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Traditional regatta · Casale MonferratoLocal

Gara dei Barcè

Casale's river race on the Po: wooden barcè rowed standing up, the old way, against the clock at the town's landing stage, followed by an afternoon of free boat trips for anyone who turns up.

Why it's special

The barcè is the flat river boat of this stretch of the Po. It's driven standing up, alternating long strokes with pushes off the riverbed using an iron-tipped oar. The race keeps that technique alive. Anyone can enter for free, beginners included, and the boats and oars are supplied.

Programme · 2026

4 October 2026

13th edition, at the imbarcadero on Viale Lungo Po Gramsci. Taking part is free; wooden barcè, oars and safety gear are provided.

9:00–9:50
registration on the lawn at the landing stage, for singles and pairs (open to beginners, women and minors, with time allowances)
10:00–12:30
timed runs down a buoyed course in two categories, singles and pairs
14:30–18:00
short trips on the river in motorised barcè, open to everyone, no booking needed
Results
singles won by Claudio Bruni (his fifth win in a row); pairs by Severino Livieri and Elio Orbelli. About twenty boatmen took part, from a 12-year-old to the 85-year-old "Imperatore del Po", Angelo Bosio.
A tip
  • The racing runs in the morning, so come in the afternoon if you just want to get on the water: short motor-barcè trips on the town stretch of the Po need no booking and suit all ages.
  • To race, register at the [imbarcadero](/attractions/casale-monferrato-imbarcadero-lungo-po-casale-monferrato) before 10.
  • If the weather is bad the race moves to the following Sunday.

Every autumn the volunteers of the Amici del Po di Casale take the river's old working boats out for a race. The Gara dei Barcè runs from the imbarcadero on Viale Lungo Po Gramsci in Casale Monferrato, and it is the longest-running event the group puts on.

A barcè is the long, flat wooden boat of this stretch of the Po, rowed standing up. The boatman alternates hard strokes with puntate, pushing off the bottom with an iron-tipped oar where the water is shallow. That is how the race is run: timed descents round a course marked with buoys, as singles or in pairs, in identical boats lent by the organisers. Entry is free and open to experienced rowers and first-timers. Women and minors get a time allowance, so everyone goes into one ranking.

After the prize-giving the afternoon is for everyone else. Motorised barcè take visitors on short trips along the town's riverfront, with no booking needed, and it's one of the few chances to see Casale from the water. The Amici del Po re-formed in 2013 to look after the town's river culture, and this day is the best way to see what they do.