Horton seals his debut senior win

TOBYN HORTON completed his first senior victory in the Guernsey Velo Club's mountain-bike race held at the reservoir course. His margin of victory was a mere five seconds, slightly more than his half-a-wheel at the senior criterium championships.

The race started at a steady tempo, with Lars Persson, Mike Serafin, Andy Colver and Jon Mapley accompanying Horton.

With the tight and twisting nature of the course, Horton was keen to test the opposition and increased the pace on lap two.

Colver was the only rider able to follow the higher pace but this was short-lived as he slipped back at the start of the third lap.

By the halfway point, Mapley's pacing tactics were paying dividends as he passed second-placed Colver and made short work of the gap to Horton.

The leader was starting to pay for his early injection of pace and soon relinquished to the hard-charging Mapley.

With only two laps remaining, the leading pair were locked in battle, with no more than a bike's length between them.

Halfway round the final lap, Horton gave one last effort, passing Mapley on the fast run along the bottom of the valley and managed to hang on to record the win.