LEWISTON — Allan Lobozzo grew up in Geneva, Switzerland. For two years after high school, he traveled Europe on the competitive ski racing circuit.

College brought him to Maine, then life brought him to Lewiston. Lobozzo runs a Main Street law practice, splitting his time between defense work and landlord/tenant issues, personal injury and custody cases.

On the weekends, he’s still on the slopes.

“There are many Mondays when I’m in front of a judge and the tips of my ears are frost-bitten,” he said.

Each winter since 2007, Lobozzo, 54, has balanced law and head coach duties for the Shawnee Peak Race Team. He was an assistant coach before that, and part of the Gould Academy Competition program at Sunday River before that.

“There was a time if I was skiing down the hill, everybody watched,” he said. “(With age) I think your role becomes a little different, you can’t go out and rip it up with the kids.”

Lobozzo’s father was originally from Auburn and found work as a young engineer with Caterpillar Tractor, which brought him to Switzerland. He married overseas. The family returned to Auburn every two years to visit Lobozzo’s grandparents, so he was introduced early to Maine.

After graduating from high school at 17, Lobozzo went all over Europe racing slalom, giant slalom and downhill.

“I loved ski racing, I loved the traveling,” he said. “You begin to get to know each venue, each village.”

He spoke English, French and enough German “for a 12-minute chairlift ride.”

In 1978, Lobozzo moved to the states to attend the University of Maine, his father’s alma mater.

“It was an outrageous culture shock to be in Orono,” he said. “I wouldn’t tell people after a while where I grew up, their eyes just went blank. If you were from South Portland it was a big deal.”

He skied for UMaine’s then-Division I ski team and met his future wife on the team.

He’s taken time off the slopes twice, the first time for law school, and in 2003 to move his family to Spain for a year.

“I just had this amazing itch to do something completely different, while the children were still all under my roof,” Lobozzo said. “I struggled with buy-in. Every single one of them at some point wept profusely, but they all thank me now.”

In 2004, he began his practice anew, picked up skis again and began assistant coaching at Shawnee Peak.

Among his five children, Lobozzo has two state alpine racing champions and two runners-up.

“It gives me a lot of pride,” he said. “What gives me more pride is all my children have at some point assisted me in coaching.

“They have all continued to love the sport, with the exception of my oldest daughter, who we discovered is a warm weather person,” Lobozzo said. “She did it for me, for many years — and she did win a state championship.”

At Shawnee Peak, he oversees 64 kids, age 6 to 18, and 10 coaches. He spent a recent weekend skiing with the 6-year-olds.

“We spent the whole morning outside with a couple of hot chocolate breaks,” he said. “Basically, you’re playing on a mountain.”

Kids can quickly become better than their parents, he said, part of the joy of the experience.

From Thanksgiving to April 1, Lobozzo estimated he spends 20 hours a week coaching, 50 hours a week in the law office.

“That type of law, there’s a certain exhilaration that is somewhat akin to going down hill very fast,” he said. “You can have great victories and then you can have tragic crashes.”

In the spring and summer, Lobozzo gives himself a break.

Triathlons are his form of a break.

 Know someone everyone knows? We’re always looking for people to feature. Contact staff writer Kathryn Skelton at 689-2844 or [email protected]