Kenai Kayak Co.: this company provides kayaks at a price and quality the owner is willing to match against any out there.

• Author: Jackinsky, McKibben
• Position: Small Business Spotlight - Brief Article

Tom Wilkinson can remember 20 years ago when his interest in kayaking placed him in a minority. But things have changed since then. And Wilkinson has used that change to create Kenai Kayak Co.

"When I started kayaking, I was considered a lunatic," Wilkinson said, referring to his introduction to the sport in 1982. "Now it's the thing to do. There are thousands and thousands of people kayaking."

More and more of those seagoing enthusiasts are paddling Wilkinson's 17-foot fiberglass sea kayaks, made in his shop in Sterling.

The attraction to kayaking is something Wilkinson understands.

"When you're paddling, you become part of the environment," he said. "You're an integral part of what's happening. If a whale is in the area, you are very aware. This is as close to swimming with the whales as you can get."

Thanks to some hard work, he also understands the construction of a kayak. Spurred by the desire to design and build a sea kayak for less than the cost of purchasing and shipping one from the Lower 48, Wilkinson spent three years perfecting molds for the hull, deck, seat, seat back, front hatch and two bulkheads. He and assistant Patty Fuehrer learned to blend colors to match almost anything, and have since added the option of metal flake, which gives a sparkling effect. They can create paddles in colors to match the kayak. The result: a 17-foot sea kayak built for stability and capable of carrying 250 pounds of gear, plus the paddler.

"And they can take very big waters," Wilkinson said. A recent 17-day, 250-mile trip from Seward to Homer with five other kayakers offered the opportunity to pit the craft's seaworthiness against some of Alaska's notorious waters.

"We got into 15-foot seas coming around Gore Point and everyone did just fine," he said.

The finished product from Wilkinson's shop goes for $1,550, which he compared to an average cost of $2,400 for a 17-foot fiberglass sea kayak from Anchorage.

"They have overhead much higher than ours and I don't charge for shipping," Wilkinson said. Of the design, the price and the quality, he added...