1961 Custom 'Vaporetto' Wooden Speedboat

Thanks to the rapid appreciation in recent years of legendary boat-building concerns such as Chris-Craft and Riva, interest in classic wooden runabouts has been growing the world over, with an entire industry established to the preservation, restoration and appreciation of these craft. Invoking an altogether more stylish past, conjuring as they do images of the rich and famous lounging on the sun-drenched Riviera or plying the Italian lakes, these boats were an integral part of the jet-set age of the Fifties and Sixties. In the same way interest in classic cars has burgeoned into a major industry today, so too have classic wooden boats come into their own, with clubs, websites, shows and specialists dedicated to their heritage and continued preservation. Discovering an example of these classic wooden craft here in Australia uncommon enough, particularly one in such well-preserved condition, and it must surely be the most chic means of cruising the bays, lakes or river systems over the summer ahead.