Shea attended the University of Denver (DU), where he majored in business administration. During his senior year, he was named captain of the school's ski team and earned All-American honors. After graduating in 1961, he was drafted into the United States Army and was stationed for two years at the U.S. biathlon training center in Anchorage, Alaska.[3] He married Judith Butler, a fellow DU graduate, on March 16, 1963.[4]