The Classic Marathon, organized by HERO Events, took place for the 26th time from 14 to 20 June 2015.
28 years ago, participants rode from Tower Bridge in London to Cortina in Italy and then back to London for the first time. This year, the route took the 68 participants from the heel of the boot in the south up to the mountains in the north of Italy.
On the day of departure, countless spectators had gathered in the port of Otranto, Puglia, to watch the teams set off on what turned out to be a tough and bitter battle that would only be decided on the final day.
The prologue separates the wheat from the chaff
The first stage served as a prologue to spread the teams out a little at the beginning, to separate the wheat from the chaff, so to speak. This included a driving test on the world-famous La Conca kart track and a regularity test, which led the teams back to Lecce for an overnight stay and a refreshing welcome dinner in the city.
First rank fights in front of a beautiful backdrop
The next morning, things got serious. From Lecce, the narrow winding lanes around Puglia led northwest to Matera, a beautiful old town and home to the so-called "Sassi", ancient and very impressive cave settlements.
There were already battles for position here at the front; Charles Colton and Ryan Pickering were involved in a tussle with another Porsche team called Howard & Matthew Warren. Only three seconds separated them as the Warrens gained the upper hand.
In third place were John Abel and Ali Procter, who chased their stunning sounding Sunbeam Tiger over Italian hills and through narrow lanes, followed by Andrew & Sarah Mallagh in their Porsche 914/6.
The west coast is also worth a visit
On the third day, the teams left Matera to head for the Mediterranean side of Italy. They spent the night in Salerno, where the participants got their first impression of the beautiful Amalfi Coast.
This was a crucial day, one that would influence the rest of the Classic Marathon. The teams were now slowly moving into more mountainous territory. Mark & Sue Godfrey had worked their way forward rank by rank with the aim of being the first to win three Classic Marathons. Ahead of them were relative newcomers Marcus Anderson and Matthew Lymn Rose in a Jaguar E-type, who were having the run of their lives.
Monsoon-like rainfall leaves the teams stranded under trees
The traffic in Salerno was difficult to avoid on the renewed departure on day 4 and caused stress for some. Now the distances to be covered became greater and the pressure on the teams also increased, as the route led into a national park and the roads became more mountainous and therefore even more challenging.
The weather changed constantly and quickly, and at times the teams that were riding open or had no roof had to take shelter from the monsoon-like rainfall under trees and wait it out. Colton and Pickering now had a narrow lead over the Warrens, but that meant nothing. Over the next few days, this battle would lead to many more changes at the front.
No classic marathon without dropouts...
For team Claus Coester and Tjorven Christine Schroeder, this was also an exhausting day. The constantly changing weather and the slippery Italian roads ultimately led to them dropping out of the race. John Abel and Ali Procter also withdrew from the race due to a broken steering knuckle. They could have taken the win if their car had cooperated.
Over 1000km in one day
The Classic Marathon is known for its endurance character; day after day, the distances became greater and the stages longer. On day 5, the teams had to complete three stages, two of which were 500km long. From Silvi Marini on the Adriatic coast, the route led further north to Marche before spending the night in San Marino. Most of the teams were able to keep up their pace, but you could see the strain on them. However, the intermediate destination of Maranello, home of Ferrari, which was to be reached the next day, spurred the participants on once again.
Decisive Lake Garda loop
The decisive part came on day 7, when the final loop up to Lake Garda would decide who would be the winner and who would be the loser. The final regularity stage, which included no less than eight timing points, was a complete success for Bloxidge and Pullan, who were only 23 seconds behind Colton and Pickering. The pressure proved to be the Warrens' undoing in the end, dropping a few places due to a mistake that cost them 1 minute and 5 seconds. So the overall victory went to Colton and Pickering.
The 27th Classic Marathon Rally will take place again in 2017 after a one-year break and can hopefully be held in beautiful Greece.
