The Birdsville Races
Anyone who reckons the Melbourne Cup is Australia's premier racing event should take a trip to Birdsville on August 31 and September 1. The tiny outback town near, well, absolutely nowhere is home to the most fervently supported races in the world. Punters make their way over unsealed roads and camp out overnight to watch the outback's equivalent of the Spring Carnival, and bringing enough beer counts for far more than the runners and riders.