Engineering Skier Aims to Change the Industry

General engineering student and ski club president building eco-friendly skis for a new business launch

by Emily Slater

General engineering student Matthew Morin has loved skiing and nature for as long as he can remember. He learned to ski as a 3-year-old in Seattle, where he spent his childhood connecting with extended family on mountain vacations and his teen years hitting the slopes with friends for night skiing every Friday.

Morin also grew up in a household that was devoted to caring for the environment he so loved.

It seemed only natural, then, that during his senior year at a STEM-based high school, he handcrafted his own skis in his garage using sustainable materials.

He has yet to test the pair, but they serve as an important symbol.

“Those skis now hang on my wall as a reminder of where I started and where I’m heading,” said Morin, president of Central Pacific Ski Club, one of the largest student clubs at Cal Poly.

His destination? A ski company born out of his senior project at Cal Poly rooted in sustainability and sound engineering.

‘Nothing More Inspiring’

Morin’s journey through Cal Poly has taken twists and turns an emphasis on composite design and entrepreneurship.

He started as a mechanical engineering major to gain skills for a future he hoped would include a ski-related pursuit, but he struggled with applying the course material. Distance learning due to COVID compounded the situation.

“I was losing my drive,” Morin said.

At the same time, his passion for skiing was only growing.

His first day in the dorms, Morin joined the ski club — “I didn’t know anyone, and I knew I needed to make friends” — and soon rose through the ranks, serving as secretary, then vice president and president.

Through the club, he has skied across California, Oregon, Idaho, Utah, Colorado and in Montana for the group’s latest adventure.

Euphoria is the feeling Morin attaches to flying down the mountain as he connects to nature and finds freedom: “There’s nothing like skiing a good line,” he said.

Morin ultimately decided to change direction his junior year, shifting to general engineering so he could build a foundation to launch a company specializing in sustainably made skis.

“Matthew’s passion for this topic is contagious,” said Liz Thompson, director of the General Engineering Program. “When you hear about his love of skiing combined with wanting to contribute to a more sustainable future, there is nothing more inspiring,”

Thompson has watched many students like Morin find a topic that aligns with their passion which gives rise to a hunger for learning and drive to generate the kind of solutions the planet needs.

“This is the best example of how engineering education should be — solving the planet’s problems while producing knowledge and creating new paths for individuals,” she said.

The Perfect Interdisciplinary Project

The move to general engineering gave Morin the runway to immediately begin work on his senior project — perfecting a set of sustainably made skis.

He is taking the lessons learned from building his first pair in high school along with the higher education he has received in materials, manufacturing and electrical engineering to create a new prototype that targets each part of the ski.

Morin’s goal is to reduce the overall ecological footprint of the process.

“Skiers should care about the environment,” he said. “Climate change is affecting our winters, and we need to do something about it.”

Materials engineering Assistant Professor Joel Galos is advising Morin on his project, offering technical guidance on how to select the best materials and processes.

Standard skis include a wood core with composite reinforcement and materials such as fiber glass, carbon and epoxy. Sustainable skis could include wood types that take less energy to process and plant-based fibers and bio-resins that are more eco-friendly.

“Matthew’s project has the potential to create an exciting new product that could significantly reduce the environmental impact of recreational skis,” Galos said. “I am encouraging Matthew to aim high and to reach those heights through a sound understanding of engineering fundamentals.”

Initially, Morin thought sustainable skis might mean sacrificing performance, but now he believes he may be able to improve stiffness and flex pattern based on his choice of materials.

Morin’s next steps include fabricating prototypes and testing them on the slopes.

Once he turns his prototype into a product, Morin intends to launch his own product — and company — using principles he learned through business courses he integrated into his major.

His target market is first-time ski buyers in their teens and 20s so he can build brand loyalty early.

While some companies have started exploring sustainable practices, Morin still aims to be on the cutting edge by starting his venture as soon as he graduates in the fall.

“If I wait, I won’t be on the forefront, so I’m going to give it all I’ve got,” he said. “If it doesn’t work, it will look good on a résumé but if it does, I get to change the industry.” ■