Fairground attractions giant Mahons Amusements is more than ready for the flood of Hawke's Bay joyriders as the Royal A and P Show of New Zealand kicks into action in Hastings today.
The Ngaruawahia troupe will operate two new rides, including the Black Pearl Pirates of the Pacific, the latest take on the haunted house concept which has been a staple of the Ngaruawahia company's operation for much of the more than three decades it has been coming to the Hawke's Bay Show.
It was designed by company boss John Mahon and built in New Zealand during the off-season, with concepts and components from the home of what is regarded as a $40b industry at the International Association of Amusement Park Attractions in the US.
It was an immediate success as the Poverty Bay A and P Show opened the show circuit in the lower and central North Island last week and is expected to be an even more popular attraction today, tomorrow and on Friday's public holiday People's Day, during which show attendance is expected to total about 30,000.
Muchdepends on the weather, which has been notoriously changeable during show week, which has been held in the lead-up to Labour Weekend in October for much of the time since the first event was held in 1863.