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Every Queen's Birthday weekend, braving the sub-zero temperatures, thousands of motor-bike enthusiasts flock to Central Otago. Their tents cover 25 acres of paddock near the settlement of Oturehua. Fiona Martin visits the unique rally and interviews its diverse spectrum of visitors.
Rally attendant, Peter [no surname] explains the origins of the one-night social rally, which has become the biggest in the Southern Hemisphere. He describes the desolate paddock scene, pitched with hundreds of tents and dotted with a hundred drumfires.
Martin briefly interviews the “poo-paper king” as he makes his rounds delivering supplies to the long drops. An unidentified man describes the unique motorbike that he and a friend created to reflect the rally’s carnival atmosphere. Martin discusses entry price, badges and stickers with a rally attendent.
A couple of rally attendees originally from Christchurch and Auckland explain why they make their way down south. Martin talks to a Dunedin woman running the Brass Monkey Rally souvenir stall and the Secretary of the Otago Motorcycle Club. Two bikers talk about their trip from Dunedin and how they fend off the cold.
An unidentified man talks about running the rally's low-power radio station and says all race-goers are told to bring a transistor. Broadcasting 'lost and found' notices is his main job and the interview ends with “another” urgent message sent out for Hugh Walker.
Martin interviews one of the original instigators of the rally who talks about motorcycle club members and non-members and touring clubs. It is noted the rally attracts a wide range of different people from old to young and from all walks of life. He notes the night patrol and St Johns Ambulance are present to assist visitors where required.
Two women from Christchurch explain how they felt on arrival - this being their first visit to the rally and how they will be sleeping in a tent in the snow. Another woman says she paid twenty dollars to come to the coldest place in New Zealand. Martin interviews an Invercargill man visiting with his son and son’s girlfriend. He wears leathers and a Ulysses club badge which he explains is for those over forty.
Martin visits the First Aid caravan and speaks with the doctor from Blenheim. He explains he’s been coming for ten years and probably deals with about twenty to twenty-five people each time. The nearest hospital is in Ranfurly. He observes that alcohol and low temperatures can make for a dangerous mix and adds the risk of hyperthermia.
One year the camp had two feet of snow around the tents, the lake was one foot thick with ice and so solid people rode their motorbikes across it. Another year is recalled where an earthquake split the lake in two. An MC reads out awards for the farthest travelled and oldest rider.
It is agreed the next day is a cold, black, smutty awakening. A few ‘rare’ fight stories are retold. Peter reckons attendance is down this year but is to be expected after last year being their 10th Anniversary. He declares it’s time to organise “a round” of teams to assist those inebriated and separated from their tents.
Martin departs the live band and bonfires to stay at a friend’s crib and brew a hot toddy. This is Martin’s last programme.