  
OUR RALLIES for small, economical cars on Original 1950s Rally Routes are UNIQUE - and for 2012, JAGUAR XKs and E-TYPES have a unique chance to join the fun! Click here to email us for more info. For 2013 the rally will be open to microcars from 150cc up, celebrating 55 years since the original and unique Liège-Brescia-Liège rally of 1958. 
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| Jaguars join for 2012! In a new innovation, for 2012 the rally will be open exclusively to members of the Jaguar XK and E-type Clubs (if you're not a member and would like to come, no problem: we can simply enrol you). The entry fee of £2100 or EUR2400 per person, (if paid by 1 February 2012) is based on two people sharing a room and includes 11 nights in top hotels and ALL meals from dinner on Thursday, July 12 to breakfast on Monday, July 23, plus rally plates, route book, maps, special tests, car parking, mechanical back-up and luggage transport. The route is similar to 2013 (left), but includes a day off mid-event to relax and explore beautiful Ljubljana. Prices go up by £100/EUR120 per person for entries received after 1 February 2012: Get your Entry Form and Regulations, and get your name on the list - email us now! | | LBL 2013, JULY 11-21: Get Ready! For 2013 we celebrate the 55th anniversary of the original LBL, inviting microcars that would've been eligible in 1958 plus similar vehicles either slightly larger or slightly newer: the rally will be open to little cars and three-wheelers from 150cc to 800cc, plus pre-war up to 1000cc. DON'T MISS THE STUNNING SLIDESHOW OF LBL 2008 - CLICK HERE TO VIEW IT! The route for Liège-Brescia-Liège 2013 runs from Liège to Liège via Karlsruhe, Munich, Misurina, Ljubljana, Carezza, Brescia, Bolzano, Starnberg and Karlsruhe. We expect a terrific range of cars to take part, most of which you have never seen before on the road. Read the full story here soon... |
In July 1958, 54 pioneers in 27 tiny cars set out from Liège in Belgium in a brave attempt to prove that the new breed of tiny-engined cars, made popular by the Suez crisis two years earlier, were not just toys but could do everything their bigger sisters could do – and much more economically. The schedule was staggering. Cars would leave Belgium on Thursday evening, travel all night through Germany, cross the Alps via Austria then head east through the Dolomites into Yugoslavia, tackling many notorious loose-surfaced mountain passes on the way. Still without stopping except for fuel and snatched refreshment, they would turn around at Ljubljana and return through the Dolomites to tackle Europe’s most challenging mountain pass, the Stelvio, descending south to Brescia. There, the cars went into parc fermé, meaning they could not be worked on, for eight hours while the crews had a little rest (assuming, of course, that they arrived on time – none did) before heading back north up the Gavia pass and down the Stelvio, then up over the Alps, Austria and Germany, back to Liège, arriving Sunday evening. That’s over 2000 miles of flat-out driving, averaging well over 30mph through three nights in tiny cars with engines as small as 250cc. Just 13 of the 27 starters made it... | 
For 2008, we created a celebration rally over the exact same route (right), for the same cars plus slightly later cars in the same spirit up to 700cc. 54 - double the number in the original rally - started from Liege on July 11, 2008, navigating from Michelin maps provided and quickly learning our innovative route checking system that ensures you follow the correct route, or pick up penalties for taking the wrong roads... This was no easy cruise - torrential rain through Belgium, Germany, Austria, Italy and Slovenia added to the strain on the first four days, but crews and cars rose to the challenge. The sun finally joined us in Ljubljana and stayed with us to the end of the rally. Cars that could have been eligible for the original event competed in 250/350/425/500cc classes in the Authentic category; slightly later and larger engined cars competed in 425/500/600/700cc classes in the Spirit category. "Fantastic", "unforgettable", "wonderful", "the best rally ever" and "a life changing event" are just some of the many tributes that have been paid by competitors on the 2008 event... See the LBL08 page for full results and more photos. On July 12-22, the 2012 Liège-Brescia-Liège will take 10 days to follow the same route as in 1958, 53 years after the original rally. This touring event will cover approximately 200 miles (330km) each day, with competitive tests on private tracks in Belgium and Germany combining with sheer endurance to establish worthy winners. Crews will plot the route on Freytag & Berndt and Michelin maps from the original list of place names, adding navigation to the challenge, and further interest will be added by visits which we hope will include the charming Boxenstop Museum at Tubingen, the newly revamped motor museum at Engstingen, the personal collection of Italian engineer Gino Tonutti near Udine, the Museum of the Mille Miglia in Brescia, the superb car collection of motoring writer Fritz Busch, housed in a magnificent castle in Germany, the stunning Schloss Lichtenstein and the authentically recreated wooden mediaeval castle and settlement of Bachritterburg, populated by families living just as they would have done c1270... Two categories of cars will be admitted to the rally – ‘Authentic’ for Jaguar XK 120-150 and XK-chassis Specials or XK-derived sports cars; and 'Spirit' for Jaguar E-types or Specials with E-type derived running gear, so all compete against similar vehicles. Entries are coming in strongly now with lots of interest being shown: if you're thinking of entering, please do so soon to avoid disappointment, as at least one of our hotels can only accommodate 25 cars. We stay at the very best hotels along the route, several are five star and almost all the rest are four star. In Brescia, we stay in the spectacular Villa Fenaroli Palace (below) - we believe that classic car rallying should be challenging, but there is no need for roughing it: at the end of a hard day's driving, navigating and sight-seeing, we want to see you relax and enjoy yourselves! See the Links page for all the hotels we use, and some we have used in the past. Hastings Direct Online offer a great service
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