J/70

Kris Werner is a graduate of New York Maritime College at Fort Schuyler, where he earned an unlimited tonnage/oceans USCG license and a Bachelor of Science degree in marine transportation and business. For several years, Kris served as a collegiate sailing coach, bringing the team to a top 20 US ranking. He then served as a ship's officer on oceangoing tankers. Previous positions include a chief officer on the Rochester Fast Ferry, a broker with RCR Yachts, and designing with Steve Haarstick for Beneteau 40.7s, J/24s, and J/70s. For the past three years, Kris worked at Haarstick Sailmakers, becoming owner of the sail loft.

Kris has extensive experience on offshore and one design racing campaigns, as both a driver and crew. In addition to a busy life sailing and running his business, Kris is the proud father of three energetic boys: Steven, Chase, and Austin.

Scott Nixon has been involved with racing his whole life. An All-American sailor at St. Mary’s College of Maryland, Scott later coached many students to the All-American ranks at the College of Charleston in South Carolina. He has a wide range of racing experiences, including dinghies, One Design keelboats, inshore big boats, and offshore distance racing.

Scott joined Quantum Sails in 2000, and his experiences bring a unique skill-set to Quantum’s programs. Focusing primarily on One Design classes, he is directly involved in testing, design, and development of Quantum’s One Design sail programs, working directly with the design team to make sure Quantum® sails are at the front of the fleet.

Scott has sailed with Quantum customers to win championships at the world, Gold Cup, European, North American, and national levels. His hands-on approach includes active campaigns and racing in the following classes for Quantum: J/22, J/24, J/70, J/80, J/109, J/111, C&C 30, Farr 30, Farr 40, NYYC 42, Swan 45, Melges 20, Melges 24, and Melges 32.

George grew up in San Diego racing Stars, Lasers and Snipes. As a kid, he made sails for his model boats before eventually taking a part-time job with Quantum during high school and college. He came on full-time in 1993 as a sailmaker and designer.

Using the latest computer design programs, George is able to create the fastest, most efficient sails for smaller One Design boats. This technology, combined with his intimate understanding of One Design sailing, allows him to create the most versatile sails available. The San Diego loft designs a variety of One Design sails, including Thistle and Lido 14, but their specialties are Olympic Class Star and Snipe boats.

George is the 2009 Star World Champion, as well as an 21-time National/North American Champion. In addition to his sail-making abilities and wins, he is also an accomplished keelboat tactician and trimmer.

Born and raised on Garda Lake, sailing has been Carlo Fracassoli’s favorite sport since childhood. It’s no surprise that he become a professional sailor in 2001. In 2003, he began collaborating in the development of racing and cruising sails for some of the industry’s best known sails brands. He designed sails for monotypes and had great results on the water.

In 2012, Carlo and Manlio Pozzoli opened their own sailmaking loft and affiliated with Quantum Sails as the Quantum Pro-Laghi S.N.C. loft. Since then, he has designed most of the sails sold by the Italian sales team. A One-Design specialist, Carlo designs many sails for Melges 20, 24, and 32 classes, Garda and European lakes monotypes, and ORC and IRC offshore boats.

An accomplished sailor, he won the Melges 24 World Championship in 2012, 2017 and 2019 and the European Championship in 2011 and 2018.

When Fernando Sallent was 10 years old, a friend of his father bought him an Optimist dinghy. From then on Fernando was hooked. As an adult, his first business venture was Technik Boats, a small Optimist shipyard, but it was the physics of sailing that really intrigued him. “I always had a passion for finding a way to make boats go faster,” he said.

That passion led him to La Industrial Velera Marsal, a local sailmaker who made all of his sails by hand. Fernando worked there learning the basics of sailmaking while also running Technick Boats. After taking a year off to serve in the military, he decided to leave Technick and joined Toni Tio Sail Loft. Toni Tio was only designing cruising sails at the time, so Fernando came on board to lead the One Design section of the company.

In 1996, Toni and Fernando visited the Quantum Annapolis loft, and in 2000 they joined the Quantum Sails team. Fernando continues to design One Design sails as he works to help his clients improve on the water. “I love seeing how sailors do better when the product is improved,” he said. “I love the fine tuning of boats and sails on the water.”

An accomplished sailor, Fernando also works as a coach for many teams. He coached the 470 women’s world, Olympic, and European champions in 1992 and the 470 women’s world champions in 1995. Since 2000, he has advised the Norwegian, Swedish, Swiss, and Spanish Olympic teams.

Adrien de Belloy started sailing at four years old, traveling around the North Atlantic with his parents on a boat they built themselves. As a family, they spent a year sailing across the Atlantic, from France to the Caribbean to New York and back. By the time Adrien was 12, he’d moved on to competitive racing. “I loved the sense of freedom, responsibility, team work and being out in nature,” he said. “Nowadays I still love reaching to the horizon and the technical aspect of it. I’m always searching for a way to go faster and trim better.”

With a degree in yacht and powercraft design from Southampton Solent University, Adrien joined Quantum Sails Barcelona as a sail designer in 2007. He left the loft in 2010 to work as a self-contractor for Quantum while he built the boat he and his wife sailed around the world, covering 44,000 miles from 2011-2013. He continues to design for Quantum at the France loft, and is back to racing IRC, Soto 40, and more.

Designing sails for everything from dinghies to super yachts, racers to cruisers, Adrien loves his work. “I love the never-ending improvement,” he said. “Getting to see my designs at sea, then analyzing them to keep on adapting to every situation.”

Working with the team at Quantum gives him the support and resources he needs to design the best sail for every sailor. “Working for Quantum means being part of a great team that is aiming for success at every endeavor,” said Adrien. “We work twice as hard to prove that we are ready for the next challenge.”

Alejandro Irigoyen started sailing when he was 12 years old. His father was a keen sailboat racer at the Yacht Club Argentino, and Alejandro spent his weekends racing and living aboard the family’s wooden S&S Finisterre. By the time he graduated high school, Alejandro knew he wanted to dedicate his life to sailing, so he started studying yacht design.

He started his sailmaking career in 1982 working for Hood, before starting his own Sobstad loft. In 2001, Alejandro joined the Quantum Sails family. “It was a natural decision,” he said. “I shared the same view and goals as the founding group.”

Though he’s sailed in various classes, Alejandro’s expertise includes Optimist, Cadet, 470, Snipe, J/24, J/70, J/105, Soto 33, and Soto 44 classes. Whether he’s sharing his class knowledge and experience, or helping customers organize their campaigns and training, Alejandro’s passion for excellence provides the best service, products, and support for his customers.