Volvo roars to victory on Le Jog

| 16 Dec 2011

The Volvo Amazon of Roger Bricknall and Ryan Pickering headed a brace of Triumphs to win the gruelling Le Jog endurance rally.

Early leader on the 17th running of the Land's End to John O'Groats epic was Andy Lane and Iain Tullie's 1966 Mercedes 300SE, but when that retired on Monday night, the race for victory came alive.

The Swedish 131 eventually took the spoils from the 1966 Triumph 2000 of Charles Harrison and Jonathan Hancox and Tony Sheach and Richard Lambley's 1964 Triumph TR4.

Seventy cars registered for this year’s 1400-mile event run by the Historic Endurance Rallying Organisation and 61 started from the tip of Cornwall on Saturday.

The attrition rate on the first day was high with seven cars dropping out in the first 17-hour stretch. There was no let up, however, with crews later tackling an energy-sapping 26-hour drive and then hitting fierce weather in Scotland that forced road closures and the cancellation of regularities.

Among the runners was HERO MD Tomas de Vargas Machuca, driving a 1973 BMW 1602 prepped for the event by BMW Park Classic (lead photo). He said: "This is one of the most testing events that we have ever run, and is one of the toughest in the world, but that is exactly what people who take part in this event want and everyone seems to have enjoyed it.”

Photos Tony Large and Photo Rastrelli/HERO

The winning Volvo (above) and second-placed Triumph (below)