after finishing second in an enthralling race at Hog Bay Park yesterday.

Hill needed victory to make certain of top spot in the Bermuda Bicycle Association's mountain bike series.

But with just one race remaining, he's still top of the rankings and may already have done enough to win the title.

Peter Matcham held off the challenge of Hill to secure his first win of the season on the 12-lap, nine-mile course in tricky conditions.

Matcham won in a time of 57 minutes, 32 seconds, half a minute ahead of Hill and 90 seconds in front of third-placed Duncan Simons.

Strong winds and a heavy fall of rain during the race compounded the difficulty of the hilly course, which included 24 climbs.

Matcham got off to a flier and led by more than 10 seconds going into the second lap, but Hill and Simons had caught up by lap four.

The lead switched around between the front three over the second third of the race, until Matcham forged ahead on the ninth lap and had the stamina to hold his lead to the finish.

Hill, a Government park ranger who rides a bike for his job but only took up the sport competitively last summer, said he had been surprised by the fast times at Hog Bay Park.

"The pace was a lot faster than in previous races -- we were only 10 minutes off what we usually do for eight laps up there,'' he said.

"The three of us were really going for it and we hung together through the majority of the race.'' Hill said the strong winds had not been too much of a problem, except on the most exposed section, but a heavy rain shower had asked a few questions of the riders.

After seeing the weather forecast for the weekend, Hill had gone out and bought a new pair of goggles to keep wind, rain and mud out of his eyes -- and he was pleased he had done it.

"The wind was not too bad, but in the flat stretch closest to Middle Road we could feel it a bit,'' said Hill. "Once the squall of rain had gone, we were all slipping and sliding all over the place.'' Hill's success this season and his two race victories in the series had been a surprise to him: "I have done a lot better than I expected to in the beginning. I had never raced competitively before and I've just been determined to do my best every time.'' Brian Steinhoff was the fastest junior, completing six laps in 32:29, while eight-year-old Tim Fox won the under-12s' four-lap contest in a time of 28:28.