"Madness": A 31-foot Proa by Chesapeake Light Craft

A proa is an outrigger sailing canoe, developed in ancient times by Oceanic people. Using folk technology, they brought proas to an almost impossibly high pitch of refinement---long before there was epoxy or plywood or carbon fiber or Western yachtsmen. Still, it's hard not to keep tinkering with Westernized versions of the proa idea, as John Harris has been doing at Chesapeake Light Craft. As a follow-up to his 20-foot proa Mbuli, he has designed and built a 31-footer with cruising accommodations. This video details the proa rationale, the design process, construction of the stitch-and-glue hulls, and arrival of the completed boat at Chesapeake Light Craft. Many thanks to Russell Brown for his patient input and consultation, Carey Martin, Olivier DuPont-Huin, and Mark Bayne for boatbuilding help, and Kerry Harris for the video! Sailing video coming soon.

[@perfectweather]

I went to bed dreaming about this boat. I continued to dream about it all day

[@carmelpule6954]

Beautiful and elegant hulls. The manner in which the cabin was incorporated is brilliant and shows a man of a great experience. Well done.

[@deanfischer4746]

John i want to thank you for the work you have done on this boat, it baffles me that it just never seemed to catch on . these boats seemed to come from a passion that dosnt exist in other boats, but when you see one you fall in love with them instantly .

[@ChesapeakeLightCraftBoats]

+dean fischer, To be sure, there are now five boats completed to the Madness design, four of which are sailing. Of those, three were just launched in Fall 2015. There will be more video and action photography soon.

[@Sugarsail1]

"catamarans common as a midlife crisis"......funniest thing (and truest) I've heard all week

[@alixbarks]

Interesting. One concession to stitch and tape plywood: Symmetrical hull shape in cross section. Traditional Polynesian proas were asymmetrical, flatter on leeward side, rounded on the windward side, producing lift to windward. Thus the traditional shape is actually more hydro-dynamically sophisticated; cut by hand with adze.

[@Rico-Suave_]

thank you very much for the video

[@juanitoibericoloveless2879]

merci

[@precoverylabs-sarkozy-bano7861]

Thanks for posting... I would love to discuss another larger proa type project. Do you have Madness in the Chesapeake area? I am located in Maryland and would love to see her and meet up for a chat. Thanks!

[@dietrichwischhoff1587]

any plans to publish construction details would like to study the decklayout and rigging

[@ChesapeakeLightCraftBoats]

You can download study plans or complete plans here: www.clcboats.com/shop/boats/wooden-sailboat-kits/proa/madness-31-foot-pacific-proa.html

[@Recaptain7]

Boa noite, muito legal seu projeto, parabéns, moro no Brasil, e gostaria de fabricar um proa de 6 metros, você poderia me passar as medidas do madness para eu ter ideia de proporções e reduzir a escala e assim fabricar o meu barco?
Grato saudações
Renato

[@ChesapeakeLightCraftBoats]

You can find dimensions here: www.clcboats.com/shop/boats/wooden-sailboat-kits/proa/madness-31-foot-pacific-proa.html

[@jayveeadvincula2884]

What happened to the PROA?

[@russellesimonetta9071]

Uhh, could you sail that to the Bahama,s??

[@ChesapeakeLightCraftBoats]

Absolutely, given skill, prudence, and a decent weather report. The ability to sail to the Bahamas was actually a primary filter for that boat during the design process.

[@brucebaldy]

Are you and is this the one that crossed the Atlantic? in it?

[@ChesapeakeLightCraftBoats]

No, and no. I don't see crossing the Atlantic in an 880-kilogram boat.