|
|
|
|
 |
       |
 |
Mountain Lagoon Full Monty Tractor RaceThe Labour Day long weekend just passed marked a milestone in the history of Country Brewer sponsored events. After much lobbying and jockeying for best position, we managed to edge out all competition and became the main sponsor for the “King of the Mountain” event.
When most people think of
“The King of the Mountain”, they think of Brocky, a race in Few people are aware that
the REAL event is actually held on the Labour Day long weekend and hosted as a
charity event by the Mountain Lagoon Bush Fire Brigade. It doesn’t attract the
same number of competitors or spectators but it involves more horsepower per
machine and perhaps as much but a different kind of guts from the
drivers. The main event of Mountain
Lagoon’s picnic race day is a tractor race. Not just any tractor race though.
The competitors in this event wear no
It was a perfect day for
this inaugural event. It was warm with a slight breeze blowing just enough to
give the flies something else to worry about rather than crawling up spectators
noses. The sun wasn’t too harsh but the SPF30+ was still liberally slathered
over much larger skin surfaces than was usual for the drivers.
The lead up to the big
event involved such ultra competitive and highly specialised events as lawn
mower races, pram races, boot throwing, 44 gallon drum rolling and even some
handbag throwing. The incidental entertainment to keep the crowd wired included
a bush band, a BBQ, lot’s of beer and an MC with Turrets Syndrome. The
atmosphere was electric and continued to build in intensity as the time for the
main event drew near. Finally, it was time for
the main attraction. To keep things a little tasteful and less traumatic for the
kiddies, it was decided that competitors would drive their tractors down to the
starting line while still clothed and disrobe at that point. Six competitors in
all took part. They came in all shapes and sizes and all ages, both the drivers
and the tractors.
The drivers cast off their clothes, climbed aboard their worthy steeds and gunned them to life with great clouds of smoke and roaring of engines…all except the oldest one that needed a push to get started.
With a flourish of a
slightly soiled white flag, the official starter signalled the start of the
race. The crowd roared (with laughter) as the tractors leapt forward. The race
was a close one, or at least it would have been if all the tractors were going
in the same general direction but it was exciting none the less. It was a very
close contest between the two favourites, Baby’s Arm and Donkey were so close
that it would have had to have been a photo finish. After two or three laps of
the paddock, the race was deemed to have been completed. The inaccuracy of the
decision was put down to the race starter focusing on getting himself another
beer rather than watching the race.
The winner was presented with his prizes by Shawn and Chris (aka The Reverend) from the Country Brewer. The whole day was deemed to be a success by the organisers. In fact the Country Brewer was invited to be the main sponsor for next year’s event. Things just keep getting better and better! Chris (aka The Reverend) - TCB Richmond
|
As with all big events like
this, there was controversy. The winning driver, Donkey, was disqualified
because he had decided to wear a sheepskin wrapped around his shoulders. This
was entirely against the race entry rules and so the trophy (a beaten up
tea-pot) and the prize (a car wreck dragged out of the bush) were awarded to the
driver of Baby’s Arm.