Morgan said. “She took me to Vail and Breckenridge [in Colorado]. Those were the hardest places I’ve ever skied. I thought I was gonna die almost every day because the runs were so very difficult, especially in comparison to Michigan hills. I went to Steamboat with my family two times. And that was very fun because I got to see my family friends. Steamboat was a little different from like Vail and Breckenridge because it’s on the easy side of things, I would say.”

The difference between the Michigan hills and the Colorado mountains stunned Morgan. Despite her initial trouble adjusting to the steepness, Morgan grew to appreciate the skiing strain.

Coming back from skiing in Breckenridge and Vail over winter break to racing at Cannonsburg gave Morgan loads of newfound confidence.

“I feel like you get so much more like skiing time,” Morgan said. “When I went to Colorado, I got back with so much more experience. Also when you get back, the Michigan hills feel awful compared to Colorado.”

Years and years of strapping planks to her feet have given Morgan something to look forward to after long days. Whether she’s racing or going out for fun to hit some trees, Morgan loves it all the same.

“Skiing tugs at my heartstrings,” Morgan said. “It makes me feel a certain way. I can’t comprehend it and that is why I recommend skiing to every single person reading this article. It’s just a great experience. You can find so much passion in this amazing sport that we call skiing.”