George Spring explains why he cut ties with Inside Line Events and the Walcha Freak Show Festival of Motorcycles

Walcha grazier George Spring is an experienced sporting event operator - he has been Wimbledon's court services manager for more than 19 years, worked at five Olympic Games and run numerous events similar to the proposed Walcha motorcycle event, both in Australia and overseas.

Keen to bring an international standard event to his home town he began working with David Rollins in 2015 on a motorbike time trial hill climb on the Oxley Highway, but despite strong local support, it proved too difficult to gain regulatory approval for.

Mr Spring and Inside Line Events then focused on developing something else to appeal to the valuable motorcycle touring market, and the Freak Show Festival of Motorcycles was born.

"The first indication that Walcha's interests were not the Sydney based promoters priority came with the name - Freak Show," Mr Spring said.

"This might be a trendy name in inner Sydney; however in a conservative district like Walcha, the name is probably something a majority of the town would not like to be associated with.

"My suggestion that we conduct a community consultation about the name was flatly rejected."

Privy to the financial management discussed at festival development meetings Mr Spring said he began to feel uncomfortable with the allocation of funds.

"I was involved in a voluntary unpaid basis for over four years helping the Sydney based promoters get an event up and running that would inject tourist dollars into our district," Mr Spring said

"It became apparent early this year that the promoters were more interested in making a profit than growing an event that our district would be proud of."

The objective of injecting money into local business through the event was also not being met as non-local contractors started to be appointed by Inside Line Events according to Mr Spring, so eight months ago he decided to quit the project.

"An event will only benefit a town if as much of the money stays in the town as possible," he said.

"When the suggestions of using a local to design and build the web site and having locals involved in the food and beverage fell on deaf ears, I decided that I did not want to be involved. "

Mr Spring says he voiced his concerns privately within specific sectors of the community but did not go public as, like his fellow locals, he did not want to risk damaging the success of the festival and any potential benefit to Walcha.

"But it seemed to me that the only people that would benefit from the event were the promoters," he said.

Last Tuesday, Inside Line Events announced it had gone into voluntary liquidation and that the Freak Show Festival of Motorcycles was cancelled - just weeks before it was scheduled to begin.