29 SEPTEMBER | ISSUE 484 | FREE
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The 2021 Melbourne Cup Tour raced into town to be greeted by an earthquake The day the 2021 Melbourne Cup Tour raced into town will be a day many of us will never forget. The iconic trophy was met with a powerful force that brought the region to a sudden stand still when the earth moved like nothing we had ever experienced before. On Wednesday September 22nd, a 5.8 magnitude earthquake was felt in Nagambie and Avenel regions at 9:15am. Buildings rattled, power lines swayed and the ground was shifting. The earth was growling and there was a moment of uncertainty and panic. Standing in Nagambie’s centre median strip at the time of the earthquake I watched as the business community quickly vacated their High Street premises and gathered on both sides of the High Street shopping strip. There was Sally from Rebecca Baker
Pharmacy, Alison from Nagambie Post Office, Trevor from the Rowing Club and Gerry from the Brewery, we all stood in silence but in search of an answer to what had just taken place.
photo taken with the Cup as he shared fond racing stories of Peter Pan winning the Melbourne Cup.
Familiar faces found comfort listening to each other's experience, mobile phones were going crazy, yet, we gathered our thoughts and just like that, we returned to life as it was before the earthquake struck. Victoria escaped widespread damage and so did our townships. We would learn later that the epicentre of the earthquake was close to Mansfield and there were no injuries reported. Through all of this, the 2021 Lexus Melbourne Cup trophy remained in the safe hands of a security guard, as we walked High Street offering onlookers the opportunity to take a closer look at the iconic trophy.
The event run sheet for this year’s Melbourne Cup Tour visit was very different to years gone by due to the current COVID 19 outbreak but the Cup found its way to Nagambie as part of a documentary being filmed for the Melbourne Cup Carnival.
94 year old local identity John Sanderson was delighted to have a
There were a few tense moments when Olympic gold medalist Lucy Stephan juggled her Olympic medal and the 2021 Lexus Melbourne Cup seated in her single scull as the photographer endeavoured to capture the perfect picture. Our community has once again been honoured to be included on this year’s Melbourne Cup tour, creating more memories and a total admiration for the race that stops a nation.