A brief storm early in the afternoon did not dampen the spirits of those organising or attending the inaugural Ballin' on the Balonne New Year's Eve event, which attracted hundreds of guests and raised over $50,000 for the Royal Flying Doctor Service.
According to Marie Murray, member of the organising group, which is part of the Surat and District Development Association, the event was such a huge success there is already talk of it becoming an annual shindig.
Ms Murray said the event at Surat Racecourse, which attracted 450 people with a waiting list of more than 100, was never going to be halted by a little of the wet stuff falling from the sky.
"We did get an early storm around 2pm, but we backed ourselves it would be okay," she said.
"The Ballin' on the Balonne was held at the Surat racecourse and everything was ready to roll by 6.30pm."
Feedback from everyone involved has been very positive, she said.
"There's a high possibility this will be an annual event," Ms Murray said.
"If it does, then we will choose a different charity each year to support."
The party, which finished "well after midnight", included an auction, with Sarah Packer on the gavel, Ms Murray said.
"So far from the night we raised $50,000 from the raffle and the auction alone, but we have yet to get our final figure."
ARIA-award winning duo Route 33 comprising Jock Barnes and Trent McArdle entertained the crowd and Mr Barnes said the pair really enjoyed the gig.
"It was a great night, they were a great audience," he said.
"We were lucky, the storm front split and went around us and gave us great lightning pyrotechnics.
"It was great to be part of such a fantastic event to raise money for such a good cause."
