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The Milan trade show event Milano Autoclassica has just ended and… what do classic cars have to do with motorboats? Absolutely nothing, or almost nothing.
From November 21 to 23, the pavilions of the Fiera di Rho were filled with classic cars, exhibited at Milano Autoclassica, but in one of the pavilions an area was also set aside for classic boats. Cars, it is known, have a lot in common with the nautical world: it is usually said that cars, boats and watches are three of the biggest passions of boys.
Strolling among the boats on display, we were able to get a close look at such speedy goodies as the boat in which Gilles Villeneuve won the Rothmans Cup in 1981 or a boat made by Riva to fly over the water.
The so-called Drawing 24, in fact, was developed by a young Carlo Riva to participate in powerboat racing in category A (250 cc displacement); the one on display at the fair is 1947 No. 10, slightly refitted in 2023 and built of cedar wood and birch plywood: total weight is 34 kg, for 2.72 meters in length and a top speed of over 40 knots.
Also on display was a Monte Carlo 32 Offshorer, powerboat with hull No. 1 produced by Cantieri di Sarnico, completely refitted by Mbyachtsale and for sale at 135,000 euros. We continue our tour of the vintage boat section of this fair and are enraptured by the lines of a Cigarette, dated 1979 and named Mistress.
The check to be drawn is 140,000 euros, but you put a 60-knot missile at the buoy, with a modified and newly overhauled engine, 10.70 meters long, 2.50 meters wide and with a double cabin in the bow. Also unmissable are Riva powerboats, such as the Ariston and Aquarama models, which never go out of fashion thanks to their charm.
A beautiful figure was also made by the three-point boats of the Associazione Barche Storiche da Corsa , a Pavia-based group recognized by the FIM and led by Francesco Marinoni, composed among others of many pilots from the golden age of powerboating. For the occasion they brought two completely refitted examples, powered by Alfa Romeo, capable of flying bombastically over the water at over 95 knots.
Federico Lanfranchi
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