Festivals - Part 9

Meredith Music Festival, Australia

The Meredith Music Festival has been held yearly since 1991 in Meredith, Victoria, west of Melbourne.

These are not guys wandering around the festival naked.  They are getting ready to enter a naked race known as the Gift.

It all started in 1994 when one of the bands was late.  To fill the time, the festival organizers announced a race of festival attendees, with the winner getting cold beer.  Someone asked what he would get if he did it in the nude.  The answer: more beer.

The following year, several guys raced naked without being asked.

The year after that, so many people wanted to race that the festival limited entry to naked runners, and ever since, it has been a naked race.  It's the Gift that keeps on giving.

To win the race, you have to be the first to grab a hat from one of the stuffed toy dogs and put it on your head.

Competition is fierce.  The guy in the center is actually leaping through the air to get to the dog, while two guys at left are scuffling over the hat.

The result can be quite a melee.

The prize?  The winner gets some beer, a pair of gold-colored underpants, and all-important bragging rights.

Here's a video of part of the race from 2014.  I don't think the music was actually being played at the festival, but it's appropriate.