CHARITY Pig Races returned to the Tea Gardens Country Club in a fundraiser for the Tea Gardens Hawks Nest Surf Life Saving Club (SLSC) on Saturday 19 April.
The biggest fundraiser for the local SLSC each year, the event aids the club to upgrade its potentially life-saving equipment.
“We are aiming to raise as much as we can towards two new trailers, one for the jet-ski and one for the Inflatable Rescue Boat (IRB),” SLSC Secretary Kerrie Moore told NOTA.
“The jet-ski reverse-trailer will allow two people to get the loaded unit down to the beach, a driver and an operator, who can launch the jet-ski single-handed since it is pointed the right way, making the whole effort lighter and faster to get into the water.
“The new IRB trailer is lighter, requiring much less manual handling.
“Currently we need a minimum team of five people to safely get the jet-ski and IRB into the water.
“The new trailers will only need two people for the jet ski, reducing response times.”
The local surf lifesavers had four major callouts this season, all occurring outside regular patrol hours.
“It helps to have equipment that fewer people can operate,” Kerrie said.
“This is about cutting down response times by up to 70 percent, which can make a world of difference.”
A six-race card kicked off with seven competing pigs in the circuit, while Jimmy’s Smash Burgers kept the hordes well fed.
Each race was preceded by an auction, in which locals could bid on a share of the winning pig’s take.
By Thomas O’KEEFE
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