When the weather misbehaves, it doesn’t always mean the race loses its charm. The 2025 edition of the 151 Miglia will be remembered for many things among them, its whimsical interpretation of the wind: at times blowing steadily at 18 knots, at others vanishing without so much as an excuse. In the midst of this atmospheric uncertainty, the C-Cat 48s Gaia and Orcamiseria, built by Comar, treated spectators to a thrilling match race between two true sisterships. At the helm of Gaia, Marco Negri, who claimed victory in the newly established Multihull Class, a first for the 151 Miglia. Hot on his heels and with great honour on the second step of the podium, Giuseppe “Pippo” Ercole aboard Orcamiseria, doubling as the eloquent narrator of the duel. Adding a delightful twist to the plot, Massimo Guardigli crewed on Gaia, while Amerigo Guardigli sailed on Orcamiseria. The tracking plot tells the tale of a fierce chase, more Formula 1 with daggerboards than leisurely cruising laying bare the dual personalities of these “different sisters”: Orcamiseria, the thoroughbred, came alive with a stiffer breeze; Gaia, a poetess of light airs, danced effortlessly through the lulls. “With a few more knots on the dial,” mused Pippo Ercole with the calm of a man who knows how to enjoy a regatta even from behind, “the catamarans might have spoken more assertively against the monohulls. Still, between one tack and the next, there was time to laugh, get to know each other maybe even talk a bit of philosophy. Racing on a catamaran, after all, is also this: less stress, more life.” Sharing the racecourse with the multihulls was a proud fleet of Comets, waving the Comar banner with dignity all along the route. Standing out among them, Marco Paoletti, who claimed second place overall in IRC and first in Class D with his C 38s Otaria a boat that still knows how to make her point. Like those timeless champions who, when the podium calls, simply show up. A tricky regatta, a family face-off, a parade of Comar designs. If the wind was fickle, the result was anything but. When a good boat meets the right crew, the finish line is only a matter of time.
