15-06-2025
Shearers Shindig in Thargomindah brings outback community together after flood
Wool goes flying on stage at the Thargomindah Shearers Shindig as two people race to see who can shear a sheep the fastest.
The atmosphere is electric, but behind the thrill of the challenge there's another factor drawing the outback Queensland community together.
Two months ago the Thargomindah township, nearly 1,000 kilometres west of Brisbane, was almost entirely inundated by a record-breaking flood.
Reminders of the disaster are everywhere — in the blue flood markers pasted around the arena, the drone photos scattered near the bar, and the stories exchanged over a beer.
To resident Liz Riley, the weekend of festivities was just as important to the town's recovery as clearing away the debris.
"It breaks that continuous monotony of cleaning mud, cleaning walls, looking at our insurances … it just gives you that break and that's what people need."
Around 80 shearers travelled from across Australia and New Zealand to Thargomindah to compete in the quick shears with the lure of a $41,000 prize pool, one of the largest in the country for shearing.
The event also hosted dachshund races, pig races, a colour run, and a flood debrief panel.
Bullo Shire acting chief executive Tamie Warner said the flood panel was the first time many of the residents involved in the natural disaster had spoken about their experiences.
"We worked together, did what we had to do and made it happen," she said.
As mayor, John "Tractor" Ferguson handed out the cash prize for each category at the end of the night — several winners shook their heads and insisted the money be returned to the community recovery fund.
Each time, a cheer went up through the crowd.
The fastest time of the night was 25.52 seconds, taken out by New Zealander Hemi Power.
In the women's event, Marites Woods was the quickest on the clippers, shearing her sheep in just 33.22 seconds.
Though many residents are still living in caravans, the sight of more caravans rolling into town is a welcome one — it meant tourists.
Bulloo Shire Council tourism coordinator Danielle Tuit said the visitors brought a much-needed boost to local businesses.
"Our tourism industry would normally start on April 1, but that was the night the flood came through," she said.
While the number of shindig attendees was down compared to previous years, those who came brought open wallets.
Bruce and Noni Kerr were on a road trip to Sydney and stopped in Thargomindah when they heard about the event.
Shearer Atareta Tekanawa-Semenoff was one of many New Zealand competitors who travelled for the quick shears competition.
"I'm here because I love supporting local outback speed shears and I saw what happened with the flooding," she said.
"Big ups to the community, what a way to come back."
