Why Waagmeester Sails
Became Banks Sails of the West Coast

From our earliest conversations in 1995 with Banks Sails USA president, Steve Benjamin, it was apparent that Banks Sails was a sailmaking group that was young, aggressive, and on the way up, not just maintaining the status quo or on the way down. It was also apparent that they listened to what their group members wanted and acted on it, rather than telling the group members how it was going to be.

As well as being one of Europe's most established sailmakers, Banks Sails is well established on the East coast, appearing on some of the hottest racing machines in the area. The United State's Admiral's Cup Team's big boat entry, "BLUE YANKEE", sported a full inventory of Banks sails.

Waagmeester Sails was always known for making some of the fastest spinnakers available, and it would have been difficult to join up with a group whose spinnakers were not up to snuff. Fortunately, Banks Sails has a reputation for making some of the fastest spinnakers in the world. Banks Sails in England is known for having one of the world's most innovative sail designers in Ken Rose. One of the world's pioneers in computer aided sail design, Ken is largely responsible for the Banks' edge in computer technology. Ken is responsible for the Checkmate Main and Genoa programs, as well as the new Series 2000 Spinnaker programs.

We at Waagmeester Sails were thrilled to become the first Banks Sails loft on the West coast, and are anxious for the opportunity that this presents to us. It appears that in 1995, many other lofts in the United States have been anxious to jump on the Banks bandwagon as well. Banks Sails has added many lofts in the United States this year, many of them switching over from other loft affiliations.

Banks Sails has systematically built a network of lofts that have the technical knowledge to help design and build some of the most advanced sails in the world. We at Banks Sails Northwest are proud to be a part of this growing ensemble of world class sailmakers.