In one-design racing, when it comes to sails, speed doesn’t happen by accident. It’s built on the water — through testing, feedback, and an obsession with getting the details right. At Melges, we have been designing sails for more than 80 years. Led by Harry Melges III, the Melges Team works in harmony with the expertise, materials, and manufacturing support of North Sails to turn concepts and experience into race-winning sails.
We use modern design tools and performance data, but nothing replaces time sailing the boat. While software can model airflow and predict performance, real speed comes from knowing how a boat feels: how it accelerates, how it grooves upwind, and how forgiving it is across a range of conditions. That experience is what drives every design decision.
Harry and the Melges Team of Allan Terhune, Eddie Cox, and Andy Burdick take the lead on sail shape, profiles, and tuning ranges, drawing on decades of experience sailing the boats we design and build. The diversity of our team enables insightful, thoughtful discussions and collaboration to deliver the best product to market. North Sails supports that process with world-class sailmaking technology, material development, and structural expertise — ensuring the final product isn’t just fast but also durable and repeatable, so our clients can perform at the highest level.
One of our biggest advantages is year-round sail testing. Between inland lakes and the steady sea breeze at the Melges Watersports Center, we can test year-round and in every condition. This enables our team to have rapid testing, photography, and immediate feedback—not just theory, but proof on the racetrack.
In early December, the team was able to do just this. We held an all-hands sail test to evaluate the latest designs for both the MC and E Scow. This allowed the team to visually inspect the sails on the water, photograph them, scan the sails to ensure the desired flying shapes, and refine the final details, ensuring our 2026 sails will be the best yet.
This constant design–test–refine loop allows our sails to develop faster and more accurately than a purely digital process ever could. Small changes get validated quickly, and the best ideas move straight into production. After every regatta, the Melges team meets to discuss what we learned and how we can improve our boats and sails to ensure our customers have the absolute best equipment in the classes we build and support.
What makes this partnership unique is its level of integration. Melges designs and builds the boats and rigs, and Melges designs the sails. North Sails brings decades of sailmaking expertise, advanced materials, and precision manufacturing to the table. The same people designing the equipment are the ones sailing it at the highest level.
Every day on the water ends with debriefs — sailors and designers breaking down what worked, what didn’t, and what can be better. That feedback goes directly into the next iteration until the sail performs across the full range of conditions the class demands.
The result is a sail that’s fast right out of the bag and built to hold its shape over a long competitive life. The best sails for Melges boats come from Melges, period.
For one-design sailors, confidence matters. When you put up a Melges-designed North sail, you know:
It’s designed by the people who know the boat better than anyone.
It’s been tested extensively in real conditions.
Every change is intentional and race-proven.
The sails are built to the highest quality and standard by North Sails.
From scows to sportboats, this hands-on development approach is why Melges continues to set the benchmark — and why sailors trust the combination of Melges and North Sails.