The Castlemaine Hot Rod Centre Limited launched its highly anticipated ‘Autopia’ event celebrating the art of hot rodding today, March 20.
The exhibition at Autoplex Castlemaine at the former Castlemaine Secondary College senior campus in Etty Street runs until March 28 and features hot rods, street rods, customs and street machines built before January 1, 1980 – e.g. vehicles “built” in the ’50s, ’60s and ’70s only – that have not been substantially changed in the last 40 years.
The display space is limited to approximately 25 vehicles and each has been specially selected by invitation.
The exhibition also features an Art/Craft exhibition including pinstriping, cut-out corrugated iron art, photography, graphic art and metal fabrication art.
The exhibition is a great opportunity for local hot rod enthusiasts to check out Autoplex Castlemaine, which is being redeveloped by Castlemaine Hot Rod Centre Limited. The week long exhibition will also tie in with various events including a T Bucket Cruise, Coffee Cruise and the Castlemaine Auto Model Show at Autoplex this Sunday March 21 only. Don’t miss this unique display of scale model cars from across Victoria!
The exhibition space will be open to the public from 10am til 4pm daily. Entry will be $5 per adult, kids free!
For more information call Kim Michelmore on 0412 276 772 or Larry O’Toole on 0407 842 851 or email them at info@hotrodcentre.com.au
Autoplex Castlemaine is located at 35 Etty St, Castlemaine (former Technical School trade training block).
Explore Autopia!
All Aboard!
Free coach services are running to and from Castlemaine Railway Station for the opening weekend of the Castlemaine State Festival, connecting patrons with performances held in Bendigo.
Additional performances are being held in Bendigo to spread the reach of this year’s festival in response to the coronavirus pandemic and the special coaches will make it easy for Castlemaine locals and festival goers to travel to and from the shows. See the Mail for the full story…
Fringe Festival reactivates our region's artistic heartbeat
For a community of some 7,000 people our town’s unique reputation for the arts and artists precedes it – it’s a heady mix that is being celebrated as part of Castlemaine’s acclaimed Fringe Festival which is on now!
Whether it’s poetry, music, book launches, or an art trail of shop window installations hosted by an eclectic mix of Castlemaine’s veterinary clinics, tattoo parlour, bookshops, bakeries and florist, the Fringe Festival, held over two weeks, will offer something for everyone.
See the Mail for the full story…
Further details of the Castlemaine Fringe Festival, including artists, events, programming and the window art trail can also be found at the festival’s website at castlemainefringe.org.au
Birthing group welcomes the reopening of service
Support Birthing at Castlemaine Health (SBACH) has welcomed Castlemaine Health’s announcement regarding the reopening of birthing services at the hospital.
SBACH spokesperson Arabella Davison said the SBACH community welcomes the long-awaited announcement that antenatal services will return to Castlemaine Health from Monday March 22, with birthing to return from May 3, 2021.
The announcement was made last Wednesday night by the Castlemaine Health’s new CEO Sue Race at the sold out SBACH Celebration event at the Theatre Royal in Castlemaine.
Ms Davison said they are so proud that this community has fought to retain this precious, vital community resource, that all regional women deserve.
“It is a demonstration of the shared commitment of the Castlemaine and Bendigo hospitals, midwives, GPs, and importantly, this passionate community, to provide women and their families with access to quality, caring, local birthing services,” she said. See the Mail for more…
Premiers crowned
The Castlemaine District Cricket Association (CDCA) grand finals got underway Friday evening with Harcourt hosting Barkers Creek in the Women’s showdown.
Harcourt finished on top of the ladder and Barkers Creek were vying for back to back premiership honours.
Harcourt won the toss and elected to bat first. They made 56 runs but lost seven wickets (which adds 3 runs per wicket = 21 runs to the opposition) then Barkers Creek went in for their innings and only lost one wicket (3 runs added to the opposition) giving Harcourt a final score of 59 and Barkers Creek’s final score was 135.
At the conclusion of a top evening of competition Barkers Creek emerged victorious and claimed the 2020-2021 Premiership Cup. See the Mail for more…
Enough is enough
The Loddon Consortium
Enough is enough. That’s the message from women, everywhere.
They’ve had enough of their voices not being heard. Their stories not being believed.
Their history, silenced.
Their calls for action ignored.
And they’re angry.
To maintain the rage and send a strong message to our national leaders that enough is enough, the Loddon Gender Equality and Violence Prevention Consortium supported the ‘March 4 Justice’ campaign by coordinating a Bendigo event on Monday March 15 to coincide with others across the country.
We called on the community to join us in a respectful gathering, to reflect on the experiences of victim survivors of sexual assault and other forms of abuse.
Everyone knows a woman who has been sexually assaulted or abused.
We know that in recent weeks, more and more women (and some men) are talking about experiences throughout their lives – and realising that those experiences were sexual assault, grooming or abuse.
They have been living in silence for too long. Sitting with the impact alone – because we have created a society where talking about sexual assault is taboo. Where the fear and shame of being blamed or judged has stopped people from seeking help.
This is the society we have created. Where victims are silenced by their perpetrator, the system and then by their community.
Sexual assault happens in every demographic, and women of all ages and backgrounds are more likely to be victims than men.
It is hard to hear their stories.
But how you feel should not be the reason someone does not feel safe to disclose what happened to them. Nor should how you feel silence them.
As a community it’s time for us to really listen to victim survivors – and ask, what are we doing to contribute to a community that continues to make excuses for those who abuse them.
If every one of us knows a victim survivor, we know perpetrators.
How have you heard perpetrators being excused?
Why aren’t we getting angry that the more people disclose they have been victims of sexual or other violence, the more we hear excuses for the ‘good bloke’.
As Australian of the Year and survivor of sexual assault Grace Tame says, “we enable them to charm and manipulate not just their targets, but all of us at once, family, friends, colleagues and community members, and this must stop. Our discomfort, our fear, and resulting ignorance needs to stop giving perpetrators the protection, power and confidence that allows them to operate.”
We support Women’s March 4 Justice in calling for:
– A full police investigation of rape and sexual assault allegations, and misconduct by Members of Parliament and staff.
– An independent wide-reaching review commissioned by the High Court of gendered violence in Australia’s Parliaments including Federal Parliament
– Australia wide strategies for deep cultural change in workplaces, and the political and criminal justice systems, focused on promoting equality, respect, fairness, integrity and a level playing field for all.
– A Federal ICAC – Independent Commission Against Corruption.
As Grace says, it’s time to make some noise Australia.
Let’s get loud.
The Consortium recognises these conversations are difficult for victim survivors and encourages you to reach out to support services.
We also encourage all members of the community to connect with women in your life, as current events may be impacting on them more than you are aware.
Centre Against Sexual Assault Central Victoria – 03 5441 0430
Sexual Assault Crisis Line – 1800 806 292
1800 RESPECT – 1800 737 732
Centre for Non-Violence 1800 884 292
24-hour statewide safe steps Family Violence Response Centre crisis response line 1800 015 188.
In an emergency phone 000
Kultur-all feast!
Kultur-All Makaan is poised to inject a major dose of multicultural flavoured fun into the state festival.
Almost a year since its premiere program was cancelled due to Covid, this multicultural menu item is returning with a zesty series of live music, dance and dialogue starting tomorrow afternoon and running through to March 29.
“We’re nearly booked out,” coordinator Jude Anderson says. Get the story in today’s Mail…
Housing needed
Chris Hooper, Castlemaine
I agree with Rex Odgers’ idea (Mail, March 5) of having aged care facilities closer to town. Any housing for that matter. The further you are out the more you need a car. Transport contributes greatly to Greenhouse gases and so exacerbates climate change.
I’d love to see more smaller community buses servicing those in and around town so people didn’t have to drive.
I’m not sure about another supermarket from the point of view that it just brings in more trucks, delivering the goods to be sold there and takes away from the smaller locally run shops.
Maybe we could have community buses picking people up from McKenzie Hill and the new housing at Campbells Creek to bring them into town to shop and socialise then returning people safely home without having to park.
We have to bite the bullet eventually and face that not all people can have a free standing house and a car, for the sake of the environment.
Finals fever
The Castlemaine District Cricket Association (CDCA) finals series continues this weekend. In the Women’s Grand Final at Harcourt Recreation Reserve on Friday night Harcourt hosted Barkers Creek.
Harcourt finished on top of the ladder this season and Barkers Creek were vying for back to back titles. Both sides played some fine cricket but in the end Barkers Creek emerged victorious. See next week’s Mail for more…
Swap Meet cancelled
The Castlemaine Lions Club has made the difficult decision to cancel its popular April Swap Meet for the second consecutive year due to covid concerns.
Swap Meet coordinator Ron Gartside said the club felt it had no choice but to postpone its major fundraiser for another year.
“With 600 stallholders and more than 3000-3500 visitors a year through the gates of the Camp Reserve this pushes us up into the state government’s CovidSafe Plan Tier 2 category and we felt the requirements were just to onerous and the requirements would be difficult for our members and volunteers to police,” Mr Gartside said.
“We also didn’t want to be in a position where we could potentially place the Castlemaine district community at risk,” he said.
Mr Gartside said the swap meet welcomes traders and collectors from all over the state and beyond.
“There are just too many unknown factors. We’d also hate to welcome our fantastic interstate site holders and then see them stuck in Victoria if the borders were to suddenly close due to an outbreak,” he said.
“We are extremely disappointed that we can’t go ahead and in turn that we can’t pass on the fundraising benefits to the local community groups that support us every year by volunteering at our event. But we feel this is the right decision in the best interests of our club members and the wider community,” he said. See the Mail for more…
Rodder's bible gets an overhaul
The publishers of Castlemaine’s Australian Street Rodding magazine – Graffiti Publications have launched their latest book Street Rod Engineering.
Local hot rod enthusiast and Graffiti Publications founder Larry O’Toole said the book is a follow up to one they published 23 years ago titled Engineering Street Rods.
“The original book was very successful and was printed twice in that period. It sold very well in the USA and was the go-to-book for hot rodders wanting to endure their vehicle was built safely and to comply with the certification regulations,” he said.
The book is considered a bible for those new to hot rodding offering a step by step guide to building your own car. See the Mail for the full story.
Maternity service to reopen
Castlemaine Health announced its maternity service will reopen in a two-stage approach from March 22, 2021 to be fully operational from May 3, 2021.
Castlemaine Health CEO Sue Race made the announcement at last Wednesday evening’s Support Birthing at Castlemaine Health (SBACH) reopening celebration at the Castlemaine Theatre Royal.
Ms Race said they look forward to resuming the important role of caring for local women, babies and families throughout pregnancy, birth and early parenting.
“I would like to acknowledge the tireless work of our service review team and the tremendous support from Bendigo Health, Safer Care Victoria, the Department of Health and the Australian Nursing & Midwifery Federation (ANMF), Victorian Branch to get to this point,” Ms Race said.
“Their commitment to offering locally based maternity services for regional women and families has matched our own. What we have come together to create will benefit our community well into the future.”
How the two-stage approach will work:
Pregnancy care
Maternity services will open for referrals for pregnancy care on Monday March 22.
Women who meet the criteria for care at Castlemaine Health and who are 31 weeks gestation or less on March 22 can:
• Self-refer by contacting Castlemaine Health maternity services direct
• Be referred by their general practitioner or general practitioner obstetrician.
Birthing services
Birthing services will open from Monday May 3 for births from 37 weeks gestation up to 42 weeks gestation, in line with the capability of a Level 2 maternity service.
These dates have been endorsed by the Castlemaine Health Board of Management and the Castlemaine Maternity Services Governance Group, which comprise members of the Castlemaine Health Board, staff members, consumers, Safer Care Victoria, the Department of Health and the ANMF, Victorian Branch.
About the service
Castlemaine Health is a Level 2 maternity service, offering local care for women and babies at low risk.
The service has a strong relationship and professional partnership with Bendigo Health, a Level 5 maternity service. The two will work closely together to ensure women transition smoothly between the services when required and benefit from the expertise, care and oversight of a broader team of clinical specialists. The relationship will also support the professional development of the Castlemaine maternity team.
Care Pathways
Women referred to Castlemaine Health maternity service from March 22 will be allocated to one of three care pathways based on their needs, preferences and clinical profile. They will be cared for by a primary midwife, who will collaborate with General Practice Obstetricians, allied health and support services. The pathways include:
Midwifery Group Practice – where the woman will be cared for by a primary known midwife throughout pregnancy, labour and birth and early parenting.
Collaborative Shared Care – where the woman will receive pregnancy care from their chosen General Practice Obstetrician and a known midwife. Their midwife will then provide care for labour and birth and early parenting.
A third pathway, Complex Maternity Care – will be available to women who are not suitable for care at Castlemaine Health due to a higher risk profile. These women will be cared for at Bendigo Health or a higher-level service but may be suitable for transfer back to Castlemaine Health for care after the birth of their baby.
The re-opening of maternity services has been eagerly anticipated by the local and broader community.
“The Castlemaine Health Board’s commitment to review and renew and provide a strengthened maternity service has arrived,” says Castlemaine Health Board Chair, Peggy Ronnau.
“This is a wonderful outcome for our community.”
Castlemaine Health CEO, Sue Race agrees.
“We are so pleased to be able to announce our opening dates and look forward to introducing our newly appointed Midwifery Group Practice team, including our new Midwifery Clinical Coordinator, in the very near future,” Ms Race said.
“It’s a wonderful way to begin 2021.”
