It has been a work in progress for Moody (21), a physical education student, who won the junior title in 2006 and was third in the senior race in both 2007 and 2008.
Pitted against him were 2007 champion Neale McLanachan (Leith) and 2006 champion Stafford Thompson (Ariki).
Also in the mix were last year's runner-up and Otago road champion Mike Wakelin (Hill City) and 2005 junior champion Oliver O'Sullivan (Hill City).
All featured prominently within the leading group over the first half of the 8800m cross-country event.
Entering the final of four circuits of the Wingatui racecourse, the field had been spread far and wide, with the leading group down to just four, consisting of national junior 10,000m champion Tony Payne (Caversham), national junior steeplechase bronze medallist Lyndon Brown (Caversham), Moody and Ariki clubmate Nathan Baxter.
As they drove into the icy wind and hail up the back straight for the final time it was Moody who stole an early advantage, only to be joined by Baxter.
"I wasn't aware of Nathan at the time and he came up at me and said, `It's just me and you now, Moody'," Moody said at the finish.
"It kicked me back into life."
Moody and Baxter remained locked together until a sprint went on 100m out from the finish with Moody getting the better footing in the soft conditions to win by 2sec in 36min 39sec.
"I think anyone could have won this race," Moody said.
"You had to pick your line with the conditions, but I think it was the flat course that best suited me."
The senior women's race was full of intrigue given it was combined with five other age groups contesting 4400m cross-country titles.
But rising through the ranks was the find of the season, Barbara Roy (Otago University), who was first to cross the line in the combined women's field and won the junior title in 19min 40sec.
Roy (19) a first-year health sciences student, has been impressive since arriving from Wellington to study at university.
A Wellington age-group road and track champion, Roy finished third in last year's national junior cross-country championships, and Saturday's win was her first cross-country victory.
Hot on Roy's heels was University clubmate Cassi Knight, who was also able to celebrate her first success in cross-country when she was first home in the senior women's section.
Unfortunately, Otago will see little more of Knight (20), as she returns to the United States towards the end of the month.
She has been an exchange student from Colby College, Maine, for the university's first semester.
While Knight was in the colours of the Otago University team, she has not been registered with the Otago centre, so the senior title went to third-placed Kirsty Morris (Leith).
For Morris (23), a town planner who has been training with Knight, it was her second success in the event, having won the title in 2007.
She was relieved her race on Saturday was over.
"I lost feeling in my legs, hands and face," she said of the cold conditions afterwards.
"I felt very exposed on the back straight."
Ariki won the overall men's title, with Hill City second and Leith third, while Leith won the women's title ahead of Caversham and Ariki.
Campbell Garry (Hill City) added the junior men's title to his Otago secondary schools title he won just three days earlier.
