8:36 am, April 28, 2025
More than £20,000 has been raised for Ben after the motor industry donned its running shoes at this weekend’s London Marathon.
A total of nine runners completed the 26.2 mile course in support of the motor trade charity, with a total of £21,411 raised at time of writing.
Among the runners was Car Quay boss Jamie Caple, JCT600 stock control manager James Tordoff and Novuna Vehicle Solutions’ Amy Lawrence.
Caple completed the run in five hours, 48 minutes and 28 seconds, placing him 47,385th overall, and raised a impressive £4,110, thanks to generous backing from 74 donors.
The 45-year-old saw off a last minute knee injury to take part in the event, which he spoke about at length on last week’s episode of the Car Dealer Podcast.
Speaking ahead of the event, Caple said: ‘If you’re having a tough time get in touch with Ben.
‘I’m running the London Marathon for Ben. This fat, out of shape, disgraceful, cheeseburger eating, full fat coke drinking, lard a**e who’s never exercised in his life – he’s running a marathon!
‘When I found things particularly tough I’ve gone for a run. It’s helped. When you feel low, just go and move your body, man. It rewards you.’
Meanwhile, Tordoff recorded a time of 05:24:10 and Lawrence 04:49:36, raising £2,372 and £2,296 respectively.
Other competitors from the automotive industry included Popbangcolour artist Ian Cook, who raised £4,724 and completed the course in 05:37:50.
The fastest of Ben’s runners was Stacey Morgan, vice president sales – UK at Corpay, who bagged a time of 04:13:39.
A full list of runners who took part in the marathon in aid of Ben can be be found here:
- Amy Lawrence, head of marketing at Novuna Vehicle Solutions –04:49:36
- Dave Lucas, sales director at Mercedes-Benz Retail – 04:35:33
- Ian Cook, automotive artist at Popbangcolour – 05:37:50
- James Tordoff, group stock control manager at JCT600 – 05:24:10
- Jamie Caple, company director at Car Quay Ltd – 05:48:28
- Macauley Read, parts manager at Yeomans VW & Skoda – 06:27:46
- Sophie Minnican, account development and social media manager at Simply Thank You – 04:07:12
- Spencer Davies, group used car manager at Renault Retail Group – 04:15:16
- Stacey Morgan, vice president sales – UK at Corpay – 04:13:39
Matt Wigginton, director of partnerships, engagement & income at Ben, said: ‘A massive thank you to the incredible team who ran yesterday’s London Marathon, raising awareness and funds to help Ben support people working in the UK automotive industries.
‘To Amy Lawrence, David Lucas, Ian Cook, James Tordoff, Jamie Caple, Macauley Read, Sophie Minnican, Spencer Davies and Stacey Morgan – we can’t thank you enough.
‘Together you’ve raised over £20,000. You’re all superstars and every painful mile will change lives in our industry.
‘That’s something worth running for. Hopefully today you’ll get a chance to rest, relax and recover. Thank you, thank you, thank you.’
Away from the motor trade, Guinness World Records has confirmed that a total of 42 world records were broken at yesterday’s event.
The first was set by Ethiopian runner Tigst Assefa who won the women’s elite race and achieved a new women-only world record with a time of two hours, 15 minutes and 50 seconds, surpassing that of two hours, 16 minutes and 16 seconds set by Peres Jepchirchir during last year’s race.
Radio presenter Adele Roberts also claimed a new world record for the fastest aggregate time to complete all World Marathon Major races with a stoma (female) with a total time of 20 hours, 29 minutes and 58 seconds.
Ali Young, 51, broke the world record of the fastest marathon dressed as a bird (female) with a time of three hours, 26 minutes and 37 seconds.
Those in fancy dress, some wearing restrictive and thick costumes, pushed to complete the race as temperatures hit 22.2C in the capital.
Other records broken included the fastest marathon in a suit (male), the fastest marathon wearing foam clogs (male) and the fastest marathon with Parkinson’s disease (male).
