Genuine ‘Voyage of Discovery’ revealed in first ever Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge 2026
*Top organisers HERO-ERA to continue their South American legacy with sixth authentic event
*Rally explorer and South American expert route finder dubbed the ‘Amerigo Vespucci’ of the rally world, joins to bring whole ‘New World’ to historic rallying
*First coast to coast historic rally in over a decade open for entries
Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge 2026 Teaser
Watch the Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge 2026 Teaser here
The new Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge 2026 was revealed in a live launch at HERO-ERA HQ at Bicester Heritage on 31st October to an enthralled audience of attendees, with hundreds watching online.
A genuine ‘Voyage of Discovery’, the new Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge endurance event was announced for November 2026, the first to run from the Atlantic to the Pacific for over a decade in historic rallying, across six countries at a distance of 11,000 kms in 28 days. As it takes in the wonders of this fascinating continent, it will be a journey to rival the great Peking to Paris Motor Challenge.
Starting and finishing in Montevideo, the rally will uncover many new authentic trails in six countries all linked by the same Gaucho horseman and herding culture; Uruguay, Brazil, Paraguay, Bolivia, Argentina and Chile.
On a magical continent of extremes, the Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge will drink it all in, from the highs of the Andes at 5000 metres to the lows of the Chaco at 100 metres. Competitors will dip their toes in the Atlantic and the Pacific. In between they will encounter, sinuous mountain passes, rain forests, deserts, pampas and salt flats. The Salar de Uyuni Salt Flats in Bolivia for example, are 100 times bigger than Bonneville, and crews will pass the world’s highest vineyard in Chile at 3100 metres!
HERO-ERA are set to reignite their 25 year South American legacy of adventure when they run their sixth endurance rally on the continent with the Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge in 2026. Their record of running original events in South America started 23 years ago with the HERO Inca Trail and five years later La Aventura Panamericana. The Vintage Cape Horn (2013) was followed by the Rally of the Incas (2016) and Lima Cape Horn (2022).
HERO-ERA Chairman Tomas de Vargas Machuca commented: “At HERO-ERA we are proud of our 23 year history of running endurance rallies in South America. By the time we have amassed two more years of work on the continent, it will become a 25 year legacy. They have always been authentic events, starting with John Brown running the HERO Inca Trail in 2001, with our last, the Lima Cape Horn in 2022. This will be our sixth South American voyage of discovery. The Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge will be the first to go from coast to coast visiting six different countries in over a decade, it will be a true and exhilarating experience.
“It’s great to welcome Kim Bannister back to the fold. As one of the originators with the legend Philip Young, it means that we will maintain our record of running genuine endurance rallies in the ERA spirit of Philip, which we promised we would always do”.
The man who organised three of those rallies with ERA’s legend Philip Young, and another independently in 2019 before working with HERO-ERA on the Lima Cape Horn in 2022, was Kim Bannister. Dubbed the ‘Amerigo Vespucci’ of the rally world for his voyages of discovery and expertise in South America over two decades, Kim was announced as Route Finder and the lynch pin of the Gaucho Trail. He is charged with devising an authentic route and discovering new remote trails where he can. Kim will work in concert with HERO-ERA Competition Director Guy Woodcock who is also taking the renowned rally company to Paraguay for the very first time.
Guy Woodcock explained the choice of Route Finder; "Kim's South American experience makes him an expert in my book. Not only does he have great route finding and organisational skills, but he is also an experienced navigator of old who recently competed in the HERO Challenge Championships. I am really enjoying working with him on this exciting new event and sharing his great knowledge of the South American continent.”
A Motor Challenge event requires endurance and resilience from both crew and car as they are tough but rewarding experiences, the Gaucho Trail will be no different. Preparation of both machine and crew will be paramount, despite the chances to take in some of the wonders of the continent, some trails will be rough and some days very long.
However, this is just the challenge that most historic motoring adventurers relish and they won’t be disappointed. The 11,000 km route will be demanding enough, but add the competition element of Sporting Time Controls, race circuits and regularities in the mix, then you have a heady cocktail to rival any Brazilian Caipirinha!
This is a land that loves the motor car. Old cars are revered and many people still fix and use them for their daily transport, so historic rally cars will be welcome. But this is also a land that loves and understands motorsport. From Grands Prix in Buenos Aires and the continuing F1 in Sao Paulo, Argentina also ran the winter F2 Temporadas Series for decades. South America has hosted Dakar, it has provided World Rally Championship territory almost since the FIA world series started, from Argentina to Brazil. Kalle Rovanpera recently won the first WRC Chile Rally, and the Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge will run over some of the same remote WRC tracks a part of the competition route.
Then this is the continent that brought us Juan Manual Fangio, five time F1 World Champion. Fittipaldi, Reutemann, Piquet and Senna followed later in his wheel tracks, inspired by the great Argentine. Fangio cut his teeth road racing and rallying in old Chevrolets to the point that his ‘sawn off specials’ were named in his honour, ‘Fangios’. HERO-ERA expect to see 30s and 40s Vintage Fords and Chevrolets on the 2026 Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge entry list.
This is a rally is ideal for Vintage cars, who in the tradition of Motor Challenges, will be eligible for not just class wins, but also outright victory. But most importantly, on the continent of perennial repairs for old machines, the local blacksmith will be ready to provide a fix should any falter!
For both competitive crews seeking wins and endurance teams aiming for the satisfaction of finishing, there will be the pure geographical, cultural and social joy of the Gaucho Trail Motor Challenge spanning out over the vibrant, colourful and fascinating landscape that is South America.
The start finish venue of Montevideo is not just historic, but sits on the widest river in the world, the Rio de La Plata at 220kms across. The pampas, the world-famous fertile plains continue through Argentina to Uruguay and Brazil, further cementing the Gaucho culture of the horsemen and their herding role which expanded in the 18th and 19th centuries. The lush grass that feeds the cattle will doubtless offer up the biggest juiciest stakes ever, but then it’s cattle fed most of Europe during WW2.
There is the Hill of Seven Colours in Salta Argentina, the incredible Mendoza-Chile wine region and the Paso Internacional Los Libertadores, the breath taking Andean mountain pass between Chile and Argentina at 3,200 metres which will test anyone who is not prepared for altitude sickness.
One not be missed, which won’t be difficult as it’s the largest waterfall system in the world, are the magnificent Iguazu Falls. With the highest drop point of 82 meters and a length of 2.7 kms, this is a spectacular global landmark with 275 different cascades, which teams will visit from the Brazilian side.
The culture and colour of the six different territories will provide a visceral experience beyond belief. In addition, for wildlife lovers there is the incentive of trying to spot a Puma, Condor, Armadillo, Vicuna, Huemul or Alpaca. With such a blend of endurance, competition and culture, it will combine all to create such an alluring voyage of discovery that the forty entries will fill fast – in fact entries opened as the launch started.
Kim Bannister commented on his experience in South America and the draw of that continent.
“I have covered an awful lot of the continent across many events in South America, from recces to events, but it still draws me in. It's just the continent itself, it's so varied and so different and alluring. There are so many amazing things to see and experience, mountain regions like the mighty Andes, chaco, pampas then rain forest, it is breath taking! The culture is fascinating too, but it is a wonderful place to take your old car to. People there are very much car people, they love their cars, particularly old cars, and they love motorsport. So you're always welcome, especially if you drive an old car, but for them the memories of Fangio, Gonzalez and other motor sport heroes live long in their memories.”
