Three months ago, on Aug. 20, Jefferson High School sophomore Kolbe Michaud lived through a nightmare. He was on his way home to Clancy after an exhausting football practice when he fell asleep behind the wheel.
If he wasn’t wearing his seat belt – as he’s said numerous times since, warning both adults and his peers – he wouldn’t be here anymore, let alone be playing sports. Kolbe knows just how lucky he is to be alive, which has given him motivation to push through the pain and make the most of each experience.
After suffering significant knee and shoulder injuries in the devastating crash, Kolbe missed his first varsity football season, and, moving forward, he’s not taking anything for granted. As he continues to rehabilitate, his sights are set on a state wrestling title.
“I started looking at the bigger picture and that nothing is ever guaranteed,” he said. “You have to take advantage of everything that life gives to you, because one day it could all be gone.”
A varsity wrestler, Kolbe takes this philosophy to heart, doing his best in every way he can, pushing himself every step of the way. This mentality had already been instilled in him, he said, when he returned to wrestling in the seventh grade. Kolbe started wrestling at the age of five, but switched to basketball in middle school.
“It’s hard to jump into wrestling as a seventh grader,” said his father Joe Michaud. “Kolbe really took his lumps, but he never quit and never wavered. He gets committed to a goal and he wants to achieve it.”
Kolbe said he understands nothing is handed to him. If he wants something, he has to earn it, so he’s doing everything he can to make his dream of stepping on the podium at the state tournament in Billings a reality.
“Technique beats strength every time, but the best guys have both the technique and the strength. So, in order to get myself on that podium I have to increase both my technique and my strength,” he said.
In order to get there, Kolbe sets daily goals, weekly goals and keeps the ultimate goal of placing at the tournament in the forefront of his mind.
Staying disciplined, keeping his weight at 205 and continuing to hit the gym and condition at such an intense level won’t come without its setbacks, Kolbe admitted, which adds to the adversity.
“He’s still healing,” said Joe. “He had a borderline grade four shoulder separation, which a doctor in Missoula said will typically end an entire season for an NFL player. Kolbe’s recovery has been miraculous.”
Kolbe said he expects there to be tweaks along the way. He still feels some pain in his knee and shoulders, making some wrestling positions more uncomfortable than anticipated. Such realities are reminders that Kolbe didn’t get into wrestling because it was easy – he got into it because he saw its benefit, just like his father did before him. During his esteemed wrestling career, Joe was a three-time state medalist for Butte Central and wrestled collegiately at the University of Jamestown.
Like Joe, Kolbe considers wrestling a way of life, one that allows him to access a level of mental toughness he’s not sure he could achieve otherwise. He’s thankful for this, especially after his accident and during his rehabilitation.
Kolbe is the first to admit he wouldn’t be where he is now without the support and encouragement he’s received from his family, head wrestling coach Troy Humphrey and teammates, such as fellow sophomore Brady Armstrong, the 2021-22 divisional champ at 170.
“[Brady] pushes me to work for positions and try to get better from everywhere,” Kolbe said. “He doesn’t let me have anything. He makes me work for everything I want.”
Similarly, Armstrong said he’s been inspired by Kolbe to “keep pushing” and has admired his steadfast approach toward self-improvement.
“The car wreck hasn’t slowed him down,” Armstrong said. “He’s still going hard and still putting in the extra time to do the best he can.”
This work ethic is partly inspired in the offseason, as Kolbe was pushed nearly to the limit over the summer at “The Best Wrestler” camp in Omaha, Nebraska, hosted by Olympic Bulgarian wrestler Ivan Delchev Ivanov and his son, Georgi, also a former Olympian. Kolbe and Joe spent a month in Omaha with these men. It was their second summer doing so, a relationship that started when the Ivanovs came to a wrestling camp in Helena and took a liking to Kolbe.
The experience was powerful, Joe said, as it meant a lot to bond with another father-son wrestling duo, but that didn’t make it any easier for Kolbe.
“Kolbe left a few of those practices angry with them because the training was so intense,” Joe said. “It’s very military-like. Kids are not allowed to say ‘I can’t.’ It’s very in-your-face. But all their wrestlers know they care about them. Kolbe left a few workouts extremely mad at his coaches for how hard they pushed him.They don’t sugarcoat anything. They were vocally disappointed Kolbe could only do 5 pull-ups, but in the same breath pushed him to do 12 by the end of the camp.” Joe added Kolbe was able to do 12 pull-ups by the end of camp.
At the time Kolbe had no idea how badly he’d need the grit and mental fortitude he developed in Omaha. Grateful to be alive, Kolbe said he feels tremendously fortunate to compete, and to make the most of each opportunity, be it athletics, academics or extracurriculars (Kolbe is also involved in drama).
Come what may Kolbe said he is confident he will give his all. Hopefully, this means he will be on the podium this year for his 205-pound weight class. If he isn’t, he has two more years to wrestle, and Kolbe said he will make every match count, just as he will make every game count during his next two football seasons. Losing the opportunity to play during his first varsity football season was heartbreaking, he said, but it has inspired him to kick into a higher gear and play with more courage and resolve. This has not gone unnoticed.
“Kolbe’s work in the off-season has definitely paid off and he has improved immensely, which benefits both himself and the team,” said JHS head wrestling coach Troy Humphrey. “Kolbe has stepped up to fulfill a role of being a scoring threat for the team. He is technically our number two 205-pounder wrestler, but it is vitally important that we get scoring from more than just our varsity wrestler in that weight,’ said Humphrey.
Joe also expressed how impressed he is with the strides Kolbe has taken and how he admires the resilience he’s displayed during this trying time. Results are already coming in, as Kolbe recently won his first high school wrestling medal, taking fourth place at the Cascade Invitational.
“My wife, Amy, and I couldn’t be prouder of him,” he said. Following his injuries, “Kolbe came to every football practice and even got into the Three Forks game. He came all the way back. And we are hopeful he will continue to improve and realize his goals during this wrestling season.”
