Sun
27
Jul
2014

Wimmers King of the Mountain Festival

King of the Mountain ARE YOU UP TO THE CHALLENGE?
One of the toughest mountain climb challenges in Australia will take place in Pomona, in the beautiful Noosa Hinterland On Sunday 27th July.
Arrive at Pomona from any direction and the first thing you see before you get to the town is the impressive backdrop of Mount Cooroora rising to a peak of 439m. An ancient volcanic plug with rocky outcrops, covered in part by dense trees, the mountain looks formidable and inaccessible. It is then a surprise to find that there is well-worn track up to the top of the mountain, but even more surprising is the fact that this track forms the route for the annual Bendigo Bank International Mountain Challenge. The premier event of the Wimmers King of the Mountain Festival, the Bendigo Bank International Mountain Challenge, covers a distance of 4.2 km. Although the race starts gently from the centre of Pomona, on streets that wind their way out of town to the base of the mountain continuing over undulating bush track, it’s not long before the gruelling, steep climb starts. The track up the mountain gradually becomes little more than a goat track and is almost vertical in parts. In some places the track is only wide enough for one or two runners making passing another competitor risky and precarious. Remarkably there have been few casualties over the years. The return down the mountain requires strength, agility, a good sense of balance, and undoubtedly an immunity to fear. This is not a race for everyone! The course, and indeed the race, has to be seen to be believed. The race record is an incredible 22 minutes and 43 seconds held by Neil Labinsky from nearby Nambour.
If you are not game, the race can be watched on a large outdoor screen from Stan Topper Park in the centre of Pomona. The King of the Mountain Festival and Race is an international event with competitors coming from all over Australia, New Zealand, Pacific Rim & the United Kingdom.
The Festival offers a full program of fun for the whole family, starting with the Poet’s Breakfast held in the iconic Majestic Theatre, Queensland’s longest continuously operating picture theatre. Other activities include the school relays, tug-of-wars, heritage markets and rides for the children. The Pomona Antiques and Collectibles Fair will run over the whole weekend from Saturday to Sunday.