WHEN PIGS CAN FLY? THEY CAN NOW IF PORSCHE HAS ANYTHING TO SAY ABOUT IT.
Back in 1971 there was fierce competition on track, especially at the bigger races that are among the most iconic today. Communications were nothing like today, so companies had to do very special things to get worldwide attention and they got it right with the one-off Porsche 917/20. The car was re-engineered to be as competitive as possible, in collaboration with French company SERA, Porsche technicians combined the advantages of the short- and long-tail versions of the regular 917 used in competition. As a result, the body was a fair bit wider and featured unusually rounded wheel cutouts that had the wheels tucked in, a result of not widening the track to match the bodywork. To make this then-new car stand out, it was given a special livery with a strange design. The point was to get people talking, and it worked. If it happened in today’s world of instant communication, we’d bet anything that it would have easily gone viral. Porsche designer Anatole Lapine decided that the 917/20 should wear pink, a very unusual choice for the time. But to make it even more of a conversation piece, the livery included the markings of butcher-style cuts like you’d see on a pig ready to be cut at an actual butcher shop. As expected, the car quickly became known as the Pink Pig. It was fast too, the fastest in pre-race qualifying for the 1971 Le Mans race where it ran in 6th position before an accident took it out of the running. Many new-generation Porsche fans hadn’t ever heard about the Pink Pig until Ken Block’s Hoonipigasus was revealed as a PIkes Peak competition car.
The Pink Pig is back, but this time it’s not a racing Porsche, it’s a new kite and kitesurfing board created in collaboration with Duotone, a well-known manufacturer of these things. The kite features Duotone’s Evo SLS technology and is available in 7 metres, 9 metres and 12 metres and the matching board measures 138 cm. Both the board and the kite have been created to pay homage to the Pink Pig and so they’re also pink with the same prime-cut outlines as seen on the classic racecar. These will be limited in numbers, with just 360 of each being produced, available via the Duotone website. “The collaboration with Porsche goes well beyond aesthetics,” says Thomas Kaiser, Marketing Director at Duotone. “It’s the fusion of two worlds – the craftsmanship of Porsche meets Duotone’s kite technology. The result is a masterpiece that stands out not only for its design, but also its unparalleled performance.” A percentage of the revenue generated from sales of the kite and board will go to Duotone’s programme supporting young talents in the sport as part of their Young Blood initiative. This aims to help young people make the leap into the professional ranks of kitesurfing and provides training opportunities as well as courses on dealing with social media and acquiring sponsors. “We are proud to be able to bring a bit of Porsche history to the kite world and the water with our new special edition,” says Sandra Siegloch, Head of Sponsoring and Partnering at Porsche. “Our goal is to advance the sport of kitesurfing. With Duotone at our side, we have the right partner.”
Take a look at the YouTube video that shows off the latest Porsche product that has nothing to do with Porsches and at the same time has everything to do with Porsches. This new kiteboarding/kitesurfing kit pays homage to the original Pink Pig, the early 70s 917/20 that caused a stir when it hit the track with a livery making out prime pork cuts as a butcher would use: Pigs can fly: Porsche x Duotone limited edition Pink Pig kite | Porsche
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