“We are attempting the NC500 in Ford RS Turbos, these cars weren't the most reliable 40 years ago when they were new, so we could be in for some challenges along the way. Please support our worthy cause and give what you are able to. Every penny raised will go to Cancer Research and will be distributed to wherever it is needed the most. (Not on our repair bills lol) Oh and wish us luck.”

The North Coast 500 brings together a route of just over 500 miles of stunning coastal scenery. Passing through beaches, mountains and villages; the North Coast 500 is one of the world’s most beautiful road trips.

Marcus Nelson and Craig Lightfoot are teaming up with Andrew Briggs and Simon Rushforth to take on the iconic route in their beloved Ford RS Turbos

Four (middle age-ish) blokes who up until 3 years ago didn't know one another have come together to form a firm friendship through the love of our classic Fords and the Classic Ford scene and are attempting to undertake the North Coast 500 commencing 1st June. The round trip from West Yorkshire and back is nearer 1,100 miles all together.

The four are leaving from local car dealership Ben Hodgson Cars in Dalston, at 10am on the 1st of June.

“We love cars and we love a great cause, so when Marcus told me what they had planned we just had to get behind them and push this across our various advertising platforms. We offered them our premises to depart from where they can all meet up and get a coffee before they set off. I’d like to wish the four the best of luck and ask everyone to donate what they can.”

An as Turbo is about the only car Ben doesn’t have, however he has pulled out the Escort XR3 for the occasion.

Ben Hodgson Cars are a family run business that is located in Dalston just on the outskirts of Carlisle, and only 5 minutes from junction 42 of the M6.

“Our commitment and success are due to selling quality used cars. We hand pick all of our cars so we can select the very best stock.”

Over the past 3 years the competitors have been to countless car shows, completed their own version of the Lakes tour in 2023 and were lucky enough to have 2 of their cars at the NEC Classic car restoration show in 2023.

Sadly, Andrew lost his wife 3 years ago to breast cancer. Andrew dedicated his car to the memory of his wife and has called it the ‘Spirit of Jayne’.

The group are completing this challenge and raising money for Cancer Research, in honour of her.

So far, the four men have raised more than £3,000, an amount which Marcus said he was ‘blown away’ by.

“We decided to raise money for Cancer Research and the response has been amazing,” said Marcus.

“We’ve only really put it on our own social media pages, and we'd like to think we could get it up to somewhere around £5,000 if possible. That'd be amazing.”

The group are undertaking the challenge in Ford RS Turbos which are more than 40-years-old which could provide a ‘challenge’ if one of them breaks down.

“We've all got quite a lot of money invested in these cars but the end of the day, they are 40-year-old cars and reliability has always been an issue,” said Marcus.

“We didn’t know each other three years ago but we came together through our cars,” said Marcus.

“We’d always fancied doing the route and it was only really four months ago that we said why don't we do it for charity and see what we can raise.”

“The biggest challenge is just hoping that they don't break down on us because they're not the kind of car where you could just pop into the local garage, and they would repair it because you just can't get parts for them anymore.

“Its in the back of your mind all the time but we’re really excited and can’t wait to get going.”

You can keep an eye on their progress on Ben’s Facebook page, where he will be posting updates on how they are getting on.

Anybody wishing to donate can do so online at:

Four Old Blokes In Fords (cancerresearchuk.org)