It might be a brand new festival but Cloncurry celebrated Beat the Heat this weekend in accustomed style.
The highlight of the five day festival was the street party on Friday night with country music star Kasey Chambers appearing on the free stage set appropriately in front of the council chambers building.
Ms Chambers said it was her first time in Cloncurry and she loved being there.
She performed with her band including her dad Bill Chambers and they played a lively set of old and new songs.
Cloncurry Mayor Greg Campbell thanked the big crowd for coming and said it would be the first of many Beat the Heat festivals to come.
“The point of Beat the Heat is to show everything we all know and love about Cloncurry,” Cr Campbell said.
“The mine cart challenge celebrates our mining history and our grazing history.”
The Mayor thanked the sponsors, volunteers, community groups and council staff that made it happen.
Perhaps the biggest fun of the night was the mine cart race with six teams in head-to-head races in the heats.
The teams had to prepare the cart in the advance, then one member had to quickly don a mining outfit, then set off with the other in the cart before eating a hot curry, then loading and unloading the ore, branding a “bull”, knocking back a beer and then racing for home.
The aptly named Ringins using Wayne Tapp’s Hampden Mining Co cart walked away (or perhaps limped away given some of the spills of the cart) with $500 beating team Hard Rock in the final.
The Ringins posed for a photo with Kasey Chambers before escorting her to the stage in the mine cart.
“That was great,” Ms Chambers said.
“Now I’ll expect to be taken to the stage at every concert in a mine cart.”
New Cloncurry Shire Council CEO David Bezuidenhout was on hand to announce the winners of the cook off praising the quality of the food on offer with star performer Kasey Chamber also eager to help out and get in the photo with each team.
Best name went to Cowgirls Cook Indian. Third place went to KPM Laksa, second place went to the Three Amigos, winner was Moroccan Madness with people's choice winners Spicy Sisters.
The five day festival continued on Saturday with the parkrun, the spring races and an art gallery opening that evening.