Robbie Dolan embraces the outback spirit

For Dolan, it was an opportunity to see the Australia he had imagined before leaving Ireland. The outback landscape and the flies were unfamiliar, but the warm welcome was not.

“The people out here are just so kind and would do anything for you, go out of their way to help people – and that hits home, reminds me of my roots in Ireland.”

The town of just a few thousand plays host to the renowned Outback Festival, where Dolan gamely swapped his silks for a Dolly Parton costume and joined in the Dunny Derby. His good-humoured embrace of the festivities captured the spirit of what the Cup Tour is all about.

The Cup’s arrival offered a rare chance for the Winton community to come together and celebrate the race that stops the nation. “They are hard workers out here, and they all stop what they’re doing to watch the race. This is the definition of bringing the Cup to the people,” said Dolan.