Well not too far outback, <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> but far enough to see the Great Goat Races again.
With friends, we set off out west to stay at a 10, 000 acre sheep and cattle station for a few days, while there we took in the great goat race. I was armed with my new Muck and a couple of Busses.

Here we are over the mountains and heading west.



We passed these fellas again this year and I still don’t know what there for, maybe to scare some of the millions of cockatoos away from the place.



Here we have our camp set up out on the cattle station.





Some of the heats building up to the grand final of the goat races, these buggers are wild and don’t always go in a straight line. Last time I was out there one took off up a side street and they ended up chasing it with 4 wheel drives just to get the kid back, who was still hanging onto the buggy. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />





Here’s the goat I had my money on, called, “Go You Good Thing” <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> but after taking a detour up the footpath and being untangled out of the crowd he was

beaten severely by a goat called Kamal. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />



It’s a big country out here; even the chooks have a bit of size about them. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />



I found this old tractor up on the New England country in a little place called Red Range. I’d live there in a heartbeat, beautiful bit of country.
The tractor didn’t have any rust at all and would have been sitting there for many years.





A little pioneer cottage still standing, apparently there was still the old hitching rail there for the horses up until a couple of years ago.

[img]http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y254/1402jw/Ian%205/GreatGoatRace0913.jpg[/img]

Hope you enjoyed them,
Ian. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

wow chariot style goat racing I would have guessed that.

is that different than an emu?

Wow, what a trip! Nice trailor too!

No, I was just joking, they are Emus.:D They are hard to see at night when driving, as well as the Roo's. I have a bull bar on the front of my truck that helps if you hit one.
My mates motor home didn't though and he was the only ont to hit a Roo <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/rolleyes.gif" alt="" />

He was lucky though and didn't seem to do much damage.

My Grandpa went to Australia 3 times he loved it so much. I rember on picture of a road train BIG semi with 3 or 4 trailers behind it, and the MASSIVE bars on the front that he said the locals called "roo-bars"

The isolation of Australia has resulted in some strange animals. Some might say, it is beginning to have that effect on the folks there, too! Goat Chariots! Too cool. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" /> <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/thumbup.gif" alt="" />

Bah, you don't need to be all that isolated to have weird races.... I remember belt sander races when I was a kid - big industrial models with dudes sitting on top of them. Or lawn tractor racing on dirt bike tracks. Those were good times.

That's awesome! I'd love to visit...

Great pics. I would love to see Australia, and of course drink some beer too!

They have wheely bin races in between the goat races as well, it gives them time to catch the fresh goats and harness them up. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />



Lightning Ridge is purely an opal mining town and is the home of the world’s black opals



Here is a little history about them:

Black opal is the rarest and most valuable type of opal.Black opal is generally found as an opal bar (or bars) of various colours forming natural water horizontals in dark grey to black opal 'potch nobbies' or 'opal nodules'. The unique patterns in black opal are as complex as an artist's imagination
Few realize that 99.9% of the world's opal supply of this radiant, dark, lustrous gem is mined at only two pinpoints on the globe-- the Australian towns of Lightning Ridge in New South Wales (the black opal capital) and Mintabie in South Australia (Home of Mintabie black opal).

Back when I was ten years old I was living in a small town called Collarenebri with my Auntie and uncles who were both shearers. We passed through there coming home this time, it’s a town of 150 today, I think there was more there then though?
For pocket money I used to accompany the mail contractor on the 60 mile dirt road to Lightening Ridge and open the many gates for him to save him getting out of his truck, the pay wasn’t good but the adventure for a kid of ten was. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" /> it wasn’t always a quick trip, sometimes we would get bogged out on the black soil for a few days. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

There were so many Kangaroo’s out there then you would have measured them in their tens of thousands and you could really walk up to them.

I used to lay on the ground and peddle my legs in the air and the Emus being inquisitive would walk right up to me to see what I was up to. <img src="/ubbthreads/images/graemlins/laugh.gif" alt="" />

My wife wants to go back for a few weeks with me to fossic for opals; so we might head back during our next winter.

I was thinking about ending up in Australia later in life, but I hear it's hard to get in permanently.