For the second consecutive year, the annual Duck Creek Picnic Races at Nyngan have been cancelled due to COVID-19.
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The decision was announced via the Race Club's Facebook page early last Monday with over 5000 people expected to miss out on attending.
Duck Creek Race Committee president Rowen Cleaver said for the event to be cancelled for a second year was disappointing.
"It's very frustrating," he said.
"We were sort of right down to the wire and then we sort of gave it away with the input of Racing NSW and ourselves.
"We are very conscious of not doing anything that would endanger people or bring the virus out this way and we weren't 100 percent confident we could do that.
Mr Cleaver admitted there was a significant number of people who had purchased tickets plus an iconic Australian rock band was also set to appear to play following the days racing.
"We had 5000 people pre pay for tickets, plus the Choirboys were playing," he said.
The Choirboys were originally planned to play in 2020 but now will have to wait until next year to play in front of thousands in Nyngan.
The call to cancel the event was not made lightly and Mr Cleaver, along with the race committee, called on several different authorities prior to announcing the cancellation of the races.
"NSW Racing have been good and I think everyone has been good to deal with," he said.
"The shire had an input as well and we had a chat and said hey we can't do this."
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Apart from the spectators, the Duck Creek Races support the local businesses who may have suffered during COVID-19 and Mr Cleaver said the committee's ambition was always to buy local when possible.
"We endeavour to buy everything locally whether it's groceries or alcohol besides the things we can't like security and plastic cups," he said.
"Everything we can do locally we do."
Along with the local businesses, sporting clubs also had the opportunity to be involved with the event in different areas.
"Every sporting organisation or charity group had the opportunity to do a stall or the barbeque the only needed to put their hand up," Mr Cleaver said.
"In years gone by for example, the junior league club would do the morning breakfast, the rugby boys do the bar and the church group do some of the gate."
Away from the races, a luncheon was also scheduled and Mr Cleaver said it has also been cancelled.
"600 adults attending the luncheon away from the young masses," he said.
For now, Mr Cleaver has hopes the event can be rescheduled for later this year but feels it could be a different story.
"We will working with Racing NSW to see if we can get another date this year but you would think that it'll be the same and be on next year," he said.
"It's so difficult to get race dates because you can interfere with other peoples racing and it's all quite set in place."
Dubbo's 123Tix were distributing refunds to attendees.
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