“The three loves of my life are my Classic Boats.”

In life, it happens to become enamored and, for no apparent reason, passionate behind the most disparate affairs. Among them, it is clear, sailboats fan their fair share of happy victims. Especially them, the classic and timeless ones. Boats we dream of having, own, and take infinite care of. One of our readers, an architect and great enthusiast, tells us about it in the next few lines.

Classic Boats, the boats of a lifetime

Here are three great Classic Bo ats and, why not, an opportunity to go even beyond the boat itself, telling of an era that, precisely through the legacy of its hulls, may never die.

If you missed previous articles, please visit our Classic Boats section. – In the meantime, continue to share your stories and boats with us, leave a comment with photos or email us at deluise@panamaeditore.it

“I won’t dwell on the elegance of the IOR’s design lines and the complicit sinuosity of the water as it is penetrated by the hull, but I would like to tell you briefly about the three boats in my life – of which the Balanzone “blessed angelic street” and the Orca 43 “baby duke” I own.”

(the article continues below, at the end you will find all the data about the three boats. ed.).

Beato Angelico Street – Balanzone; Sciomachen

“Balanzone, ” a racing half-tonner designed by Studio Sciomachen, whose Ferro-owned prototype had won almost everything. I remember, again from Sciomachen (I knew both brothers as they had called me into their Firm since returning from ocean racing experience with Alex Carozzo in 79) that the Pierrot had won the Italian Championships in Trieste with garrocci genoas! Other times!

My Balanzone (pictured above), was from 1980, from the Intercarene shipyard in Fiumicino. Maneuvers were deferred in the cockpit, and it gave me a lot of satisfaction, winning for two consecutive years almost all the club regattas in Lignano-which at that time boasted about a dozen Half Tonners, including Comet One, the prototype of the Comet 910, helmed in the various world and Italian championships, by a young Cino Ricci.”

Emeraude – One-off signed German Frers

“Emeraude,” built in aluminum and designed by German Frers, was one of the most victorious classic yachts in the Panerai Classic Yachts Challenge, a trophy it won three times (in 2006, 2007 and 2010) in the Classic category. Born as a prototype intended for a French shipowner to race as First Class IOR, she participated in the Admiral’s Cup (1977) and the Sardinia Cup (1980).

She has also sailed, I with her, in the Adriatic and participated in regattas such as the Pesaro-Rovigno-Pesaro, the Transadriatica (2003) and the Trieste Sailing Week (2005). In 2011 she placed 1st in the Racing Division at Les Voiles d’Antibes and 13th at the Giraglia; in August she won the Atlantic Trophee, a 1250-mile race from Horta (Azores) to Douarnenez (France), and the Régates du Crouesty.”

Baby Duke – Orca 43; Dick Carter

“TheOrca 43, my life’s dream come true and current my boat:

The prototype, commissioned by Raul Gardini from
Dick Carter
, had won the Mediterranean Championship in 1971 and, the following year, the Settimana delle Bocche, the Middle Sea Race, and the Porto Cervo races. Carter, an ingenious innovator, studied the IOR regulation in depth so as to take full advantage of its possibilities and obtain a fast hull with the lowest possible rating. Innovative are, for example, the rudder designs, with a remarkable body that continues the hull line, and the lower part of the live work, which is practically flat. He was the first to adopt the trim-tab to take full advantage of the IOR regulation in the rating calculation and, at the same time, to compensate for the gyre tendency in upwind gaits.

Giuseppe Giuliani-the Romagna entrepreneur who took over the bankruptcy of Sailboat in Forli in 1970-had already worked with Carter in the creation of the Carter 37, a commercial version of theYdra (in 1973, Dick Carter’s Ydra was built for Marina Spaccarelli Bulgari with Agostino Straulino at the helm, with whom he won the One Ton Cup in Porto Cervo), he built Gardini’s prototype of the Orca 43 at Cantieri di Crespellano (BO), later Cantieri del Pardo. It will continue, still in Crespellano then, with Jean Marie Finot who then gave rise to the launching of the first Grand Soleil 34 a few years later, and the various Grand Soleil projects to follow. Important was the collaboration with Alain Jézéquel, also adopted from Romagna, on the Grand Soleil 35 and 343.

After building a very limited number of prototypes of the Orca 43 (probably 4) the molds were given to Cantieri Navali Fiumicino (Rome), which later passed them on to Cantieri Navali Nautical Fiberglass (Rome). These yards, with some modifications, used them to put several dozen Orca 43s on the market until about 1984, some even in ketch versions. Characteristic of those times, the interior of each Orca 43 was customized with different designs in woods and patterns; each Orca 43 built was one different from the other!

My Orca “baby duke” had a first refitting in 2008 and a second complete refitting, with replacement of all deck equipment, portholes and rigging, engine, in 2012.”

– Massimo Scarioli

Previous reviews on Your Classic Boats:

• Boom in reporting, boats that made history
• How to revive a 70s/80s boat? The word from the gurus
• Little big masterpieces. Here are your ‘old glories’
• Stories of 4 mythical and timeless boats
• The Great IOR Epic comes alive in your boats
• A boat is forever. Our readers’ Classic Boats

The numbers of these three Classic Boats

Three “tidbits” about Classic Boats

• Want to learn more about the world of Classic Boats (1967-1998), the iconic boats of the period, the legendary designers, the stories and races of the “golden age” of sailing? Check out our section dedicated to Classic Boats!
• Do you have a Classic Boat to sell? Put it (for free) on our classifieds market!
• Do you have a Classic Boat? Participate in the SAIL CUP with your boat. There is a special ranking for you! Find out which stage is right for you!