Coronavirus: Birdsville a non-starter: other race that stops nation hit by crowd ban

The Birdsville Races will not be run this year because of uncertainty surrounding coronavirus restrictions.

Birdsville Race Club president David Brook on Monday. Picture: Nell Brook.

The Birdsville Races will not be run this year because of uncertainty surrounding coronavirus restrictions.

The races, which have attracted visitors to the Queensland town on the edge of the Simpson Desert since 1882, will be staged in September next year.

The last time they were cancelled was in 2007 when equine ­influenza restricted the movement of horses around the country.

Birdsville Race Club president David Brook said the club delayed a decision as long as it could but was ultimately forced by factors out of its control.

He said the club had considered the Queensland government’s timetable to allow gatherings of up to 100 people and reasoned it was unlikely crowds would be permitted at the Birdsville track.

“We weighed that up and thought of the prospects of having 5000 or 6000 people here six weeks later, because the crowd starts to arrive three weeks before the event,” he said.

“I can imagine the restrictions will be gradually eased, but I don’t think 5000 comes after 100.

“Also, our indoor venues are not big enough to do any social ­distancing. We’ve got to be responsible and I don’t think we could do the social distancing or do all the mandatory cleaning for a crowd having a party.”

Mr Brook said the decision came after a meeting on Thursday night, after which the club alerted people whose businesses work in collaboration with the races.

The club’s reluctance to pull the pin was driven by the region’s reliance on tourism, which is typically at its peak in the winter months.

The region’s biggest drawcard, the Big Red Bash music festival — held annually in July — has also been postponed.

The club considered postponing the event until November or December, but this was decided against because of the heat and likelihood of rain, which can cut the only roads into town. Mr Brook, who is also the chairman of the Stockman’s Hall of Fame in Longreach, said businesses in Birdsville and surrounding towns relied on the races and festival for about 50 per cent of their income.

“The opportunities are really only from April until early Oct­ober,” he said. “There’s five or six months of potential profit, and then there’s six or seven months of guaranteed losses. It’s a significant lost opportunity.”

Organisers hope reduced international travel will lead to record domestic crowds at the 2021 races.