Three hours drive from Cairns in the vast wilderness of Cape York in far-north Queensland, is a little town called Laura.

And for 128 years, this little town that is not much more than a roadhouse and a pub has hosted the annual Laura Amateur Turf Club Race meeting, attracting jockeys, horses and racegoers from all over the state.

Fans and competitors alike come from hundreds of kilometres around to take part in what has grown into an internationally known race, rodeo and campdraft event, all surrounded by a huge bush camp thronging with 3000 fans gathering for the weekend’s festivities. Tickets to this year’s event on the last weekend of June completely sold out.

On this episode of Streets of Your Town, we’ll meet some of the amazing bush characters and rodeo riders that keep this annual tradition alive, and even a couple of the journos who keep on top of their 150,000 kilometre patch of wild outback country to report what’s going on for their treasured Cape York Weekly readership - in one of the few print editions of a weekly regional newspaper left in Queensland.

You'll the legendary 80 year old former jockey Slick Davies - who now acts as the caretaker all year round for the Laura racetrack, so that it’s ready for its annual moment of race day glory. He was kind enough to speak to me just before the Laura Races, from the verandah of his house overlooking the track he takes so much pride in.

Slick is joined by his old mate Bluey Forsyth - who’s called the Laura Races and many others on the country horse racing circuit in Queensland’s far-north for decades. I love how you can hear their close mateship reflected in their conversation…

Then of course there are the rodeo riders like Anthony Ryan who make this annual event such a spectacle.

Shandelle Hilditch talks to us too - she's competed in campdraft and rodeo events on the circuit since she was a child, and now takes great pride in her children taking part as well.

Spending the weekend at the Laura Races and Rodeo has shown me not only what a great event this is for bringing together locals from all around the far flung reaches of this remote stretch of far-north Queensland, but it’s also shown me the cultural importance of keeping this Australian tradition alive.

As shown by the presence of two reporters from the Cape York Weekly - the editor Lyndon Keane and journo Chisa Hasegawa, who reported extensively on the event. We talk to them in this special edition nod to my Journo Project series.

Thanks to all the characters who I met at the Laura Races Rodeo and campdraft who you can hear in this order:

• Laura Racetrack caretaker Slick Davies and race caller Bluey Forsyth from 2:53
• International professional bull rider Anthony Ryan from 13:59
• Legendary campdraft and rodeo rider Shandell Hilditch 18:38
• Cape York Weekly journo Chisa Hasegawa and editor Lyndon Keane from 24:25

You can read the latest happenings in this remote corner of the world at the Cape York Weekly here: https://capeyorkweekly.com.au/

For more shownotes and links - please go to my substack for this episode at soyt.substack.com

https://www.eatlocalmonth.com.au/

nancehaxton.com.au

There are some conversations that take you to places you never expected, and this one on the banks of the Brisbane River in Brisbane’s cultural precinct was certainly one of them.

This chat with Kate Baggerson I hope will inspire you to be more creative in your everyday life, as it did for me.

The executive director of Everybody Now is celebrating the tenth year of this unique arts organisation which harnesses the power of storytelling, creativity and artistic collaboration to make art with impact all around Australia and now overseas.

To mark the anniversary year, Kate Baggerson tells us on Streets of Your Town how Everybody Now is doing a year-long program of events collaborating with artists, community members and organisations across the country, celebrating the power of art as a catalyst for social cohesion, and to improve our wellbeing.

Upcoming dates for Everybody Now productions in its tenth anniversary year 2025 include:

2–4 July: ‘Tin Can Radio’ at Mackay Festival.

19 July: Ipswich Civic Centre 50th Anniversary concert event.

September: ‘Artist in Place’ Residency 2 creating immersive soundscapes with Kombumerri man Lann Levinge.

October: ‘Artist in Place’ Residency 3 Home Stories with award-winning puppeteer and theatre artist Ros Oades.

September - October: Artist-led workshop ‘Creative and Connected’ to generate social connection and wellbeing.

November: ‘A Place to Belong’ - a new collaboration between Everybody NOW! and UK based global design sensation Morag Myerscough.

29 November: Art in the Park - Everybody NOW’s annual, open and accessible Art in the Park event

For more shownotes and links - please go to my substack for this episode at soyt.substack.com

https://www.eatlocalmonth.com.au/

nancehaxton.com.au

There’s a little patch of paradise in Queensland’s south-east corner - in some ways not far away from the big city lights of Brisbane, but when you get there, you feel like you could be at the end of the earth.

The Scenic Rim spans more than four thousand kilometres with landscapes ranging from lush rainforests to rolling paddocks and serene lakes, with stunning views and an increasingly world renowned foodie scene.

This June is Scenic Rim’s Eat Local Month - and Streets of Your Town is taking you there to the cornucopia of pleasures on offer from the region’s farmers, who are increasingly teaming up with local chefs to create unique experiences from farm to plate.

Eat Local Month is a great opportunity to meet the makers - as I did at the launch of the event to whet the appetite for the 100 unique culinary experiences just an hour’s drive from Brisbane and the Gold Coast that fill June with joy - ranging from a Long Lunch under the Jacarandas to High Tea and Cocktails in the Rainforest.

So sit down with me and Executive Chef and Owner of restaurant Roastbeef and the Frog Olivier Boudon, and then Theresa Scholl from Valley Pride Produce to hear about how they are diversifying into agritourism and making meaningful connections with customers right on the farm.

For more shownotes and links - please go to my substack for this episode at soyt.substack.com

https://www.eatlocalmonth.com.au/

nancehaxton.com.au