The National Trailquest Championships at Dalby and surrounding forests
couldn’t have been much soggier thanks to recent rain, but that didn’t dampen
the multi-event atmosphere.

With four events – Hillclimb, MTBO (high speed
short course navigation), Relay and full length Trailquest – spread over the
weekend there wasn’t much time for resting, but as usual competitors ranged
from the serious title hunters to those out for a pleasant wander through the
woods.

On the competitive side Jon Houlihan (Santa Cruz) took victories in the Hillclimb, MTBO and Relay
events. His relay partner Gary Thomsett took victory in the following days
Trailquest, despite some top riders turning up fresh just to compete that
event.

After a whirlwind relay race romance, perpetual rivals Gary and Jon are now
combining forces to tackle next weekend’s autumn Polaris near Salisbury as
Team Santa Cruz.