Last weekend it was heritage train rides at the Bathurst Railway Station. This weekend it's the Heritage Trades Trail at the Bathurst Agricultural Research Station and Bathurst Showground.

Bathurst's annual National Rugby League match (which wasn't held last year due to COVID) is looming: a clash between the Penrith Panthers and Manly Sea-Eagles.

The Gold Crown harness racing extravaganza is only barely in the rearview mirror.

A year-and-a-bit ago, 20,000 people sang along as rock royalty Elton John played his greatest hits at Carrington Park on a balmy summer's evening.

It's easy to take it for granted, but it's worth stopping and acknowledging every now and then the sheer breadth of events hosted by our city - and the visitors those events bring to town.

COVID has proved a considerable handbrake (as it has all over Australia), but, in normal times, locals are lucky to live in a city where an ice-rink will suddenly appear in the CBD, Supercars teams will arrive to stay at homes in the suburbs and, occasionally, an act of the calibre of the Rocketman will step into the spotlight at our league ground.

We're blessed with high quality sporting infrastructure from one side of the city to the other and a location just over the Blue Mountains that puts us within striking distance of five million Sydneysiders.

Finding fault with your local council is easy - it's practically a year-round sport in Australia - but it's also worthwhile to know when your council deserves praise.

Bathurst Regional Council continues to show an appetite for big events and the big opportunities they bring and that's of benefit to all of us.

In a post-COVID Bathurst, in fact, it's going to be of more importance than ever.