Every Kurilpa Derby is a little different. The format stays the same — Boundary Street closes, the bathtub races go down the hill, the roller derby skaters take their runs — but the specific human content changes year to year, and 2012 had some images I had not seen at the previous year’s event.
The man in the white linen suit on the tiny orange bicycle was in no hurry to get anywhere. He moved slowly up the closed street as if this were his normal commute. The suit was perfectly pressed, the bicycle was absurdly small for him, and he appeared to find none of this unusual.
On the bathtub races: The bathtub race is exactly what it sounds like — a bathtub on wheels sent down the hill on Boundary Street, usually with one person inside and several others pushing. The photography is difficult because the action is fast and unpredictable, but the slower moments — the preparation, the waiting, the in-between — are often better than the race itself. The woman in the bathtub, holding the rope, looking up, produced one of the more composed images of the day.
On the elder with the flag: One of the most significant images I made at the 2012 derby was of an Aboriginal elder on a mobility scooter, moving through the intersection with an Aboriginal flag attached to the front. West End has a long history of being home to Brisbane’s Aboriginal community, and her presence at the community festival carried a weight that I wanted to record without overstating.
On working the side streets: The main Boundary Street action is well-photographed by the time multiple photographers work it across an afternoon. The better images in 2012 came from the adjacent streets and the venues that open their doors to the event — the singer I photographed was performing in a laneway bar, not on the main street at all.
The Kurilpa Derby runs every year. Each one is its own edition.
More Kurilpa Derby coverage: Kurilpa Derby 2011 · Kurilpa Derby 2013 · Kurilpa Derby 2015