Having his fourth start, Maldon-trained Mark’s Line broke through for his first win with a courageous effort at Horsham on Sunday.
Lining up in the Bet365 Maiden Plate over 1400m, lightly raced Mark’s Line had not raced since runner-up at Donald on August 1.
Co-trainers Brian and Ashley McKnight had good reason to be pleased with the four-year-old’s performance, with Christine Puls in the saddle.
Mark’s Line, raced by the McKnight family, was well in the market, and finished up defeating rank outsider Capito by 0.4 lengths.
Maldon galloper wins
COscars on tonight!
Mount Alexander Shire Council’s second annual Youth Film Festival has been rescheduled to tonight Friday October 22. The festival will head outdoors this year and be screened in Castlemaine’s Village Square in Frederick Street.
Headlined by the box office hit, Zootopia, the festival will also feature short films made by local young people.
The ‘shorts’, ranging from 50 seconds up to 25 minutes, are entries in the local equivalent of the film industry’s Academy Awards, the COscars.
Organisers say screening the festival outdoors was a way of continuing with this great event in COVID-restricted circumstances and that all the usual trimmings of a cinematic experience – ice-cream, popcorn and hot drinks – will be on sale.
They’re also encouraging attendees to pre-order and bring take-away meals from local restaurants and cafes to the outdoor festival which runs from 7.30pm to 10.30pm.
Legacy seeks local support
The Castlemaine Group of Legacy were unable to have their usual badge sales fundraiser around the streets of Castlemaine during Legacy Week because of covid restrictions and therefore missed out on much needed funds.
Having stocked up on badges, pens and card packs, which are a new addition to the items available, Castlemaine Legacy has decided to have them available for sale today, Friday October 22, and tomorrow, Saturday October 23, at the front of the Castlemaine RSL building in Mostyn Street between 10am and 1pm.
Poetry entries close today
Calling all poets! Entries for our 2021 Castlemaine Poetry Prize close today Friday October 22 so be sure to get your entry in! In the Senior Section (poets 16 and over) three awards will be presented this year for ‘Best Poem’, runner-up and the ‘Judge’s Choice Award’.
Elliott Midland Newspapers are proud to support the 2021 Castlemaine Poetry Prize which is proudly sponsored by Mount Alexander Shire Council and celebrates its 10th anniversary in 2021.
This year’s competition carries a first prize of $100 (Senior section) and an award. The runner-up will receive $50.
The ‘Judge’s Choice Award’ is proudly supported by Soldier and Scholar Bookshop Castlemaine and the winner will receive an award and a $50 book voucher.
In the Junior Section there will be three categories and prizes on offer. The sections are Grade 2 and Under, Grade 6 and Under and Year 10 and Under. There will also be award certificates for Highly Commended and Commended Poems.
The three junior prize winners in each section will receive a trophy and $50 book voucher.
Selected entries, including the winning poems, will be published in our sister paper the Castlemaine Mail.
The poem must not have been published or have won another prize, a strict maximum of 40 lines applies and all entries should be double spaced. Poets can choose any theme. There is no entry fee but only three entries from each poet are permitted.
Contact details, including a phone number must be enclosed but preferably not on the same page as the poem.
Castlemaine poets Tegan Gigante and Annie Hunter have generously agreed to once judge this year’s Senior and Junior competitions.
Entries can be submitted via email to ldennis@midnews.com.au or dropped into our office at 13 Hargraves Street, Castlemaine.
Entries for both the senior and junior sections close today October 22 at 5pm. For more information email Castlemaine Mail editor Lisa Dennis at ldennis@midnews.com.au.
The awards will be presented to our winners at ceremonies to be held in November. Stay tuned for details.
Big backyard bird count is on again
Eve Lamb
It’s time to dust off those binoculars and tune in to the natural world with Castlemaine members of BirdLife Australia encouraging local residents to take part in the great Aussie Backyard Bird Count.
The big bird count starts on Monday and runs throughout National Bird Week to October 24 with people all over Australia invited to set aside just 20 minutes to count and record the numbers and types of birds they observe in that time.
“Our main message is get out there and give it a go,” says Jane Rusden, president of BirdLife Castlemaine District.
The data collected during the popular annual citizen science project will help BirdLife Australia assess how birds are surviving in urban areas and reveal which populated Australian locations are home to the largest number of bird species.
Jane says the aim is not to try to record the most birds during your allotted 20 minutes.
“Getting a low count is just as important in terms of the information it provides,” she says.
And it’s really easy to take part. You just spend 20 minutes in your favourite outdoor space and record the number and type of birds you see during that time and you can submit your results using the app or the web form.” Read more in today’s Mail…
Local churches march for stronger climate action
Eve Lamb
As Prince Charles turns up the heat on our PM to attend next month’s UN climate talks in Glasgow and local school kids hold yet another School Strike for Climate, Castlemaine churches are also taking action.
On Sunday the Uniting Church in Castlemaine will be among multiple faiths across the planet participating in events calling for urgent action to alleviate climate change – with a local march to take place in Castlemaine.
“Destroying the planet is against what we believe,” says elder with the Uniting Church at Harcourt, Solway Nutting, among those inviting people of all faiths to take part in the Faiths For Climate Justice event happening in Castlemaine this Sunday.
“In Castlemaine, people of faith will meet at the Uniting Church in Lyttleton Street next to the Art Gallery at 1pm,” she says.
“We will walk through the CBD to the Market Building, in COVID-safe groups of ten, carrying symbols of our religions.
“People who regard themselves as secular are also welcome to join us.”
The town’s Anglican Church, Catholic Church and the Johannine community church have also indicated they will all take part.
And they aim to be heard with church bells to ring out during the COVID-safe event and singing in the street also likely to ensure the multi-faith event gets noticed.
“It is a multi-faith event and the hope is there will be multiple faiths represented,” Uniting Church minister, Castlemaine’s Rev Sarah Tomlinson said.
Ms Nutting says this Sunday’s event follows a mid-year Inter-governmental Panel on Climate Change report that found that the 1.5 degree C cap on warming is not possible unless a five-fold increase in global Paris pledges is implemented. Read more in today’s Mail…
Woman arrested amid anti-vax protest
Eve Lamb
A Castlemaine woman has been arrested and charged following an incident in the town’s Victory Park last weekend.
The arrest last Saturday morning took place during a protest gathering which police say involved a small number of people who were demonstrating against vaccination and mask wearing mandates.
Castlemaine’s Senior Sergeant Darren McQueen has confirmed that Castlemaine police attended the park on Saturday morning as a small anti-vaxxer, anti-mask wearing demonstration was being held.
When the middle-aged woman who was present was requested, by attending police, to provide her name and confirmation of her place of residence she failed to comply, Sen Sgt McQueen said.
The woman was subsequently arrested and charged on summons with resisting arrest, failure to provide identification as requested, failure to wear a mask in public in line with the state’s current requirements around mask wearing and failure to provide confirmation of her place of residence as requested by police.
Senior Sergeant McQueen said that following her arrest the woman had subsequently complied with requests to provide details of her identity.
However she will now be expected to face the magistrates court at a subsequent date in relation to the charges against her.
“Our stance is that we will police these protest activities and if they are within the directives we won’t interfere with the right to protest,” Snr Sgt McQueen told the Mail this week.
“We observe the right to protest however if someone is behaving in an anti-social manner we will police that.” Read more in today’s Mail…
‘Operation Guardian’ stops over
There had been one new covid case recorded in Mount Alexander Shire as we went to press Thursday. The number of active local cases had been revised to 16.
Victoria had recorded a staggering new daily record of 2297 new cases and 11 deaths. Health authorities were at a loss to explain the reason for the spike with no particular incident attributed. There was one new case in the Macedon Ranges bringing their total to 51, 0 in Hepburn where there remain four active cases and nine in Greater Bendigo where there are now 42 active cases.
Castlemaine’s exposure sites have now been removed from the Coronavirus Victoria website. However, there are a number of Tier 1 sites at Bendigo and Ballarat. Visit coronavirus.vic.gov.au for more details.
Victoria Police members and Army personnel visited Castlemaine on Tuesday as part of ‘Operation Guardian’. The team conducted ID checks at the Castlemaine Railway Station and also set up a roadside operation in Duke Street at the entrance to Castlemaine.
In other news Mount Alexander Shire has now reached 92.4% first dose vaccinations and 70.4% double dose. See today’s Mail for more and keep an eye on our social media and website for updates.
Landlords and tenants urged to provide input
Preliminary results of a community survey into giving locals more affordable rental options are already showing strong support from local landlords and tenants but more responses are needed.
The survey, conducted by local housing group My Home Network (MHN), explores two initiatives aimed at giving people more affordable rental options – a local not-for-profit real estate agency and a Home Share scheme.
Preliminary results show 85 per cent of landlords of a vacant or rental property who completed the survey said they would be interested in renting their property with a not-for-profit real estate agency.
Meanwhile, more than 74 per cent of landlords with one or more rooms to rent would consider using the Home Share model, and nearly 80 per cent potential tenants said they would consider using the Home Share model. See today’s Mail for the full story and find out how you can take part.
Stellar season for Caitlin
Newstead teen Caitlin Richardson continues to rake in the award honours having been named the Big V Basketball Victoria Youth Championship Women’s Most Valuable Player for season 2021.
The Bendigo Braves player had a top year on the court in the Big V comp and at the Country Championships.
The latest accolade comes just weeks after the 17-year-old finished runner-up in the Maryborough Castlemaine District Football Netball League’s prestigious Nalder-Tracey Trophy for the league’s Best and Fairest A Grade.
Caitlin also claimed the ‘Rookie of the Year’ and ‘Maryborough Advertiser Netballer of the Year’ honours at the MCDFNL awards night. See the Mail for the full story.
Orbit celebrates local artist
Castlemaine Art Museum’s (CAM) latest ‘Orbit’ exhibition features the work of talented local artist Alvin Darcy Briggs.
This is the seventh exhibition in CAM’s Orbit program; a series of exhibitions by artists who live and work in Central Victoria.
Alvin’s Dad is Yorta Yorta, Taungurung and his Mum is Nario, Walbunja. Alvin lives and works in Castlemaine. He learnt different crafts through family and Elders.
“I’ve been drawing since I could walk and have always been encouraged to draw. My Dad was always making artefacts, design and poker work and now I make artefacts too,” Alvin said.
“He introduced me to the machine I use today which utilises a heated wire to make free marks. This technique is called pyrography which means ‘writing with fire’. See the Mail for more…
Winters Flat kicking goals!
Winters Flat Primary School in Castlemaine has claimed second place in the Loddon Mallee Waste and Resource Recovery Group’s (LMWRRG) ‘Sustainability Goal Kicking Competition’ which was open to any school registered with ResourceSmart Schools in the Loddon Mallee region.
Winters Flat was among 25 schools from across the region to take part in the challenge to see who could kick the most ‘sustainability goals’ and vie for the chance to win a share in $10,000 in prizes including: Elphinstone PS, Kyneton PS, Malmsbury PS, Langley PS, and St Brigids Gisborne PS.
St Mary’s Echuca came first, followed by Winters Flat PS in second place and Malmsbury PS in third.
Winters Flat was delighted to win a nesting box made by the Maryborough Men’s Shed, two BioFilta recycled plastic wicking beds, a year’s worth of seeds from Mr Fothergill’s and $750 cash to spend on their garden. See the Mail for more…
