ALONGSIDE the elegant foot races, bustling tension of the bookie ring, and the long line to the CWA treats, the lolly drop stands as an integral part of the bush race meet.
The crowd quietens as the distant whir nears and children start running to scale the fence, pulling off boots and overturning Akubras in hands ready to scoop up what they can.
Traditionally, a helicopter makes the dash over the track, but when the McKinlay Races wrote a lolly drop into the schedule for the first time a couple of years ago, it took a different tack.
Scott Zadow from Oorindi Park between McKinlay and Julia Creek combined business promotion and community spirit when he donated a lolly drop from his bright orange gyrocopter.
"After being in the air for a few years, I thought to do it as a promotional thing and to get out in the community a bit."
For a simple gesture, Mr Zadow said the interest is big.
"I do it at the McKinlay and Julia Creek races, and a lot of people still think, oh wow.
"It has been positive for the community. The kids seem to go for it. We've got young kids ourselves and the highlight for them is to go for the lolly drop."
He's also become a little creative with his delivery.
"The first year, I had a piece of pipe and tipped a bag of lollies down, but now I made a little chute on the side."
While the gyrocopter may be cheaper to run than a helicopter, taking only half the fuel, the treat price tag adds up.
"I drop about $120 worth of lollies," Mr Zadow said.
But the activity has worked for his business and is helping dispel the stigma attached to gyrocopters as flimsy and dangerous aircraft which he believes came about in the early days of their use when people built their own machines and taught themselves to fly.
This led to their reliability being questioned, but he said they were safer to fly than helicopters and aeroplanes because of the unpowered rotor blade.
"They are a light machine driven solely by air speed so there is a slow rate of descent and no relying solely on the engine," he explained.
Mr Zadow has used his gyrocopter for mustering for years and says more interest and acceptance is building in the area every year for this different form of aviation.