Capricon set to smash attendance record at Rocky showgrounds
People dressed in all manner of costumes poured through the gates.
Rockhampton
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FROM cute and cuddly to downright scary, it seems the whole of Rockhampton is filing through the Showground gates this morning for a crack at the CapriCon 2019 cosplay competition.
'By day', 51 year old Neil Collins from Park Avenue is a mild-mannered park ranger.
He spent the last month building a traditional owners' campground for Gangulu people out near the Blackdown Tablelands.
But 'by night', he's a fearsome predator with serrated silver claws.
Neil and his wife spent the last two weekends putting their matching outfits together with safety matting, hessian, painted pine, gaffer tape and "lots of lots of glue".
"I used to collect items but now I can make them a reality by going out and pretending to be something I'm not," Mr Collins said.
"I get to be childish again and the kids love it when grown-ups get dressed up."
And as for the perennial question: DC or Marvel?
"I was a DC kid; it was all about Superman," Mr Collins said. "But I must admit I'm leaning towards Marvel these days."
Spiderman and Spiderwoman lock eyes across the crowd as the Mayor AKA Minnie Mouse chats with a local Chris Hemsworth lookalike.
The Cran brothers have come as Jareth the Goblin King and Legolas while the Netherwood girls channel their inner lion and pirate.
Random strangers pose for photos together as they stroll through one display after another of books and costumes, and queue for photos with visiting celebrities.
Children try their hands at QWERTY keyboards in the Robert Schwarten pavilion as part of Rockhampton's Steampunk and Pop Culture Convention.
Events include a wrestling bout at 5.30pm followed by a zombie run in the centre ring at 6.45pm.
With parking is at a premium and plenty of foot traffic entering the showgrounds, traffics speeds have been restricted to a maximum speed of 20km per hour for the afternoon.
Dressed in a Minnie Mouse costume, Rockhampton Region mayor Margaret Strelow was full of praise for the "extraordinary grassroots event" which has grown from strength to strength over the years.
She said this year's event had surpassed last year's 10,000 visitor attendance figure by 11am this morning.
"It goes all day so I think we'll double that (figure), people are streaming in," Cr Strelow said.
"What I'm loving is the costumes. Many of them would have taken hours to create, and that's part of what adds to the excitement
"While not everybody is dressing up, those who aren't are thoroughly revelling in the atmosphere.
"It is great for children and as an activity to start the school holidays, you couldn't get better than a world full of their favourite comic characters."
Cr Strelow said there was a huge pavilion run by the Rockhampton library, filled with activities for children.
She said shifting the event from the CBD to the Showgrounds this year gave the event plenty more room to grow.
"This is clearly a significant family event for Rockhampton from here on in," she said.
Visitors are encouraged to make their way down to the free event with activities continuing until 8pm tonight.
Originally published as Capricon set to smash attendance record at Rocky showgrounds
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