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Welcome to the special section “BAM 35 Years.” We are presenting “cult” articles from the Motor Boats archive, starting in 1990. A journey through time among stories unobtainable today, even in the great sea of the internet! A dive into the world of epic moments in motor boating. We begin with one of the stories we were most passionate about.
From Motor Boats 1990, no.1, March, pp. 122-123.
Those who thought that for Stefano Casiraghi, motor boating was just a pastime had to think again. In Atlantic City last October, he ascended to the prestigious throne of world offshore racing, that of Class 1.
The rainbow title he won, albeit amidst a thousand controversies, in Atlantic City last October dispelled any misgivings, if there were any left, about his qualities as an offshore pilot. Now even the uninitiated have realized that Stefano Casiraghi, is a true powerboat ace. When he debuted in 1984 in Class 1 alongside Tullio Abbate, at the wheel of a catamaran of his own construction, powerboating for Casiraghi was just a great passion. It was passed on to him by his father, who “initiated” him, and Casiraghi junior was only 10 years old when he first got behind the wheel of a Riva. The more races he did, the more Casiraghi realized that in a sport like powerboating, passion alone was not enough to stand out: so he began to surround himself with the most efficient collaborators, true professionals in the management and maintenance of the boat. In 1986 he won with a small catamaran the 100 miles of the Lario. And it was this victory that revealed his qualities and convinced him to continue with ever greater commitment and enthusiasm. In 1987 the first prestigious success: together with Edoardo Polli he triumphed in the classic Viareggio-Bastia-Viareggio with a 40-foot Cuv,
Sun International
, equipped with Lamborghini engines.
His qualities allowed him to join Fabio Buzzi‘s Team Leuci, engineer, designer, multi-titled pilot, in short, the best that powerboating has to offer. And it was with Fabio Buzzi and Romeo Ferraris, the engine wizard, that Stefano won the 1988 APBA World Championship. Casiraghi at the wheel, Buzzi at the throttles and Ferraris engine technician. It was certainly a prestigious victory but not entirely fulfilling, at least for Casiraghi. The one who decides the fate of the boat is the throttleman, the so-called throttleman. The pilot depends on the decisions of the latter, although there must obviously be perfect harmony between the two. At the end of 1988 the big turning point. Buzzi entrusted him with his
“CESA1882”
, a winged monohull powered by four Seatek turbo diesel thrusters. It is the same boat with which the engineer from Lecco and Giorgio Villa have just achieved an unprecedented en-plein: world, European and Italian class 1 titles.
The task that awaited Casiraghi was a very difficult one: the CESA 1882 required extremely high driving skills and it was a boat that had won everything. Therefore, Casiraghi had only to lose by trying his hand at this feat: on paper winning would have been easy, losing would have called into question not only his qualities but also what he had done so far in the world of powerboating. Stefano Casiraghi throttleman, Patrice Innocenti driver and Romeo Ferraris at the engines: this was the trio that took the helm of the hull that, in the meantime, took on the name
Gancia dei Gancia
. The results were not long in coming: with the new boat he placed second behind
Gancia dei Gancia
which, like all monohulls, performs best in rough sea conditions. However, Casiraghi took the satisfaction of winning the prestigious Cowes-Torquay-Cowes, raced in rough seas.
On the strength of this experience, Stefano Casiraghi goes out to challenge the world in the tumultuous waters of Atlantic City. This is recent history. In the city of casinos and slot machines, roulette seems to be going crazy. Bad organization, even worse weather: race conditions almost unheard of in any of the previous editions of the world championships, so much so that the world championship was held in only two races, instead of the planned three, and with alternative, undersea routes over shortened distances. Casiraghi on his
Gancia dei Gancia
won the first race handsomely, but was disqualified along with seven other boats for buoy jumping; so according to the American judges. Appeals, disqualifications, threats of abandonment, attempts to award victory to the home representatives by table: just about everything happened. In the end, they more or less agreed and went to the start of the second heat, more decisive than ever for the award of the world title. The
So far the past. But what will the future look like for Stefano Casiraghi, manager, father and World Champion? Meanwhile, it certainly cannot be said that the world victory made him suddenly famous: he already was, despite himself perhaps. Winning a world title, on the other hand, means working even harder to keep himself at an exceptional level, it means thinking about and experimenting with new solutions for new boats. In this regard little is yet known about future programs, but it is certain that revolutionary and surely winning ideas will come out of Fabio Buzzi ‘s mind. Another reason then will make 1990 a very important year for Stefano Casiraghi: Monte Carlo will in fact host the World Offshore Championships, and he, a Monegasque by adoption, will be the promoter of the event together with the Yacht Club Montecarlo, of which he is vice-president. Direct television, cameras on helicopters, buoys and boats, nothing will be left to chance in what for Casiraghi should be an unforgettable rainbow edition from an organizational and propaganda point of view for a sport in which he believes so much.
Paul Brusorio
Editor’s note: Stefano Casiraghi would lose his life in an accident on October 3, 1990, just during the World Offshore Championship in Monte Carlo, off Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, at the controls of the catamaran Pinot di Pinot . The boat capsized, and Casiraghi’s impact with the water proved fatal.
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