Luft 7
Of the many things that wooed me into owning a classic Porsche, community was admittedly not one of those things. And although I am a pretty big loner, I carry no detectable aversion to community. In fact, quite the opposite. And as I quickly learned, there’s a lot of it to go around in vintage Porsche world.
At the epicenter of this community is a singular main event, one that has become so integral in classic Porsche ownership that it’s almost a downright obligation to attend — Luftgekuhlt. Luft meaning air, gekuhlt meaning cooled (in German of course), stewarded by a Le Mans class champ and an uber stylish creative director, Patrick Long and Howie Idelson.
The early days of Luft started in Los Angeles, an idyllic setting for anyone interested in car preservation because of those hallowed ‘anti-rust’ conditions — no snow and annual rainfall is sparse at best. So with a considerably large portion of the aircooled Porsche population packed into Southern California, it comes as no surprise that Luftgekuhlt began to shepherd the flock.
As recent as a decade ago the aircooled community was relatively small and exclusive, relegated to an esoteric clutch of gear heads and time trial racers. But after Luft started picking up traction, showcasing just how special these machines are, demand was driven up for a market of cars that was otherwise asleep at the wheel. It took a few guys like Long and Idelson to say, “Hey, these cars are f**king awesome!” for everyone else to inevitably agree. For me, it became one of those rare ‘my dad might actually be cool’ moments, as I recollected some childhood rides in the backseat of his 996.
But whatever the impetus to success may have been, I had the distinct pleasure of attending the seventh iteration of Porsche-con and it was incredible. Indianapolis provided a sweet change of scenery, a city rich with racing heritage of its own. The event was held in the Bottleworks District — a small enclave of repurposed bottling factories transformed into adult recreation: a chic hotel, a food court style collection of eateries, a duck bowling brew house, a movie theater, among other instagramable activities.
The Bottleworks Hotel was a gorgeous greeting: market lights zigzagged over a driveway of laid brick, serving as a red carpet for airheads and their cars checking into the event scheduled for the following day. To speak in cliche, the atmosphere was electric, and the energy was invigorating. I could certainly feel the excitement, especially since the pandemic had delayed Luft 7 for some time. And for all you socially inept weirdos out there, making friends had never been easier, with the trouble of finding something to talk about left lifeless on a stretcher by a glaringly obvious shared interest in one thing: old Porsches. You could walk up to any random guy and just say, “Porsche.” And they’d pretty eagerly start talking to you.
Cut to the next morning, I wake up from a wonderful sleep thanks to the awesomeness of the Bottleworks Hotel (highly recommend it), grab some boutique coffee and a pastry, and head directly for the merch line. Which was LONG. It’s the inconvenience of Luft having such cool merch, and I was happy to oblige. After an hour and a half in line and about four new gear-head friends later, I reached the merch desk and loaded up. Shirts, posters, keychains, books, etc., none of which were very cheap either. WORTH IT. Bags full I finally began touring the event, and it was a very cool set up indeed. The art-deco polish of the newly renovated Bottleworks buildings contrasted with the heavy patina of the neighboring brownstones provided a transcendent experience. Classically cool, the old made new again — a perfect algorithm for restomoded Porsches placed artfully in alleyways and against monochromatic edifices.
For a newly minted Porsche owner, this was a great day. I was soaking it up, ringing it out, and soaking it back up again. And again. Delightfully giddy, never knowing what was waiting for me around the next corner. Plenty of 356s, 912s, Speedsters, GTs, and of course 911s. And so many other cars that I don’t know the names of. Rare and beautifully restored show queens to the cosmetically negligent track brats, and everything in between. Oh, and so many 914s! The deformed mid engine stepchild of the Porsche family tree came out with a fierce energy that only a neglected stepchild could.
On my last lap here, one of the many cool things about this event is that all the cars on display are from fans and friends of the event, with of course some famous features on display as well — but it feels casual, like a glorified ‘cars and coffee’ neighborhood meet up on any given weekend. Where dudes are just hanging with one another sharing the same passion for cool cars, while still feeling well worth the price of admission. Wish I could’ve brought out Chile Verde! Maybe next year…
- S