Local engineering company designs, builds its own Ski to Sea racing equipment
After almost two decades of participating in Whatcom County’s annual Ski to Sea multisport relay race, a local engineering and manufacturing company is putting a unique spin on their equipment for the 2026 event.
Janicki is entering a team in this year’s race that will compete with a full set of racing equipment the company designed and manufactured in-house using “aerospace-grade materials and processes.”
The “Made by Janicki” team will compete in the corporate division with its specially-designed cross-country skis, downhill skis and snowboard, road bike, canoe, cyclocross bike and surfski kayak. Every piece of equipment, except the running shoes, that will be used by the team was built by Janicki employees, according to the company.
“We are excited to share our technical capabilities with the community through this unique project,” Janicki senior director of research and development TJ Chace said in an announcement about the equipment. “Though the final products are functional sporting equipment, they represent the same high-precision tooling, parts and structural assembly standards we apply to our work in aerospace, marine and defense.”
Each piece of equipment was built using the same standards the company applies to parts and assemblies for aerospace programs, the company said. Builders used precision tooling, high-performance composite materials, machined metal components, 3D-printed parts and specialized coatings to finalize each piece of equipment, according to Janicki.
Constructing the equipment allowed the company’s engineers to explore new materials and design approaches outside typical aerospace production environments and several of the pieces functioned as “testbeds” for sustainable alternatives to more traditional manufacturing techniques, according to Janicki.
Ski to Sea has been a favorite community event for more than 50 years. Starting at Mount Baker and finishing in Bellingham Bay, the all-day event features 500 teams of three to eight members each competing in seven sports, including cross country skiing, downhill skiing/snowboarding, running, road cycling, canoeing, cyclocross and sea kayaking.
In addition to the “Made by Janicki” team, the company has two other employee teams competing on standard equipment in this year’s race in the corporate division. Janicki has sent employee teams to Ski to Sea every year since 2008.
This year’s race is sold out and will take place May 24.
