SYNC Performance has reached a remarkable milestone – our 10-year anniversary. As we stand at this pivotal point in our journey, let's take a moment to reflect on the incredible ride we've had over the past decade.

In the early days of SYNC Performance, a small group of entrepreneurs embarked on a transformative journey that would reshape the ski racing market. It all began with the recognition of a gap in ski brands that failed to prioritize athletes' experiences and performance needs. SYNC Co-Founder, Geof Ochs remembers, “The early days were all about listening to athletes. We knew that if we gave control of the brand to the athlete they would point us in the right direction and help us stay laser focused on solving the right problems.”

Our innovations have always been fueled by a passionate team of athletes, and our mission is to bring high-performance apparel and gear to all athletes, with a special focus on ski racers. Collaboration with athletes is the cornerstone of our design process, ensuring that their feedback drives continuous improvement. We are, after all, a company by athletes, for athletes.

Over the past ten years, SYNC Performance has taken immense pride in nurturing and supporting a diverse range of athlete programs. Our SYNC Team, now in its tenth year, was first introduced in 2014. Throughout the years, SYNC has provided support to teams of World Cup, Olympic, and Independent athletes, including Redneck Racing, Team America, and Team X Alpine.

While some of these programs have evolved over time, our commitment to athletes has remained unchanged. Today, SYNC Performance proudly backs four prominent athlete programs: SYNC Team, SYNC NCAA Team, SYNC Team Canada, and SYNC Athlete Fund. Our three SYNC Teams offer athletes with the necessary equipment, partnerships, and guidance needed to compete at a high level. Since its inception, the SYNC Team has helped develop 17 athletes to reach the U.S. Ski Team. 

In 2021, we introduced the SYNC NCAA team after changes to NCAA NIL rules which allowed us to work directly with top performing collegiate athletes throughout the U.S. These athletes provide an immense amount of insight for product innovation and research and development. More recently in 2023, we introduced the SYNC Team Canada, a program built after the SYNC Team designed to specifically support Canadian athletes. The SYNC Athlete Fund, which was introduced in 2019, provides critical financial support to athletes, alleviating training and competition costs. Once again, SYNC President, Geof Ochs says, “We would be nowhere without these athletes. It’s the least we can do as a brand to give back and support their careers. More money in the hands of athletes, no matter what team they are on or where they race, it is a great thing for the sport as a whole.” 

Throughout the last 10 years these athlete programs have been designed and evolved to help top level athletes achieve their dreams and we at SYNC couldn’t be prouder to have played a small role in their journey to be great.

The inception of SYNC’s Custom Program was driven by a desire to transform the gear ordering experience for team members, administrators and coaches. Recognizing the limitations of traditional ordering models, our program aimed to enhance efficiency and satisfaction for all parties involved.

What sets SYNC's Custom Program apart is its year-round ordering platform, a departure from industry norms of rigid deadlines and minimum order quantities. With no minimum order requirements, teams can customize their orders precisely to their needs, whether it's a single item or more.

Over the years, the Custom Program has evolved, introducing a tiered program in 2021, to provide personalized solutions for each team's unique requirements. Making sure the program continues to add value in as many ways as possible to meet club members and administrators needs every step of the way. More recently, the program has expanded to include a podium prize program, offering teams a range of incentives and rewards beyond uniforms, which is one component of the future vision for the program. 

The aspiration of the Custom Program is to transcend the role of a mere uniform provider and evolve into a true partner within the skiing community by supporting race entry fees and providing incentives for volunteers. SYNC’s Director of Custom, Katie Gilligan, remarks, “Our team strives every day to be more than just the uniform.”

One of the most notable athlete product collaborations started near the inception of SYNC, the Cut-Resistant Base Layer and Calf Sleeve. This product development recognized the need to address the increasingly more common ski lacerations in the sport. The 2020 launch of these protective layers reflects our commitment to safety and addressing the needs of athletes. Geof Ochs says, “No matter how long it takes to get a viable product to market, we are patient and committed to providing only the products that athletes deserve and need. The Cut Resistant collection is a great example of years of development to get it right and long lead innovation to support that mission.” 

Over the years we have utilized Kickstarters to introduce products such as the Engineered Down Jacket and Headwall Shell Collection. These Kickstarters have allowed us to produce products with the input from our community through features they believe in and their vote on colors. 

The expansion of the product line-up to include products that can be used in the warmer months with the Dryland Activewear Collection. Becoming a world-class athlete is a full time commitment and working out is an important part of that development. The goal is to provide products that feature innovative technology through collaboration with our partner fabric mills, and technological partners like drirelease, and Primaloft to name a couple.

Most recently, SYNC introduced the Stretch Insulator, a game-changing addition to our technical ski jacket lineup. Engineered with a focus on athletes' needs, this insulator jacket offers movement, breathability, and warmth – so athletes can focus on the task at hand and stop worrying about how their gear will perform or not. We believe we are just getting started on the  journey into new, innovative ski apparel.

A recent milestone for SYNC was the relocation from the long-time East Vail, Colorado location to a new  location in the heart of the Vail Valley, Avon, Colorado. 

Our new facility offers ample space for various functions, including a larger showroom, well-equipped offices for our growing team, and a sizable warehouse to stock our expanding product line. Beyond practicality, this move symbolizes our growth and progress over the past decade.