As a regular reader of THE SCOTS MAGAZINE I was delighted when I found a copy of the book THE SCOTS MAGAZINE "A Celebration of 250 Years"  (1989) in a charity shop for the princely sum of 40p. I was even more delighted to find a story on THE ELECTRIC BRAE  which is to be found about 4 or 5 miles from Maybole.  Hope you enjoy it as much as I did. ELECTRIC BRAE-THE SHOCKING TRUTH                                 by Ken Andrew For those who don't know about it, The Electric Brae on the A719 in Ayrshire comes as a unique surprise. Unless its "magic" is allowed to work on them, though, and the reasons considered, its name may signify nothing, and road users will traverse it ignorant of its claim to, fame. Approaching from the north, motorists enjoy a magnificent view of Culzean Bay. "SLOW", painted in white on the road, calls their attention to the foreground before they drive round the left-hand bend to come across a sign stating mysteriously:- CROY BAY ELECTRIC BRAE No crackle will disturb car radios, no electrified fences will threaten, no pylons dominate, no power stations are visible and no lodestone or ley line will exert any influence. Yet the brae seems to behave in an extraordinary way. As you drive "down" it, the car will slow and demand more acceleration. If you drive "up", the car starts to run away and you have to slacken speed.            Correspondence in The Scots Magazine during 1986 attributed this effect to the earth's energy system-an unseen world "which science cannot at present touch". According to the writer, he experienced "the most powerful energy anomaly I have ever encountered" on the Electric Brae, and he linked this with the idea of ley lines and the power displayed by poltergeists in moving objects.                                     Since the early 1940s I have travelled Croy Brae, and I have never heard such theories, or anyone else disputing the accepted explanation for the Electric Brae-that it is merely an optical illusion. To settle the issue once and for all, I set out to do some investigations. The 1: 50000 O.S. map shows a spot height of 75 metres some distance north of  the brae. The road then rises over one contour to meet another at the west end of  the brae, continues along the contour line to the burn at the east end of the brae, then bends to the south to a spot height of 87 metres near Knoweside. The road has thus risen 12 metres over a mile, but ups and downs along that distance, including the crucial quarter-mile slope of Croy Brae, cannot be readily detemined in the small detail.                     The 25-inch map of 1856 settles the matter conclusively. The road coming from the north rises in feet from spot heights of 266, 273 and 282 to 286 at the start of the brae at the west end. A bench mark of 294.8 feet is given on a milestone about one quarter of the way along the brae going east. A spot height of 299 feet is recorded west of the Croy Bum at the east end of the brae. Southbound travellers therefore have to climb about 13 feet between the signposts that denote the Electric Brae today. North-bound travellers turn westwards into the brae and drop 13 feet. That is not the impression they will have, however, for the eastward travellers imagine they are descending while those west-bound think they are climbing! The 1856 map does not mention the words Croy Brae or Electric Brae so probably the phenomenon was not widely known until the advent of the car. Knoweside Farm and cottages east of the Croy Burn are shown on the 1856 map. These, or others on the site, and the milestone, are still present today . As a preliminary to some simple experiments on the brae's mysterious "powers" I stepped out the distance between the signposts at either end. From the west sign it was 220 paces to the start of the lay-by, which extends for 35 paces, and a further 145 paces took me to the east sign-making the brae 400 paces long. It was a quiet day, with little traffic, so I did some test drives. First of all I made three runs west to east at 20, 30 and 40 mph and three east to west at the same speeds-ahowing my car to freewheel from those speeds as soon as I reached the first of the signs. Going from the west at 20 mph and apparently travelling downhill, the car stopped after 81 paces. At 30 mph my speed was down to 3 mph at 220 paces and I was stationary soon after. At 40 mph, my speed was sufficient to allow me to complete the brae doing I0 mph. Travelling west, and apparently uphill, I freewheeled from a start of 20mph and reached the end of the brae doing 2 mph. From 30 I was rolling comfortably past the end of the brae at 15 mph. From 40, I reached the end doing 26 mph. The slope was obviously not steep enough to counter the effect of friction between the road surface and my tyres.      Had it been longer, I would have come to a standstill in either direction, even starting from 40 mph. Travelling westwards was definitely easier, though it appeared to be uphill, and in none of my three tests in that direction had the slope stopped me. Travelling east, and apparently downhill, I had slowed quickly, and could not manage the brae at speeds of 30 mph or less. The appearance of hedges and fences climbing in both directions from a low point at the lay-by must undoubtedly help to create the illusion concerning the brae. Travelling south, motorists turn east-wards into the brae round the end of the Carrick Hills. Culzean, caravan sites, arable fields, buildings and sea-level are to the front and right. The high, rough ground of the hills has been passed and motorists are conditioned into thinking they are now going downhill. The relationship between Croy Brae and its surroundings is masked by the bend and a belt of beech, ash and sycamore running down the glen of the Croy Bum beyond the eastern sign. With the hedges rising higher on either side the road appears to be descending when it is really rising slightly.                             North-bound travellers are similarly fooled. As they drop from 440 to 28 7feet  just south of Knoweside Farm, they are being conditioned for the hidden brae  ahead. The road to the shore falls away at an angle behind on the left, Knoweside sits  above on the right, the wooded glen of the Croy Bum rises steeply in front with the  slopes of Bennan Hill rearing higher on the  left. Everything suggests that the way  forward must be upwards.                           There is a little dip just north of Knoweside and then the road very definitely starts  to climb (17 feet on the 1856 map) to Craigencroy Toll at the bend. Here the  trees shut out the surroundings. As cars  leave the trees they pass the first Electric Brae sign and there is no view west to  Arran as might be expected. Instead, the ridge of Bennan Hill slopes down from the  fight in front of the road, suggesting an imminent ascent. The effect is reinforced  by the rising hedges and fences beyond the lay-by. In fact, of course, the road is falling,  and rounds the ridge with a slight curve to the left starting at the lay-by. .                   All this becomes clearer if you walk the brae or leave the road and view the area  from ground to the east and south.  Between Knoweside Hill and Castlehill Wood, the horizon of the Firth of Clyde can  be used as a level to gauge the true tendency of the road and its real relationship with the landscape.                            As already shown, the slope up or down is not dramatic, with a gradient of only  about 1 in 90. Motorists seeking to test the brae's unique effect may sometimes need to persevere to find the right spots where vehicles will appear to defy gravity - especially if tyre pressures are too low. In some parts of the brae, a vehicle can sit still The brae can be very busy at times, especially in summer, when tour buses and cars are trying out its alleged powers. Patience is called for by those in a hurry or used to the experience. It would be interesting to learn who first called it the "Electric Brae". It does not appear on the Popular Edition one-inch map of 1945, but before that date I can recall being introduced to the brae and its curious effect in my father's car. The brae was much enjoyed by US personnel serving at Prestwick Airport from the Forties on. New arrivals from across the Atlantic were rushed to see it at the first opportunity, and if dollars could have bought it, we would have lost it by now. General Eisenhower was most intrigued by the brae and brought visitors to see it from his flat at Culzean. At one time, Ayr County Council was receiving so many enquiries that it issued a special descriptive leaflet. Behind the apparently magical effects, science has a simple and prosaic explanation for the phenomenon, and it has nothing to do with electricity or unknown forces working along mysterious lines. I am sorry if I disappoint some of my readers, but the brae is simply an optical illusion, though interesting enough on that account and certainly well worth a visit.