Scott Veenis, a Park City resident and ski coach with the Rowland Hall Rowmark Ski Academy was injured when the SUV he was driving was struck by an oncoming vehicle near Mount Hood, Ore., Saturday.

As of Tuesday, Veenis was in stable condition at Oregon Health & Sciences University (OHSU) with multiple injuries to his ribs, leg and hip.

According to the Oregon State Police, Veenis, 26, was heading northbound on Oregon’s Highway 35 in a 2004 Chevrolet Suburban with six members of the Rowmark ski team when a driver in the southbound lane attempted to pass a commercial truck and semi-trailer just before a blind turn on the two-lane highway.

The vehicle, a 2001 Jeep Wrangler, was alongside the trailer when it crashed head-on with the Suburban.

Veenis and Rowmark student-athlete Hank Shipman, 15, of Salt Lake City, were transported via LifeFlight helicopter. Veenis was taken to Oregon Health & Sciences University, while Shipman was taken to Legacy Emanuel Medical Center, both based in Portland, Ore.

According to Rowmark manager Sarah Getzelman, Veenis sustained nine broken ribs, a broken femur and a broken hip. He was scheduled to undergo surgery on his femur Tuesday morning and at the time was in stable condition, according to Getzelman.

Shipman sustained three fractured vertebrae in his neck and a broken femur. Getzelman said he had been upgraded to fair condition.

According to the police report, the driver of the Jeep Wrangler, Drew Smith, 22, of University Place, Wash., was treated and released at Hood River Memorial Hospital. His passenger, 16-year-old Evan Smith, was treated in intensive care.

The five other occupants of the Suburban, ages 15 to 18, were transported by ambulance and treated and released at Hood River Memorial Hospital with minor injuries.

Getzelman said Veenis quickly turned the Suburban once he saw the oncoming Jeep and took the brunt of the impact.

“If he hadn’t turned the car a little bit, it would have been a lot worse,” she said. “His quick reflexes were pretty amazing.”

Veenis is in his first year as a coach with the Rowmark program and was the Park City Ski Team Skier of the Year in 2005. He was also a captain on the University of Utah Ski Team and the 2006 giant slalom national champion. Getzelman said Rowland Hall was lucky to snag him to become a part of the program.

“He’s just a great gregarious guy,” she said. “The kids just all love him. He’s been fantastic.”

Getzelman received news of the accident by voicemail from another group of athletes who were competing in the Mission Ridge area in Oregon.

When told the program had two people transferred via LifeFlight, Getzelman said her brain “just went into overdrive.”

She lauded the quick response by emergency officials, saying, “I think the whole episode was handled perfectly. Ambulances were there immediately. They’re in two great hospitals. I can’t imagine the LifeFlight was even that long. Having that resource was unbelievable.”

Getzelman said her biggest fear as a program manager is to have to deal with a car accident.

“There’s so much extensive driving; obviously to have something like this happen is horrific,” she said. “But all other ski racing programs have been unbelievably supportive. It’s a very tight-knit group.”

Getzelman said the program has set up a CaringBridge website for Shipman and is in the process of setting one up for Veenis.

“Scotty knows so many people, especially in Park City, and I know there’s so many thoughts for him,” she said.

Jay Veenis, the father of Scott Veenis, spoke with The Park Record Tuesday afternoon from OHSU hospital and said his son is stable, but faces an arduous journey.

“He’s improving,” Jay Veenis said. “But it’s going to be a long struggle for him. A lot happened.

“If people know Scotty, he’s a very positive and upbeat person. He’s a very strong people person. He was even lightly joking yesterday.”

Jay Veenis said when he asked his son what he remembered about the accident, he made a joke, saying, “Intimate with the engine,” as the Suburban’s engine came through the dashboard, temporarily pinning him against the car.

The elder Veenis said his son drifts in and out of sleep quite often, and each time he awakes he asks for the status of Shipman.

Veenis’ parents, who live in Virginia, made it to the hospital Sunday to stay with their son. Veenis’ mother, Cindy, is a registered nurse who has worked in intensive care and they wanted to make a point that the staff at OHSU has done a phenomenal job.

Jay Veenis said his son has gone through one surgery, but is expected to go through a series of surgeries on his lower body within the coming weeks.

He has taken over Scott’s Facebook page and has been communicating with friends on his daily condition.

“He’ll have to learn how to walk again,” Jay Veenis said. “He’ll it do, though.”

For more information on a CaringBridge website, go to www.caringbridge.org .