THEY laugh, they sweat, they puff and they push - the Great Wheelbarrow Race is one of the major events on the Mareeba Shire calendar and this year, organisers are hoping to make it bigger and better!
The 2015 Great Wheelbarrow Race event will be launched at this year's Australia Day Celebrations being held at the Mareeba Racecourse.
Race Committee Chair Cr Nipper Brown said the first Great Wheelbarrow Race, held in 2004, wanted to honour the pioneering miners of the early 19th century, and to provide a boost to smaller communities along the way.
"The race has certainly evolved since then, with a lot of teams taking the opportunity to raise money for local charities," Mr Brown said.
"The 2015 event will be held from May 15-17, starting from Mareeba and finishing at Chillagoe, a distance of some 140km!" he said.
"Some teams go to remarkable lengths to raise money for their nominated charity during the lead-up to the race."
Last year, competitors raised a total of $435,000 for a range of charities, including Make A Wish Foundation, Angel Flight, the Queensland Cancer Council, Ronald McDonald House, and the National Stroke Foundation.
"This is a great event because it brings the community together in a fun way to raise money for charity and it provides a real boost to those smaller towns like Dimbulah, Almaden and Chillagoe."
Cr Brown is calling for nominations for the race which is run in three stages - the first stage is from Mareeba to Dimbulah (50km), the second is from Dimbulah to Almaden (60km), and the third stage is Almaden to Chillagoe (30km).
Categories include Teams (female, male or mixed) of up to 10 people, Solo competitors, Over 40s, School Students and Services (Police, SES, Firefighters, Defence Forces).
"For solo competitors, the event is quite a test of endurance, as they can be on the road pushing a wheelbarrow for up to nine hours each day.
"This year we have added a Social Category, for those teams who are not competitive and just want to run the race for the fun and excitement of it."
Many of the teams wear themed costumes for the first day of the race, making a colourful spectacle as they travel down Byrnes Street, Mareeba after the start at the Mareeba Heritage Centre.
Nominations close on April 24, 2015. Nominations forms are available from the Great Wheelbarrow Race website, www.greatwheelbarrowrace.com, Council's website at www.msc.qld.gov.au or from your nearest Council Service Centre.
