Colin Palmer had piloted the cart - done up like a Warrigal charter bus  – down the Wentworth Street hill for the last three years.

But this year racing first-timer Mr Beattie – who drives full-size buses for Warrigal – only got a few minutes of practice on the Saturday morning.

“Colin pulled me along with a rope for about 10 metres to get a feel for the steering and that was it,” Mr Beattie said.

“No test drive or anything.”

It wasn’t skill but size that put him in the driver’s seat. Mr Beattie’s 130kg frame added some advantageous momentum to the bus.

“We were just getting pipped by the winner each year so we thought we’d put in a bit of extra weight,” Mr Beattie said.

“Everything else is the same but we just put in some extra weight with the driver.”

Mr Beattie was competing in the Wild and Wacky category – which also boasted a cart done up to look like a wedding cake and another that resembles the V8 Interceptor from Mad Max.

“It’s probably one of the most recognised cars we could think of,” said driver Pepe Chiaverini.

“Everybody knows it and checks it out as they walk past.”

Darryn Turner, a mortician, made the trip to Port Kembla all the way from Newcastle.

As befits a mortician, Mr Turner’s ride was made out of a real coffin and modelled on a hot-rod from the 1960s TV series The Munsters.

And, no, he didn't think he’s tempting fate by racing in a coffin.

There were a range of other riders speeding down Wentworth Street, including street luges, expensive and sleek billy carts and the more traditional style made out of a few pieces of wood with some rope for steering and four wheels hammered into the sides.

Thousands of people defied the intermittent rain, turning up to watch the racers. The stores along the street took advantage of that and opened their doors.

As if the billy carts weren’t exciting enough there were also amusement rides, stalls, bands playing on the rockabilly stage and the Port Kembla Derby Girl competition.

Among the thousands of people who turned out was Gabrielle Ninness, who came from Farmborough Heights with her family to see the carts speed past.

It was the first time she’d been to the races and she’d nabbed a viewing position right at the finish line.

“It’s fun,” Ms Ninness said.

“I like the creativity and the originality of the carts. And I like the expressions on the drivers’ faces when they're going really fast.

“I’ll be coming back every year from now on.”