Tiny Rivas and small superyachts

I'm currently writing an article on the classic steel motor sailer Atlantide, for the July issue of Classic Boat magazine. She's over 100ft long, Mylne-designed and built in 1930. She's surely one of the most beautiful small classic superyachts in the world, and she's just had a two-year refit at Huisfuit (Royal Huisman in Holland). And she's one of a kind. There's nothing else quite like her: essentially a large British motor yacht built in the interwar years, but with a small sailing rig giving her infinite autonomy and up to seven knots of speed. More in July's Classic Boat. The next motorboat in my sights is a 15ft, outboard-powered wooden runabout. What makes her interesting is the design - Riva. Riva has become the most valuable marine name in the world over the last two or three decades. Perfectly restored twin-engined Aquaramas (and, to a degree, Tritones) change hands in auction houses for up to US$ 1 million, while the similar American runabouts that inspired them (Chris Crafts, Hackers, and so on) are lucky to make a tenth of those sums. The slightly prettier, single-engined Rivas like the Florida, similarly, don't make these eye-watering sums either, although they're alarmingly on the up these days. I asked Carlo Riva why, about a decade ago, when he was in his mid-90s (he died in 2017) and he attributed the high value of the Aquarama to "a good name"! The 15-footer, meanwhile, was the smallest in the range, and named the Scoiattolo - 'the squirrel'. It was also the only outboard-powered Riva, and for years I've wanted to see one - there's something so appealing about a fast, trailable, beautiful, relatively affordable four-seater from what is, undoubtedly, the world's greatest motorboat marque. At the 2024 Southampton Boat Show, I was amazed to see a student from the Boat Building Academy (BBA) of Lyme Regis had gone ahead and built one. I can't wait to have a blast. In the meanwhile, see the 2013 Classic Boat interview with Carlo Riva, by our French friends Gerald Guetat and Henri Thibault, by clicking here. Learn more about the BBA in Lyme Regis by clicking here, and Royal Huisman in the Netherlands are always worth checking in with, to see their incredible mega projects.