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I'm interested to the Offshore racing, that real, from 35 years and my avatar it also testifies my preference on the old boats appreciating those of today and looking with interest at the innovations.
The yard CUV had the only center in Viareggio, my town and I have worked for some years for the two major team that competed with hulls CUV.
As for all the positive or negative events the causes are always various; in the case of the decline of CUV in the competitions they are in the fact that CUV mainly built hulls of success monohulls of 38' on design of Shead.
When it was clear that the cats were the only way to win competitions that almost totally they were developed by now in flat waters and in circuit ,CUV it tried to follow different ways to oppose them with the extension of the old mono 38' to 40' and 41' with different solutions of motorizations but the results they were void.
Different cats were built also in aluminum on project of Peters but the dominance of the hulls and the engines of Buzzi before and then of the cats in composite of Tencara and Victory were deadly for the small yard that at the same time he had lost almost all his 38's aces as Della Valle, Petri and the Speltas that were withdrawn by the competitions without having a generational exchange.
The following economic crisis due to the lack of successes and accordingly of errands of new hulls addition to one not perfect business management decreed the closing of the yard.
The CUV, Cantieri Uniti Viareggio (United Shipyards Viareggio) founded and direct always from the two brothers Bergamini and the partner Carlo Bazzichi it was always a small artisan firm that he exclusively worked on commission without to have ever had an own line of planning and production that allowed the yard to face the future with proper ideas both in the world of the competitions that in that of the powerboating generally.
It must be said that however CUV has been a milestone in the history of the Offshore when this sport was true Offshore. Theirs by now mythical 38' in aluminum they have dominated the competitions in Europe for over one decade and gotten three world titles in 1978 in Argentina with Francesco Cosentino in 1982 in England with Renato Della Valle and in Viareggio in 1984 with Franco Statua and Alberto Petri and in everybody and three occasions the success has arrived after a fierce struggle on very rough waters that testify the value of the hull designed by Don Shead and the same value of construction realized by CUV.A fourth World title however come in 1991 with a cat drove by Angelo Spelta at the worlds finals at Trieste.
It was the last hurrah of CUV.
Last edited by Black Tornado : 06-05-2008 at 05:27 PM.
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