Two hours away? Maybe. Too much fun to miss? Absolutely.

I know Murtho is about two hours from Mildura, but sometimes an event comes along that sounds just strange enough, loud enough and fun enough to justify the drive.

The Murtho Mowdown is back at Woolshed Brewery on Saturday, July 11, and how often do you get to say you spent your day beside the Murray watching lawnmowers race around a track?

From 10am, the track will come alive with the sort of racing you probably didn’t know you needed in your life, with lawnmowers stripped back, souped up and sent flying around the dirt in front of a crowd that is almost guaranteed to be having a good time.

It is one of the biggest days on the Woolshed calendar, and it is easy to see why. You have racing, food, coffee, a trackside bar, cold drinks, river views and that proper Riverland feel where everything is just a bit relaxed, a bit different and a bit hard not to enjoy.

Food will be available from Fuzion Foodz and Jimmy’s Cruisin Kitchen, with a coffee van on site, toilets available and the Woolshed’s trackside bar keeping things ticking along. Entry is by gold coin donation, with all proceeds going to support the local CFS volunteers, which gives everyone another good reason to get along.

There is no BYO, which makes sense given the event is being held at a brewery, and not just any brewery.

Woolshed Brewery is one of those places that feels like it could only exist in the Riverland. Set beside a quiet stretch of the Murray at Murtho, in a restored old shearing shed, it has that mix of history, river country and laid-back charm that makes it more than just somewhere to grab a drink.

It is the sort of place where the setting does half the work. Old timber, big skies, river gums, a view across the water and a brewery tucked into a piece of station history. Add lawnmower racing to the mix and suddenly a two-hour drive starts sounding pretty reasonable.

The racing itself is run with the South Australian Lawn Mower Racing Association, and while it might sound like a backyard idea that got out of hand, that is probably part of the appeal. It is fast, noisy, a little bit ridiculous and exactly the kind of event that makes a winter Saturday feel a lot more interesting.

For those in Mildura, Sunraysia and the wider Mallee, this is one of those “it’s not quite local, but it’s close enough” events. Head over with a few mates, make a day of it, enjoy the drive through the Riverland and settle in for something different by the river.

Because yes, it is about two hours away.

But lawnmower racing at a brewery on the Murray?

That sounds like too much fun to miss.

All the details:

Woolshed Brewery (Link) Ph. 0885958188

https://wilkadene.com.au/

South Australia Lawn Mower Racing Association (Link)