J/111

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.

When Gary Leduc was five years old, his neighbor offered to teach him to sail if Gary would help him put together a wooden skiff. Gary agreed, and he’s been sailing ever since. A lifelong fan of the water, he spent most of his high school and college years sailing and surfing, even missing school to enjoy the water. When his neighbor, and owner of Manchester Sails, heard about Gary’s passion, he offered to teach Gary how to make sails. That offer turned into a career in the sailmaking industry.

Gary started making sails in 1969. He has been working at Quantum Bristol for more than 20 years, since before they joined Quantum Sails. He learned his trade the traditional way, making everything by hand. Today, his main focus is designing all types of cruising sails for yachts up to 60 feet.

As a member of the Quantum group, Gary has access to not only the best sail-making technology, but also to the most knowledgeable sailors in the country. “If you have a question, I can quickly Skype with or email someone and always get the answer,” he said. He uses those resources to make sure each of his clients not only get the best product, but also the best information and service. “I want to help educate them about the product and make them feel warm and comfortable,” Gary said. “In the end, they aren’t going to buy something from you if they don’t feel good about the conversation they’ve had with you.”

Jeff Thorpe was eight years old when he started the Leo Robbins sailing program. The instructor told his dad that Jeff wasn’t cut out for sailing, but Jeff went back the next season and hasn’t stopped sailing since. Throughout high school he raced Sabots, Lasers, and Laser 2s. When it was time for college, he didn’t have the money, so he took a job building and racing Morc boats at Pinnacle Yacht Design Group.

Jeff stayed involved in the marine industry in a variety of ways, from an Olympic campaign with friends to fixing and rebuilding J/24s at his own shop to working in a sail loft. While working at the loft, he had the opportunity to sail on a J/125 with Quantum sails. Jeff was impressed with what he saw. He contacted Quantum Sails and told them he needed to work for them.

Today Jeff works as a sail consultant at the Quantum Pacific loft, giving his clients the attention to detail they need to find the right sails. With his extensive sailing history, he’s more than qualified to help others figure out exactly what they need to meet their goals. "I spent years running offshore racing programs, so I have a fair bit of knowledge that helps me provide my clients with a great resource when they have questions," said Jeff. "I make sure they understand all the options available to them to help them enjoy their sailing."

Jeff's sailing experience includes J/70, J/111, J/105, J/125, Melges 24, Olson 30, E-22, PHRF, ORR, IRC, TP 52, Santa Cruz 70, and Santa Cruz 52 classes, as well as offshore catamarans, cruising boats, and racing boats.

Kris Werner grew up in Queens, NY, and spent his childhood on the water, sailing and fishing. He 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.

After four years of collegiate varsity and offshore sailing, Kris served as a collegiate sailing coach and waterfront director. His career took him all over the world as a ship's officer on ocean-going tankers. In 2004, Kris came to Rochester to earn his way to Chief Officer on the Rochester Fast Ferry. He then worked as a Broker with RCR Yachts and began collaborating with Steve Haarstick on sail designs for various boats, including J/70s, J/24s, and other offshore vessels. For three years, he worked at Haarstick Sailmakers before transitioning to becoming the owner of the loft which is now Quantum Sails Rochester. Kris has extensive experience in offshore and one-design racing campaigns, both as a helmsman and a crew member. In addition to being a familiar face on the racing circuit, Kris enjoys spending time cruising with his wife and three boys.

A New Zealand native and sailmaker by trade, Jason completed his 4-year apprenticeship in 1996. After working in Auckland for Boyd & McMaster sails, he moved to Annapolis Maryland in 1997 to start with the brand new Quantum Sail Design Group, and has been with the company ever since.

During his time with Quantum, Jason ran the service department before moving into sales in 2008. Jason brings with him to Quantum a wealth of experience in both racing and cruising applications having been involved in the technical and hands on side of sail making for almost 30 years.

Over the years he has competed successfully on all levels of Grand Prix, One Design & IRC racing circuits ranging from J/22, J/70, Farr 30, Farr 40, C&C30, J/111, IC37, and the IRC52. In 2009 Jason was tasked with managing the sail development and design program for the Farr 40 class that has led to multiple national and world championship wins for Quantum clients. Having grown up sailing and spending most of his life in the sailmaking industry, Jason holds a diverse range of experience that he happily passes on to his racing and cruising clients.

Wally started building sails in 1973 to pay for college, and over the years has had the opportunity to work with seven different sail making companies before joining Quantum.

During his years in the sailing business, Wally has raced many types of small boats, as well as sailing the Flying Dutchman in the 1980 Olympic Trials. He was involved with the winning boats in many national championships before shifting his focus to offshore one design boats. He's participated in six Canada Cups, 25 Key West racing events, over 40 Mackinac races, and hundreds of traveling regattas. Today, Wally spends his time racing a variety of boats, including large offshore boats, the Melges 20, Melges 24, and Melges 32 classes, and local offshore one designs, like the J/111 and Beneteau 36.7.

Wally enjoys mixing his sail making knowledge with all the other pieces of sailing, such as rig, trim, and sail settings, to not only make the boats sail faster, but to help people get the most enjoyment from their boats.