Mitch Parkinson, Tweed Coast

The GC600 car race in Surfer’s Paradise on the Gold Coast of Australia can send the place pretty bonkers. V8’s rumble into town, for the glory of victory and the entertainment of 170, 000 people hoping to see some hi-speed cornering, or an over-turned, burning vehicle. So it’s no surprise that, come race weekend, you’ll likely find a lot o’ locals (who ain’t interested in the foot-to-floor action) migrating outta the place like Gazelles fleeing a Cheetah. Dru Adler, his girlfriend Angie Koops, Mikey Mallalieu and Mitch Parkinson (Joel Parko’s younger cousin), are three such locals. Gang couldn’t get outta there quick enough. Environmental scientist/photog Simon Muirhead was kinda pissed that the session didn’t get rolling ’till a bit late in the day, when the onshore nor-easterly turned the place to mush. But proper aerialists don’t need early-morning glassiness to throw down – if anything, the onshore/cross-shore winds make for better ramps. Though you can’t tell in this photo, Simon spent most the session trying to get the background of Byron Bay as it curves around – as he says, “Those types of photos seem to be in ‘vogue’ at the moment.” What you can tell is that talent certainly runs thick in the Parkinson family – young Mitch here can really flair. – Elliot Struck