The festival of the hump moves this weekend to Boulia after a successful start in Bedourie.
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The annual Boulia Camel Races lasts all weekend and is the biggest of its kind, earning the label “Melbourne Cup of Camel Races”.
Boulia’s normally sleepy main street saw an impressive queue for fuel over the weekend, as traveller, many from the Big Red Bash and Bedourie Camel Races arrived to set up camp onsite early ahead of the races.
Event organiser Beck Britton said almost half of early ticket sales this year have come from other states, with travellers planning their winter holiday around the races.
Camel Trainers have arrived in Boulia ahead of the races, having travelled from as far as Victoria to in hope of taking out the prized 1500m Quality Electrical Boulia Camel Cup – the longest and most challenging camel race in Australia.
2017 Cup champion Glenda Sutton said Boulia was the biggest and the best. “The hardest race ever to win is that 1500m final and it’s the most prestigious,” she said.
Three days of action-packed excitement begins on Friday night when the gates and bar open at the racecourse.
There will be food and market stalls as well as kids amusements and the official opening and welcome will take place at 6pm.
A highlight will be the Remote Mechanical Great Australian Ride-on Lawn Mower Race at 6.30pm followed by the Twilight Camel Race with live music from 7.30pm from Owen Blundell and later, The Roo Wranglers.
The camel racing starts in earnest on Saturday with gates opening at 10am and heats from 11am.
There will be three 400m heats followed by Boulia’s unique attraction, the camel tagging, where brave volunteers try to ‘tag’ a camel with a piece of tape, run back to the starting position, then retrieve the tape with the winner being the fastest time to do it.
The 1000m heats follow in the afternoon with music that night from Mick Lindsay, Owen Blundell as well as a Pink tribute and fireworks.
On Sunday the quarter miler flyer race is on at 11am as well as a consolation race and a locals race.
The big one, the 1500m Quality Electrical Boulia Camel Cup is at noon.
New South Wales jockey Chantelle Jannese, who won the 400m final at Bedourie on Rod Samson’s Uncle Bob will be one of the favourites though it will be a big difference to step up to the 1500m distance.
After the big race, the fun goes into the afternoon with novelty races, yabby races, footraces and tug-o-war.
Derek Barry
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
Editor of the North West Star Mount Isa since January 2016. Prior to that, an editor at several regional southern Queensland newspapers. Passionate about telling local stories. Comes with a strange accent to due an Irish accident of birth.
