It took 67 years, but Saskatchewan hosted its first Canadian Motorcyle Association national trials championship over the weekend and it was a major success.

The event is normally held in BC, Alberta and Ontario, but the Saskatchewan Flatland Trials Association lobbied to finally get a chance to host the national championship and it all came to fruition over the weekend in Bengough.

“It was great,” said Moose Jaw’s Derek Thomas, who spearheaded bringing the event to Saskatchewan. “We were really proud to take this one and I think we did a great job, the town was enthusiastic, lots of volunteers, and they put on a good show for us.”

Saskatchewan wasn’t thought of as a suitable destination for the event due to the need for rugged terrain, but Thomas said the out-of-province riders were pleasantly surprised by the course that they were able to put together.

“Everybody just assumes that Saskatchewan is a flat province,” he said. “That was also part of the reason that the event never came to Saskatchewan, but we found an area, and as soon as I put eyes on it, I knew that we had something here that we could really challenge people with and they were challenged.

“The former number two rider in Canada, Jonathan English from Ontario, said that you could hold a world championship event in the location that we had it, so that’s saying something about the terrain.”

About 25 riders came out for the event, which fell a bit short of their goal of attracting 40, but Thomas said they’re coming away happy with how everything fell into place.

“Our club is a little smaller, so were unable to get it up to 40, which is what it was the last two years, but this time we had far more travelling riders than in the last two years, we had riders from BC, Alberta, Ontario and Quebec that travelled here to Bengough, Saskatchewan to ride in a national championship,” said Thomas.

Thomas, who has represented the national team at a number of events, was unable to finish the weekend due to some mechanical problems.

Saskatchewan’s top rider at the event was Moose Jaw’s Ryan Gadd, who ended up in fifth place on the first day of competition and fourth on the second day in the expert class.

“Other than myself, none of the other riders from Saskatchewan hadn’t competed at a national before, so it was their first time really testing themselves on a harder course and a longer day,” said Thomas. “I’m hoping this inspires them to go to nationals next year, they know what to expect and they can prepare for it.”

Alberta’s Tino Marin won the championship class on both days, while Stephen Foord, also from Alberta, was tops in the expert class both days.