When the community of Wallabadah staged it's first The Way It Was festival in May 2022, organisers had few expectations the event would turn out to be as big or successful as it has become.
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A couple of years on, however, and the festival has managed to not only attract the attention of people from across the state and interstate, but importantly is helping return life to what looked set to become the town's disused racecourse - all while bringing visitors and business to the village of just under 400 people.
Wallabadah had been home to the New Year's Day Wallabadah Cup Picnic Races, one of the state's oldest country meetings and an event which had been a tradition in northern NSW since 1852.
Drought in 2020 and then COVID in 2021 forced the cancellation of the races, then Racing NSW ended the picnics in late 2021 due to safety concerns surrounding the course just weeks out from what would have been the running of the 170th cup.
Locals were left disappointed and wondering what to do next with a racecourse threatened with disrepair unless something changed.
As the third The Way It Was festival draws near, however, the former racecourse is on the verge of a regional renaissance with a new purpose.
One of the festival's organisers, Tim Mackie, manager of Wallabadah Station, said the aim of the event had always been about community and inclusion.
"When we lost the races, we had this facility and knew we had to do something with it," he said.
"The course being declared unsafe which was not ideal, but that's the way it was, so instead of wallowing in the mud and wondering what we were going to do, we just thought we'd do something."
The Wallabadah community banded together to see what was possible, putting a bunch of activities together "to see what would happen".
In the end, it was an event with a mixture of yard dogs, heavy horse demonstrations and blacksmithing, "things people don't get to see everyday", combined with markets and local food stalls for good measure.
"The result have been quite popular and people enjoy it, and they seem to keep coming back," Mr Mackie said.
"We're doing pretty good for a small population, keeping the community engaged and together.
"It's all about community inclusion, so we have groups like the P&C cooking breakfast, and able to make a quid out of that for their organisation, and the same goes for the local Red Cross branch."
Mr Mackie oversees the yard dog events, while other locals look after the heavy horse enthusiasts.
Whatever money is generated from the festival goes back into making improvements to what used to be the old racecourse facilities.
"We've probably done, in a commercial value, about $15,000 worth of upgrades to the site, including electricity and water pipe upgrades ... all that has come about as a result of running this event," Mr Mackie said.
"The facility cab continue to be used and maintained and throughout the year, and it is available for other various groups or individuals for different events."
Looking to the future
Mr Mackie said the long-term aim has always been improve the facility for community functions or private engagements, and with future improvements perhaps hold other large events, similar to Boggabri's Drovers Campfire weekend.
The venue has already played host to a 30th birthday party and christenings, and the Wallabadah Public School cross country.
"We might be a while before we host a wedding, but that's they type of event we're aiming for to keep the facility alive," Mr Mackie said.
"We want to see it used for all sorts of events, but none of that would be possible unless we made the effort to run an annual event we could host there to raise a bit of money to help with upgrades and maintenance."
'Keeping people here'
Mr Mackie said the festival was also about "keeping people here in town", and supporting local business.
"Many locals have helped with the work at the site," he said.
"A local earth mover has done all the earth works we needed to lay new piping and he didn't want anything for it - all we do is give him a plug.
"It's that sort of support that has allowed us to do the job we're doing, and hopefully we can keep it moving in a forward direction, keep the facility maintained, used and improved along the way."
The 2024 The Way It Was festival will be held on Saturday and Sunday, May 18 and 19, featuring all the events which continue to grab the interest of locals and visitors.
The highlight
The highlight of the now annual weekend for Mr Mackie is seeing the facility in use and the community involvement.
"We all love to see a heap of people come to the festival and enjoy a day there," he said.
"If people come for the day or weekend, they support all the community groups by just being there - they'll likely have a meal at the pub and take a look through the local shops.
"Or maybe they are driving past, see something going on, so pull over to have a look at the dogs or the horses and grab a steak sandwich before heading off.
"Every little bit helps."
Visit The Way It Was Facebook page for more details.
