Porsche and world record holder Sebastian Steudtner present a jointly developed surfboard

Sebastian Steudtner currently holds the world record in surfing with a height of 26.21 meters. With improved equipment, he wants to go higher in the future. As part of its long-term partnership with Porsche, it has significantly improved its sports equipment for this purpose. He got a lot of support from Porsche’s technology subsidiary Porsche Engineering.

The idea of ​​the partnership was to transfer experience from car development to surfing. With the help of the latest methods of simulation and wind tunnel verification, the behavior of the surfboard on the water (hydrodynamics) and the aerodynamics of the board and the surfer were improved – each with the aim of reducing the resistance of water and air.

So the Steudtner should reach a high speed on the board. 70 to 80 km / h is now possible. High speed is essential to being able to ride bigger waves – because the higher the wave, the faster the surfer has to be to avoid being run over.

Edges of space at a speed of up to 100 km/h

By improving the overall system of Sebastian’s skateboard, air resistance can be significantly reduced. Surfing speeds of up to 100 km/h are now possible.

“To reduce air resistance and strengthen the board, patented attachments – so-called Aero Edges – were attached to the nose and back of the board,” explains Marcus Schmelz, project manager at Porsche Engineering. “We know this principle from cars: here, too, the so-called tearing edges are defined, for example with the help of spoilers. This reduces air turbulence, the car becomes more stable at high speeds and also more flexible.”

Aerodynamic tests in the Porsche wind tunnel revealed – together with the modification of the building board – further potential for improvement: The position changed by Sebastian while flying and the improved equipment also results in less air resistance.

Steudtner’s new board was christened the “Caçador RS”. The name is a combination of the Portuguese word “Caçador” (hunter) and the common Porsche acronym “RS”, which is given to Porsche sports models. With a new surfboard, Steudtner can now hunt for the next world record.

“This is an exciting moment for me: we can finally present our ‘Caçador RS’,” says Sebastian Steudtner. “Together with the Porsche Engineering Team, we did extensive research, testing and development for two years. The result is a faster and more stable board that allows me to get into bigger waves – an important step for our project.”

The next project is already in the works: accurate measurement of shafts

With the help of a measuring drone, it should be possible in the future to determine the wavelength quickly and accurately. Currently, only videos and still images are scanned for metrics.

The current model from Porsche Engineering is equipped with cameras, control units and storage. In addition, sensors are used that support modern driver assistance systems in the development of the car. The device measures all wave and surfer areas within an area of ​​about 100 meters. The first reliable data should be collected from the autumn of this year when the next big wave season starts in Nazaré, Portugal.

More photos can be found here.