Town turns it on for island hop

By Alison Noonan
BLUE skies saw a record crowd flock to Cranbourne on Saturday for the MRA Cranbourne GP Run.
As many as 8000 motorcyclists roared from High Street to make the annual pilgrimage to Phillip Island for the Australian Motorcycle Grand Prix.
MRA president Dale Maggs said he was delighted with the massive turnout, welcoming riders from Europe and all over Australia to the prestigious event.
“The MRA put in its order early and got the best possible weather,” Mr Maggs said.
“We had the biggestever crowd, with about 5000 locals turning out to wave the riders off and the atmosphere was awesome,” he said.
“It was fantastic to see riders come down from all over Australia and even as far as Europe, which means it is obviously something people naturally associate with the GP scene.”
Mr Maggs said visitors enjoyed free entertainment, colourful street displays, giveaways and a barbecue breakfast before the waveoff at 10am.
“The crowd participation was definitely up on other years and lots more families and people who weren’t riding came to show their support,” he said.
“The event does awesome things for the local economy and it’s only going to get bigger and bigger.”
Mr Maggs said his previous concerns regarding roadworks on the Bass Coast Highway were swiftly alleviated, with riders given safe passage to the island.
“All roadworks were fixed within 48 hours of my complaints, which gave the riders a sense of security,” he said.
He said the MRA had already been in talks with 20yearold Australian 250cc motorcycle rider Casey Stoner to waveoff next year’s convoy.
Casey Council CEO Mike Tyler congratulated the community for their early morning support.
“It was great to see the impressive turnout and the community strongly supporting this annual highlight, which has now become a spectacular tradition in Cranbourne,” Mr Tyler said.
“Thousands of gleaming motorcycles lined the main street for four city blocks, creating an electric atmosphere with thousands of people from across Victoria taking part in the excitement,” he said.
Mr Tyler thanked the event organisers, including City of Casey staff, the Motorcycle Riders Association, the Australian Grand Prix Corporation, the Victorian Police, Cranbourne Chamber of Commerce and the many local businesses and community groups for contributing to the enormous success of this year’s event.
For more photographs of the MRA Cranbourne GP Run visit www.mraa.org.au.