Thousands watch on as boats made of beer cans race on Darwin beach

Thousands watch on as boats made of beer cans race on Darwin beach describes a high-attendance, community-focused event at Mindil Beach. The annual Beer Can Regatta returned for its 52nd edition, featuring homemade rafts built mostly from beer and soft drink cans. Despite only three boats entering this year, crowds numbered in the thousands watched competition and entertainment on and off the water, including tug of war, iron man, and thong throwing. The event also functioned as a fundraiser, with proceeds donated to St John NT and the Mindil Beach Surf Lifesaving Club. Competitor Corporal Rob Meharg said he wanted to join for 20 years, building his team’s boat a little more than a week before the race using cans scavenged on a military base. He said the strategy for Darwin’s waters was simply to row faster, with his team winning early Sunday afternoon.