Birdsville (Saturday)

What a crazy long day! I slept well last night, but was up way too early... I ended up having to go back to bed after my shower, I was just too tired. After a late breakfast we packed up and caught a bus out to the race track. Any other week of the year Birdsville has a population of about 120, (and that's being generous) this weekend it's up at about 8000! There are tents and caravans everywhere- even the gravel yard across the road from the roadhouse has become home to the tents containing 120 people in on a tour. That tour alone doubles the towns population!
Once we got to the track, we faces another paddock of, you guessed it, dirt. Not a huge problem for your average race goer, but more than a little annoying for me! We eventually worked out a system that allowed us to move at a reasonable pace without me falling out, and got into the track. It only cost $20 to get in, which I thought was quite reasonable, since it costs about $25 to get into the Launceston cup...

One of the novelty groups

We arrived right in time for fashions on the field, but I couldn't get in to the fence. There is one really cool thing about Birdsville's fashion on the field. They have best novelty group. It was grey to see them wandering around. It was won by a group of guys dressed up as 'Where's Wally?' thought I didn't think they were the best.

Dinosaur and Donkey... Unicorn and Emu are floating about somewhere too

There were hundreds of people everywhere, and limited places to view the actual race track, since everyone was trying to do the same thing. I managed to find a spot on the fence though just before the cup. It was stupidly hot, but there was no way I was going move! I kind of picked the winner, but I learnt a long time ago the quickest way to double your miner is to fold it over and put it back in your pocket! I saw Nifty Nev a couple of times again today which really surprised me with so many people around. The RAAF Roulettes also made an appearance between races which was pretty impressive.

RAAF Roulettes

After the cup, won by Greys Rockin (pictured below) we decided to head back to camp. The only obstacle (apart from the sand) was the bus lines (6 lines) well over half a km each! We were lined up in front of a couple dressed up as Mr and Mrs Duff Beer (as in the Simpsons). They were both really nice, and good company.

Greys Rockin Winning the Birdsville Cup

Once we got back to camp, I had a bit of a lie down, since I'm really struggling to keep my energy levels up. All this bloody sand doesn't help!
At tea time we headed town to the food tents, and got baked spuds for tea. After having never been to a boxing tent before Darwin, tonight was my third visit in as many weeks! this time, it was Fred Brophy's boxing rent. It's quite different to Ron Bells- it kind of looks like a circus. There are benches everywhere, and flags all over the tent. They also have a hell of a lot more spectators, though that could partly just be because of the huge number of people here. And that the only other entertainment is a singer and a bush poet. Not that I have anything against bush poets, I really liked the ones i met in Winton. It's just not really a drunk young men kind of thing... I'd say there are five or six times as many people here as Mataranka. The fighters also seem a bit better. Brophy's also travel with a female boxer. And they got a girl from the crowd as a 'card girl'.

Fred Brophys boxing tent

It was a really good evening, and the guys in the tent were very helpful, helping me in before the show and moving seats do I could get in close to see.
Well, we have an early start tomorrow, so I need to get some sleep!