Gemini, Azzurra and the last IOR, 10 years of cult signed Vallicelli
Speaking of. IOR, contextualizing to the domestic landscape, that of the Vallicelli Studio is a name that needs little introduction. In the last article, From the Ziggurat to the Brava, 5 years of Cult IOR by maestro Vallicelli, we have seen its rise and success phase, so it is time for a brief survey of its golden years, up to the last IOR. Here, then, are the great cult (one-offs) signed by the iconic studio, 10 years of masterpieces launched from 1982 to 1992, when the new rule, IMS, came into full swing, the International Measurement Rule.
Vallicelli, the master of the Italian (and other) IOR.
From the great successes of the early years, marked by prototypes such as Ziggurat, Big Cat e Living Silver, to cult hits such as Twist Wire, Brava e Blue Show, Studio Vallicelli had an explosive career in just under a decade, quickly establishing itself on the local and international scene. Win after win and substantial design contributions thus soon made it one of the great landmarks of the period, leading the firm to commissions that were nothing short of exceptional, resulting in projects that have remained in the memories and hearts of so many. In this article, as much as possible, we will see to explore among the most distinctive of these, focusing, once again, exclusively on one-off hulls (for 5 series cults signed by the Studio, HERE is an article you might be interested in).
- For the previous article:
From the Ziggurat to the Brava, 5 years of Cult IOR by maestro Vallicelli
Two cults in “blue”
After the great successes of Twist Wire, Blue Show e Brava, commissions for the study are becoming increasingly important. The first among them came from the Navy in 1982, then looking for a school boat for its Sports Group. Soon done, the Gemini (13.7 m), made of laminated wood by De Cesari and based on lessons learned with Brava e Primadonna, lessons well learned and that will bring Gemini, back in 1983, to break the record of the Giraglia, with just 28 hours on the clock. She is not, however, the big cult Vallicelli of the early 1980s. It will be another hull, like her heavenly but not IOR, that will steal hearts: Azzurra.
Brief jump back in time. It was 1981 when the Vallicelli studio received the commission to Azzurra, the first 12 Meters International Tonnage Italian intended to compete in the challenge for the America’s Cup: Newport 1983. The Cup of Records, as we all know, the first American defeat ever, the miracle of Australia II, Bill Lexcen’s masterpiece.
As per the regulations, challengers may only use national research institutions and manufacturing facilities, thus Azure was born at the naval tanks in Rome (INSEAN) and was tested through three 1:4 scale models over several months. The result is a combination of what emerged from previous studies and experience and the designers’ intuition. It is a less traditional 12 Meters than previous standards, with reduced buoyancy, lighter and less sail. In compensation, the stern sections are wider, the drift fin is much more streamlined than the average present at Newport, with very sharp profile entry angles and flatter center sections. She will prove to be a particularly fast hull, beating, on one occasion, even the incredible Australia II, but losing in the semifinals to English Victory, due to a breakdown that will put her out of action. In 1984, however, she would record 2nd place at the 12 Metre World Championship in Porto Cervo (if you would like to learn more, the Vallicelli Yacht Design book of 2020, published by Skira, contains exceptional drawings and information).
A new generation
After Azure, and after previous successes that emerged with the various 40-footers, the firm’s design line changes. Enterprise (15.40 m) is the first witness to this. Designed for a French owner, this is a 50-footer devoted to pure racing. Compared to Brava (now a landmark), features less sharp semi-angles and softer progressions, making the lines more streamlined and less influenced by the extremes of the IOR canon. The deck also changes, retaining some of the classic styles but incorporating new solutions. Among them, the deckhouse is also different, flatter, more tapered, almost a stylization of its predecessors. A new design phase opens. In compensation, Enterprise will be a success, winning the Cowes-Dynard of 1984 and the North American Championship in 1985.
In the same year as theEnterprise, another classic sees the light of day, Brava 30.5. The IOR, in fact, changes ratings for the One Tonner in 1983, increasing it from 27.5 to 30.5 (to encourage its participation in team regattas – Sardinia & Admiral’s), and Landolfi commissioned a second Brava, a One Tonner new generation. More harmonious and all-round than its predecessor, this one is made of laminated (hull) and composite (deck). It will be the swan song for wood-built hulls.
Circa 1990s.
Azure, though not having led Italy into the America’s Cup, however, inflames the fever for the jug. The next edition (1987), therefore, will see the Syndicate back on the water: they are born Azure II (1985) e Azure III (1986). In the first case, the hull is not entirely different from the first, with even wider stern sections and lower forward momentum. The second, on the other hand, is even shorter, with important innovations related to design, entirely assisted by new digital technologies. The major revolutions, however, are all daughters of the Lexcen keel developed for Australia II: Azure II Will in fact have Butterfly Wing drift, Azure III, on the other hand, Winglets to Delta; solutions aimed at providing that lift coefficient capable of giving an extra boost in post-maneuver and heeled boat accelerations (a much more complex issue in reality, but this is not the place to address it properly).
At the two Azure, 1986 saw four other hulls become famous alongside. The first is Springbok (15.08 m), a 50-footer based on the lessons of Enterprise, but “less wet” and with greater ratio of sail sup. to displacement. Made in San Diego out of Sandwich planking, she will be helmed by none other than Dennis Conner, winning both the Onion Patch, both the Bermuda Race 1986. Inspired by the design choices of Springbrook, for a Turkish ownership, was then born Siren, another 50-footer, this time intended for the Sardinia Cup 1988.
Returning instead to the world One Tonner, two other racing hulls were also born in 1986: Brava Les Copains, for Landolfi, and Merope, for the Navy. The design choices between the two are not particularly dissimilar, with streamlined hulls and great attention to appendages and their aspect-ratio, all solutions that the end of the decade leading to become a trend, bringing us closer to the future IMS. Very high performance hulls, but too all-round, will not achieve the huge results hoped for, earning, however, first and second place, both, at the Italian Championships 1986 e 1987.
With the design of the large one-offs that followed, the IOR canon was waning, and the designs themselves demonstrate this. In 1990, in fact, the following was born Brancaleone Open (10.67 m), designed on the parameters of the class Open Category 10.67, basically based on a single limit, length, in addition to safety parameters. The IOR, in fact, having become too extreme, experiences a period of “crisis” as the decade comes to an end, with several owners coming out facing different experiences. Another example, in tone, is offered thus. Stradivaria (12.55), designed in 1992, by then at the dawn of the IMS, but under an additional regulation, the free class raced with on Lake Garda. It is a fractional-rigged hull with a contained wetted surface, without exaggeration. It will win the Centomiglia del Garda in 1992, 1993 and 1994, marking the approach that the firm would later adopt for open classes. After that, IMS and a whole new world..