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Le Jog Reliability Trial

HERO-ERA

6th-9th December 2025


Le Jog Reliability Trial 2025
Category B1: Kevin Haselden/Ryan Pickering (Mini Cooper S)
Le Jog Reliability Trial 2025
Category B2: Mark Godfrey/Martyn Taylor (MG B)
Le Jog Reliability Trial 2025
Category E1: Andy Lane/Iain Tullie (Mazda Eunos Roadster)
Le Jog Reliability Trial 2025
Category E2: Eric Michiels/Aswin Pyck (Porsche 924S)

Organiser: HERO ERA

Date: 6th-9th December 2025

Clerk of the Course: Guy Woodcock

Deputy Clerk of the Course: Gethin Phillips & James Phillips

Route: 1,532 Miles (31 Regs, 13 Tests, 1 TC Section)

Countries: England, Wales & Scotland

Starters: 54


Snow and ice are the normal conditions for the Le Jog, however for 2025 the weather was wet, very wet. From Land's End to John O'Groats competitors battled their way through sodden, flooded lanes, as the organisers found reroutes to avoid water-logged roads, while marshals stood out in torrential rain and high winds.

Gale force winds blasted the start control as the cars embarked on the traditional first test around the First and Last House. Thomas Koerner/Manuel Maeker (BMW 320/4) took first blood as they were quickest by four seconds over the test. This was one of five fastest times that Koerner secured during the event; at the Finish he won the Test Pilot Award by almost a minute, despite a cone fault on one test.

The primary awards on the Le Jog are Gold Medals; these are won by the crew in each category who lose the least number of medal points during the event. To even be on the Medal Table competitors must visit every control on the route - a missed Route Check will mean no medal. Medal points are lost for a number of penalties, including being over a minute late at any timing point or control.

By the time that cars arrived at the lunch halt at Okehampton, after four regs and three tests, fourteen crews had already missed at least one control and were no longer on the Medal Table, however thirteen were still on Gold, with nine not having lost any medal points.

Among crews that were struggling was the Fiat 500 of Tim Lawley/Nicu Mladin, which was stopped, the car failing to get a spark; the issue was solved by the mechanics, but the pair missed most of the opening sections. Hans Ulich Wartenweiler/Reinhard Siegfried had a fuel pipe break on the run in to Okehampton, but were able to continue and were still on the Medal Table.

Leg One finished at a new Le Jog venue, the Rock & Fountain Inn near Caerwent. Two more cars had disappeared from the medals by this point, Nick Brayshaw/Robin Ellis (Alfa Romeo 1750 GTV) missed Test1/4, while Julian Ellison/Mark Culley (Mercedes Benz W201) had failed to find the final timing point of the Leg.

Le Jog Reliability Trial 2025
Car 31: Andrew Boland/Mark Bramall (Ford Escort RS2000)
Photograph: © HERO-ERA

Leg Two took the route through Wales and the infamous overnight Time Control section; this year this ran for 70 miles in the lanes between Llandrindod Wells and the end of leg halt at Telford. However, in 2025 the three regularities that preceded this challenge, proved to be some of the toughest on any HERO event.

By the time that cars arrived at the Crossgates petrol halt, just before the start of the TC section, only seventeen crews were still on the Medal Table and Eric Michiels/Aswin Pyck (Porsche 924S) were alone in having not dropped any medal points. Notably, Kurt Vanderspinnen/Guy Desmet (Alfa Romeo Giuletta), who had water pump problems, had missed a timing point near Gwenddwr. Having been in Gold at the end of Leg One, John King/Mike Cochrane dropped to Silver after putting their Lotus Elan Plus 2 into a ditch.

Seven crews, one in each category, were still on Gold by the time that Telford was reached, although no one had fewer than three medal point losses. There were now fifteen cars still on the medal table.

The conditions proved too much for the open topped Aston Martin Speed Model 2L of Simon Arscott/Emily Anderson; it was simply shipping water which was continually drenching the crew. They were forced to withdraw. There were also problems for fellow Category A contestants, Shaun Harborne/Alistair Leckie (Bentley 3-4½ Red Label Speed), who had been on Gold, the navigator had to leave the event due to a family illness. Harborne missed the TC Section and the Sunday morning sections, but rejoined the fray at lunch time with Bob Rutherford Scholarship winner, Miles Fieldhouse, taking over the navigating duties.

Gearbox problems on their MG Magnette caused the retirement of Richard Lambley/Jonathan Hancox.

Le Jog Reliability Trial 2025
Car 37: Hampi Durrer/Henry Carr (Volvo Amazon 121)
Photograph: © HERO-ERA

Leg Three ran through Northern England before competitors had a full night in bed at Gretna Green. Four tests and eight regularities were on the menu, although one reg, near Kirkby Stephen had to be abandoned due to flooding. There were a number of other reroutes as the Advance Car encountered waterlogged lanes, but no other competitive sections were lost.

The major casualty of the day was the Volvo Amazon 121 of Hampi Durrer/Henry Carr; they had been on Gold and the only car in the category still on the table, but a failed solenoid in the fuel pump stopped the car. The problem was fixed but they had to cut to the overnight halt, missing several sections.

The afternoon section proved a disaster for Dominik Lingg/Kaspar Wittwer (Fiat 124 1600 Sport); they had been on Gold at the Haigh lunch halt, but missed two timing points before reaching Gretna. This promoted Michael Rodel/Andrew Duerden (Mercedes Benz W115) from Silver to Gold in Category C; they had lost 37 medal points, but being the only car in their category on the table, they would win a Gold at the Finish, if they located the remaining controls. Christian Dillier/Tony Brooks (Ford Model A) were in a similar situation in Category A.

At the Gretna halt, Mark Godfrey/Martyn Taylor (MG B) had dropped the least number of medal points; they had lost three, so were six points ahead of Stewart Christie/Andy Ballantyne (MG B GT) in Category B2.

There were now only ten crews on the Medal Table, they were all on either Gold or Silver.

Le Jog Reliability Trial 2025
Car 32: Michael Rodel/Andrew Duerden (Mercedes Benz W115)
Photograph: © HERO-ERA

After a night's rest competitors faced a twenty-six hour run to the Finish, with only a three hour stop at Fort William, at the end of Leg Four, to offer time to rest.

ROLE OF HONOUR

Multiple winners of Gold Medals

  • Drivers
  • Andy Lane - 8
  • Jayne Wignall - 6
  • Mark Godfrey - 5
  • Kevin Haselden - 5
  • John Kiff - 4
  • Andrew Davies - 3
  • Ed Chambers - 2
  • Geoff Awde - 2
  • Philip Surtess - 2
  • Simon Harris - 2
  • Simon Mellings - 2
  • Stewart Christie - 2
  • Eric Michiels - 2
  • Navigators
  • Iain Tullie - 8
  • Kevin Savage - 6
  • Martyn Taylor - 5
  • Dave Kirkham - 3
  • Jonathan Davies - 3
  • Rob Kiff - 3
  • Edward Kiff - 2
  • Ian Canavan - 2
  • John Bayliss - 2
  • Mark Appleton - 2
  • Matthew Chambers - 2
  • Peter Ward - 2
  • Stephan Huber - 2
  • Emily Anderson - 2
  • Andy Ballantyne - 2
  • Aswin Pych - 2
  • Ryan Pickering - 2

There had been no changes to the medal standings by the early evening halt, which was taken at the Green Welly Cafe, Tyndrum. Things altered almost immediately afterwards as the Lotus of John King/Mike Cochrane, who had been on Silver, suffered an engine failure; this was possibly a result of water that the car ingested on Saturday night.

This meant that by Fort William there were only nine medal contenders, six on Gold and three on Silver. Dillier/Brooks, Kevin Haselden/Ryan Pickering (Mini Cooper S) and Rodel/Duerden were the only ones in their categories on the table, so had to concentrate on collecting all the controls, rather than worry about time being dropped.

Leg Five normally opens with the Loch Ness Monster regularity, but for 2025 there was a short section just north of Fort William before a 'Baby' Loch Ness reg; this may have been a misnomer as it was 50 miles in length and had eleven timing points. It was to have a major effect on the Medal Table. Pressing on a little to hard, Dillier/Brooks went into a ditch. They were eventually pulled out, but failed to get to the final three timing points. They lost their place on the medal rankings.

It was four o'clock in the morning by the time that the crews arrived at Tore Services, north of Inverness, and they still had five regularities and a test to deal with.

On Regularity 5/4, in the Dunrobin Glen, another Gold was lost as Rodel/Duerden missed to find TP 5/4C, which was located in a layby; this was the same location that had cost John Kiff/Rob Kiff a Gold in 2017.

This meant that when the survivors arrived at John O'Groats there were just four Gold Medal winners; these included Andy Lane/Iain Tullie (Mazda Eunos Roadster) who now became the most successful Le Jog competitors, each having won eight Golds. Mark Godfrey/Martyn Taylor finished with the least amount of time penalties, over six minutes ahead of Lane/Tullie. Taylor was also the winner, by a significant margin, of the Clockwatchers Award. The other Golds were won by Haselden/Pickering and Michiels/Pyck. Notably, all the Gold winners in 2025 had won Golds on previous editions of the event.

There were three Silver Medal winners; these were Christie/Ballantyne, Reiner Seume/Julian Seume (Porsche 944) and John Lomas/Pete Johnson (VW Golf GTi). The result gave Johnson HERO's Golden Roamer Prize by half a point.


RESULTS