Improbable Thinking from a boat Bum

By Sal Balharrie

The Original Sailing Philosophers ponder THE IMPROBABLE

American Vendee Globe sailor, Bruce Schwab, calls himself a certified boat bum. then, He humbly adds, he’s ‘sailed around the world a couple of times’. You’ve gotta love it.

In this video Bruce introduces us to his latest project, the restoration of the first boat he ever sailed – THE IMPROBABLE. But it’s not so much as a restoration, it’s more a design update. You see, Bruce wants an opportunity to give the boat the benefit of all his accumulated knowledge, that and the fact that for Bruce, the boat he sailed on age 16 represents unfinished business. Check out the photo of Bruce where he cut out the rudder, 30 years ago.

Built in 1970, THE IMPROBABLE was the brain child of a group of hard core sailing, San Fran based, boat designers. And so today Bruce is stripping the boat back to the original dream, intent and philosophy - to make her very fast and super light.

After the death of his father, Bruce thought he’d sell the vessel but in sailing the boat from A to B, the plan changed. Bruce reconnected with the feeling of just being on a boat you’d experienced with others, together as a family. I get that. And I think you might too.

Hope you enjoy this chat with a Boat Bum and we look forward to seeing where Bruce takes THE IMPROBABLE, fast.