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Porsche at GP Ice Race 2020

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With the GP Ice Race marking its second year in the Porsche family’s home of Zell am See, co-founder Ferdinand “Ferdi” Porsche reveals how his ice dream became a reality.

A team of people are working hard with their shovels. It’s the day before the GP Ice Race and one of the snowbanks at the track entrance isn’t quite right.

In the middle of the flying snow, one member of the team is leading by example, showing the rest not only how he wants the top of the bank profiled, but also how to use the awkward long-handled shovels to maximum effect. Then one of his radios crackles and he’s called away to deal with another last-minute issue. With a hoot of laughter and pats on the back all round, Ferdinand “Ferdi” Porsche dashes on.

The 26 year-old architect has obviously inherited plenty of the drive of his illustrious forebears, not least the grandfather who founded a certain sports car manufacturer. Over the last couple of years, this has found an outlet in the rebirth of ice racing in the picture-postcard Alpine beauty of Zell am See. Later that evening, at a star-studded party organised by the Californians behind the air-cooled cult Luftgekühlt, Ferdi reveals how the GP Ice Race came about.

“The GP Ice Race is the baby of a friend of mine, Vinzenz Greger, and me. During our time at university, we could never work out why it seemed like so few of our generation were as into motor sport as we were,” he explains. “And then, one time when we were in Zell am See to do some skiing, we were looking at the spiked tyres of my father’s [Porsche] 550 from when it competed in ice racing. I knew a little about the races that had been held here years ago – but not much and I couldn’t think why it had been so long since they had been last held.

“Look at this – we’ve got Luftgekühlt here in little Zell am See.” Ferdinand “Ferdi” Porsche

We started by talking to Hans-Joachim Stuck and Richie Lietz, asking what it would take to hold the race, whether people would come and so on. Then we met the mayor, the people from the local tourism authority and the Austrian Motorsport Federation and it all started to come together. Eighteen months later, the first GP Ice Race happened. We didn’t expect all that many people to turn up, so were really surprised when a few thousand did. I guess the motor sport community is quite a tight one, and always looking for cool new things …
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