This 1952 Vespa Sailed Across The English Channel (Yes, Really)

The iconic Italian-made Vespa has been a fixture in Europe ever since the company was founded back in 1946. The 98cc engine in the first prototype was reportedly described by founder Enrico Piaggio as emitting a sound similar to a wasp, or vespa in Italian. While the company continues to offer several different models, the vintage scooters remain popular, and converting a classic Vespa to electric power is easier than ever.

While commonplace among the bustling streets of cities like Rome and Florence, this scooter also once found itself in a very unlikely scenario — navigating across the English Channel. In 1952, Georges Monneret, a famed French figure in the European motorcycle racing circuit, decided to strap pontoons to a Vespa and make his way from the shores of France to the English coast. 

Monneret had apparently seen an article featured in an Italian magazine that showcased someone traveling around a lake with a floating scooter and wanted to up the ante. His successful sail from Calais to Dover, just under 20 miles (32 km), took around nine hours and used a simple but effective design — here's how it worked.

In order to stay afloat and navigate the sometimes-choppy waters of the English Channel, two aluminum pontoons provided buoyancy. Between the pontoons was a small platform made from wood, where the Vespa was strapped down. A rudder was affixed to the Vespa's front wheel, which allowed Monneret to control the direction of the craft by turning the scooter's handlebars. 

To provide power, the rear wheel of the Vespa sat on two large rollers located underneath the platform that were attached to a propeller. When the scooter's 125cc engine turned the wheel, it would activate the rollers, twisting the propeller and pushing the craft forward.

While Monneret's design was a result of extensive work and experimentation, his first foray into the channel wasn't a success. Despite the fact that the English Channel is one of the busiest shipping routes in the world, it can feature some rough conditions. Unfortunately, the first attempt to get the Vespa across the waterway resulted in a failed drive shaft, after the craft was pummeled with large waves. Fortunately, on Monneret's second try, the water stayed calm and no further issues surfaced during the crossing.

While his stunt to travel from Paris to London garnered plenty of attention on both sides of the Atlantic, Georges Monneret was already a prolific fixture in French racing. Active from the 1930s through 1970, Monneret won 499 racing events over the course of 32 seasons. This is especially remarkable considering that two-wheeled racing is notoriously dangerous even today. As recently as early 2025, the reigning MotoGP champion Jorge Martín fractured eight ribs and collapsed a lung in a race. However, Monneret didn't let the risks slow him down as he achieved 19 championships in France and set 183 world records.

By some accounts Monneret wasn't as concerned about achieving world records as he was about getting people talking about motorcycles. With a love of anything on two wheels, his attention-grabbing behavior was at least partially meant to simply shine a spotlight on the sport of motorcycle racing. This proved to be a lifelong passion for Monneret, who continued setting records on motorcycles into his sixties.

Monneret was also a fan of scooters, which he praised for being efficient. In 2022, his youngest son made a Paris to London trip utilizing an electric scooter to commemorate the anniversary of the original journey. However, instead of navigating the water on a Vespa powered boat, this time the feat was accomplished with the help of a ferry.