Edmund Bruce was right
GALLERY | Click images to enlarge
Back in the 70’s, Edmond Bruce was cobbling together wind tunnels and test tanks out of duct tape and bailing wire, conducting sailing experiments that were published in the Amateur Yacht Research Society newsletter. Think of him as the ‘Doc Brown’ of sailing and you won’t be too far off. The guy was a genius, one of those who could think “Fourth Dimensionally”.
His primary claim to fame is the invention of an inclined hydrofoil designed to counteract the heeling force of the sail, replacing lead ballast or even “live buoyancy to leeward” with the same kind of dynamic energy as the sail. He saw the sailboat as a yin-yang kind of thing, a delicate balancing act of dual forces that almost alchemically combined to permit transport when properly aligned.
Edmond inspired a lot of people back in the day, and one was Jean Louis Pelou who has kindly sent pix of his Bruce foil equipped proa Epicemar, originally built in 1980, and still sailing today. Epicemar is 40’ (12m) flying 270 sq. ft. (25 sq. m) of sail. The twin, 45 degree daggerboards counteract the force of the twin sails.
These days, all the cool kids sport lifting foils in their lee hulls, though they seldom call them Bruce foils anymore.
I built an Edmond Bruce foiler back in 1980. I sailed her between St
Thomas and St Croix and in local races. Ultimately I rebuilt her as a
trimaran. Russ Brown thinks she is the most beautiful boat he has
ever seen. She loved going up wave..but not down wave! Do you want
a picture? These three pics do not show a Bruce foiler!