Cool down and unleash your inner child at Adelaide's biggest water fight

Culture

Cool down and unleash your inner child at Adelaide’s biggest water fight

Words by Barlow Redfearn January 7, 2016

For all the water fight enthusiasts out there who were unable to make it to Thailand for the annual Songkran Festival please allow me to introduce you to the H2O Explosion.

Billed as Adelaide’s biggest water fight, H2O Explosion will be held in February at Glenelg’s Colley Reserve, and whilst our Aussie answer to this deeply significant Buddhist celebration has no obvious reason to exist – other than predictably sweltering temperatures – we think it could make for a good time.

Yet, like everything in Australia today, there are rules:

– You cannot, under any circumstances, bring your own weaponry. H2O Explosion issue water balloons, foam, and water pistols will be provided. So unfortunately there are no Gatling-style water cannons allowed.

– The fight will last for three hours and use up to 10,000 litres of water, however event organisers have billed the event as ‘eco-friendly’ due to the fact that the reserve requires 7,000 litres of water an hour to be maintained:

“The event is also eco-friendly; Standard watering at this venue generally uses 7,000 litres of water in just 1 hour; the H2O Explosion will use 10,000 litres of water for the full event. Plus the addition of hand held foam is also good for the environment.”

We might be wrong, but we think the take home message is that water fights are actually good for the environment, provided its held on one of those local government owned properties that will never, ever be seen in a state of yellowed dehydration no matter what the water restrictions might be.

– If you’re unfamiliar with the iconic Buddhist festival, Songkran, here’s a taste of the action: