RIVA ARISTON

Whilst the single engine Ariston may not have been the very top-of-the-range offering from Riva, this position was held by the twin engine Tritone followed by the legendary Aquarama, the practicality, performance and stylish good looks of the Ariston meant that they were still the motorboat of choice for many of the 1950s and 1960s Jet Set. Countless celebrities and famous personalities of the period were Ariston owners including Gunther Sachs, Maurice Trintignant and Roger Vadim among many others.

Given the considerable length of time the Ariston was in production it naturally benefitted from numerous modifications and improvement over the years and was available in three different versions. The ‘normal’ Ariston, 804 of which were built between 1950 and 1972, the more powerful Ariston Cadillac and finally the Super Ariston which became available in 1960 and continued to be produced until 1974 and can be distinguished by a wooden ‘gunwale’ around the rim of the bow deck which not only improved the look of the fore deck itself it also provided a non-slip security for those using the area.

Launched in 1950, the very early examples of the Ariston featured a two-piece split-screen and a classic upright bow.  The screen evolved to a one-piece frameless curved design and then to the fully wrap-around design with a chrome frame that is synonymous with the classic image of Riva motorboats.  The frame was not only a design feature but also provided fixing points for the fully folding canvas hood making the Ariston a highly versatile motorboat for all seasons.

The early Aristons were upholstered in a vivid black and white checked Vipla with yellow edging.  This was then changed to the highly distinctive zebra pattern upholstery with pastel green edging (as per the boat pictured) a bold and brave design which can also be seen in a famous image of the Swedish actress, Anita Eckberg on-board her Riva Tritone. Following this, a more subtle combination of ivory and pastel green became the standard upholstery.

Initially, power for the Ariston was provided by a single 6-cylinder engine most of which were supplied by Chris Craft.  This was replaced towards the late 1950’s by trusty and thumping American supplied V8 power units in various capacities and power outputs, the most powerful of which was the big-block 350HP iteration fitted to the ultimate evolution of the Super Ariston. During the mid 1950s Cadillac were also called upon to provide engines for a small number of special-order Aristons (19 in total).  Boats fitted with Cadillac power are easily spotted as the engines were painted red rather than the usual blue.

Apart from the increased power, other significant developments included a steeper bow rake, deeper V -shaped bottoms for improved handling and smoother passage in choppy water.  The Ariston also grew in length mainly to accommodate the larger fuel tanks needed to feed the ever-more powerful engines being installed; the last of the Supers from 1970 onwards had an overall length of 30 ft.-6.95 m.

Cosmetically, the side air vents were re-designed, and the deck filleting was to become a feature only in the central section on the decking. The upholstery was changed to Skai and new instruments fitted.

 The standard Ariston remained in production until 1971 and the Super until 1974.  By this time over 1,000 boats had been built.  Alongside the Aquarama, the Ariston is perhaps Riva’s best-known model, considered to be the purest classical Riva shape, and certainly one of its most popular.

PHOTOS: TIM SCOTT, FLUID IMAGES