The evolution of a legend

CHARTING THE COURSE TO RACING BOATS

In the early twentieth century, powerboats built up an elite following of increasingly active and passionate enthusiasts. It was from his father that Serafino inherited his passion for boats and engines. He was fascinated by speed on the water and became so involved in the first outboard racing competitions that he entered them as both builder and driver.

As a result, in the 1920s the Riva Boatyard stopped producing large vessels and focused exclusively on racing boats. Serafino quickly became the benchmark for all the top powerboat racers of the period, building customised boats for them with extraordinary commitment and attention to detail. It wasn't long before he began working with Ole Evinrude, the creator of small, light, low-cost outboard engines, to build his first racing boat, which he himself drove to victory in numerous races. He put together a team of drivers, among them Giudo Paglia, Carillo Pesenti and Giuseppe Guerino. Guerino made a key contribution to the success of the nascent Riva brand with his experience as a race driver, mechanic and test driver.

Bianca Casalini in "Rondine Bianca VIII", her husband Carlo's class X-1000 Riva-Soriano, 1935.

Serafino Riva and Luigi Calvi, in an AZ (Riva hull, Elto 1000 cc engine), win their second victory in the Outboard category at the "Raid Pavia-Venezia", 1932.

Tremezzo (Lake Como): Giuseppe Guerini and "Brun Ella" (Elto 500 cc), in which he was to win the third "Coppa Belgir", 1931.

The cover of Moto Nautica, June 1931: Serafino Riva and Giuseppe Guerini win the "Raid Pavia Venezia" for the first time, setting a new record in the Outboard category with an average speed of 51.660 km/h.

FROM VICTORY TO VICTORY

The 1930s began with an amazing win in what was seen as the most interesting and difficult race in the world: Pavia to Venice, a distance of 431 km on the treacherous River Po. This success consolidated the boatyard's reputation and Serafino continued to diversify and perfect the production process. Working with designer Gerolamo Caviglia, between 1934 and 1938 he built six single-seater hulls featuring a redan*. The first of these, "Sans Atout", was for Augusto Valtolina, who broke the world racer speed record in it in August 1934, reaching 107.685 km/h. Five months later, in January 1935, the same boat, rechristened 'Giovinezza' and sold on to Ferdinando Venturi, broke the same record with a speed of 109.725 km/h. The second racer, 'Ronzino', was built for Count Metello Rossi di Montelera and scored a hat trick of victories: first in the 'Coppa del Presidente' in Gardone (1935), second in the 'Concorso Internazionale' in Venice (1935) and another first in the 'Riunione Internazionale' in Campione d'Italia (1936). The 'Ronzino' is the only surviving Racer built by Serafino.

Valtolina's "Sans Atout" was bought by Ferdinando Venturi, who renamed it "Giovinezza" and beat the world record with a speed of 109.725 km/h. In 1935, with the same boat and same engine upgraded to 1,800 cc, Venturi set a new record in the 3,000 cc racer class: 116.804 km/h.

The end of the 1930s brought Cantiere F.lli Riva an uninterrupted series of victories, records and titles, with Riva boats placing first past the post in all outboard classes, from 250 cc to 1,000 cc. The star European drivers in the Outboard Racing category (X-1000 class) were brothers Augusto and Renzo Romani, who raced with a remarkable five Riva powerboats. From the 1930s to the '50s, they racked up a total of 104 victories and 40 top three placings, winning six European and eleven Italian Championships, and setting two world records. Other key figures in the racing world at that time were Gino Alquati, Giuseppe Guerini, Carlo Pagliano, Paolo Mora, Emilio Osculati and the intrepid Irma Lucchini. Without of course forgetting Ferdinando Venturi and Vittorio Roncoroni. The advent of the 1940s brought the curtain down on the glory, success and enthusiasm of racing, overshadowed by the tragedy of war.

Venice, 1935: Conte Metello Rossi di Montelera finishes second in the Concorso Internazionale Motonautico in "Ronzino", a Riva racer with a 1,500 cc BPM G.S. 120 engine (with compressor).