Husqvarna Australia’s Glenn Kearney says that the bar has been raised in Australian enduro racing since he left for the United States in 2005, continuing to build momentum as the season progresses.

Kearney finished last weekend’s fifth and sixth rounds of the Australian Off Road Championship with a pair of third place finishes at Callington in South Australia, marking the event as the best yet since he returned to Australia this season.

“I’d never ridden the AORC before because it didn’t exist when I left seven years ago,” Kearney told MotoOnline.com.au. “The racing seems to be a lot more quiet than I’ve been used to over the last few years, but it’s been enjoyable and races like over the weekend make it a lot of fun.

“The competition is impressive, the speed that Toby and even Matt Phillips are going now. Those two, plus Merriman, Hollis, Bewley, Grabbo and those guys, have made the level a fair bit higher than when I left. The field’s difinitely a lot deeper though, there are more guys going fast.”

Kearney’s results in South Australia boosted him to third in the E2 championship, also currently sitting a solid fifth Outright aboard the TE310.

“The race was pretty cool actually, probably the two best tests I’ve ridden since being back in Australia,” Kearney explained. “They were really challenging, really technical and it was a fun race.”