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Crate Day is an unofficial celebration in New Zealand, held on the first Saturday of December every year. Participants set themselves the challenge of finishing a crate of twelve 745ml beer bottles between 12pm until midnight. The total alcohol content of a crate, 300 grams, is close to a lethal dose.

Crate Day was first promoted by radio station The Rock in 2010, and the event has since grown in popularity, leading to a number of disturbances, arrests, and injuries each year. Many alcohol-related businesses have promotions for the event, and numerous local councils enact liquor bans or restrictions over the weekend. The Rock no longer promotes the event.

History

In 2010, mainstream rock radio station The Rock started The Rock National Crate Day, a yearly event promoted on air alongside the sale of Crate Day themed merchandise. Duncan Heyde, The Rock’s then-afternoon slot host, has been credited as an early major proponent of the event. The station held a 12-hour broadcast starting from 12pm, with participants invited to listen in as they consumed a crate of twelve beer bottles in a social setting. The event was ostensibly promoted as a way to mark the start of summer with friends, hence it occurring on the first weekend of the season.

The Rock published a yearly list of 10 "commandments" for participants to follow, including supporting "thy crate of origin", referring to drinking beer from an individual's hometown or region, and "thou only beef that should attend National Crate Day is thy beef for thy BBQ". The event soon grew in popularity and became less connected with The Rock, with the weekend now seeing a rise of injuries and arrests each year. The Rock stopped officially promoting National Crate Day in 2019.

Controversy

The event started receiving media criticism in the early 2010s for promoting binge drinking, with police and hospital staff citing it as a reason for an increase in hospital visits and arrests. A study released in 2023 found that on Crate Day weekends, compared to other weekends, twice as many drunk 20-34 year olds needed treatment at emergency departments in Waikato. Two thirds of the patients hospitalised for alcohol-related reasons were male.

In November 2015, two complaints were laid with SPCA New Zealand after a Taranaki man shared his Crate Day plans on Facebook, including the spit roasting of a miniature horse. He later added "If u wanna bring sum food all gd. Salad that will go with horse." The posts were later removed after the SPCA was contacted.

In 2016, 300 people attended an impromptu Crate Day event held on the Village Green in central Queenstown. The event, organised through social media, resulted in trash and vomit being left behind, with locals calling for a liquor ban over the Crate Day weekend.

In December 2022, a group of 70 four-wheel drive vehicles were observed at the Ashley River / Rakahuri in Canterbury on the river bed where endangered birds were nesting, during an event to mark Crate Day. The endangered species that nest along the river bed from September to February include banded dotterel and black-fronted tern. Despite signs warning of fines and imprisonment for disturbing endangered species, the drivers went ahead and entered the river bed. In December 2023, despite the presence of police, Department of Conservation staff, and Environment Canterbury representatives, a group of around 150 4WD vehicles entered the Ashley River again on Crate Day, causing disruption to the breeding colonies of endangered birds and crushing eggs. In 2024, the Waimakariri District Mayor held meetings with 4WD groups, environmental groups, community boards and councillors about access to the river during the bird breeding season. The original organiser of Crate Day, Ashley Sargeant, also called for 4WD drivers to stay away from the river. Few 4WD vehicles arrived at the river to celebrate Crate Day in 2024, and none entered the breeding colony areas.

In popular culture

Crate Day was the inspiration for Truly Friday's single 'Crate Day'.

In 2022, New Zealand band DARTZ played four backyard Crate Day shows in Christchurch, Wellington, Auckland, and Hamilton in 12 hours. This followed the band playing 14 shows across Wellington for 2019's Crate Day.

See also

• List of unofficial observances in New Zealand
• Alcohol in New Zealand
• Six o'clock swill

References

1. "Crate Day in New Zealand in 2020". There is a Day for That!. Archived from the original on 25 October 2020. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
2. ^ Griffiths, Ethan (2 December 2020). "Crate Day: Hospital warns of binge-drinking dangers". NZ Herald. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
3. Iasona, Seni (2 December 2022). "Crate Day: Alcohol expert Professor Doug Sellman suggests The Rock 'pick up the tab' for harm caused from 'drunken drongo day'". Newshub. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 1 December 2023.
4. "How New Zealand's national Crate Day came to be". Stuff. 1 December 2016. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
5. Zollickhofer, Danielle (3 December 2021). "Crate Day in middle of pandemic puts pressure on already stretched ED staff". NZ Herald. Archived from the original on 9 March 2023. Retrieved 9 March 2023.
6. Gillespie, Kiri (7 December 2010). "Drunk students wreak havoc in city suburb". Bay of Plenty Times. ProQuest 816280369. Retrieved 9 March 2023 – via Proquest Australia & New Zealand Newsstream.
7. "Crate Day a 'throwback' NZ can do without - National". Stuff. 1 December 2017. Archived from the original on 8 December 2020. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
8. ^ Chumko, André (2 December 2023). "The unseen horrors of Crate Day". www.thepost.co.nz. Archived from the original on 24 December 2023. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
9. "24-hour alcohol ban for downtown Queenstown on Crate Day". www.scoop.co.nz. 2 December 2019. Archived from the original on 7 August 2020. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
10. ^ McConnell, Glenn (1 December 2016). "How New Zealand's national Crate Day came to be". Stuff. Archived from the original on 12 November 2020. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
11. "Facebook". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 3 December 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
12. "The Rock - Happy National Crate Day New Zealand! We'll be doing a live #CrateDay broadcast from the boss's place from midday, so tune in to hear the latest from us and also the Crate Day Hundy. Remember to look after your mates and follow the 10 Commandments! | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Archived from the original on 4 December 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
13. "The Rock - Happy National Crate Day NZ! Remember to look after your mates, crank up The Rock for the #CrateDay Hundy, follow the commandments and oh yeah...have a bloody great time! | Facebook". www.facebook.com. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
14. "Crate Day gets thumbs down - Bay of Plenty Times News". NZ Herald. 4 December 2023. Archived from the original on 15 December 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
15. Moore, Rachel (23 March 2023). "Crate Day a 'public health concern' as Waikato ED numbers double". Stuff. Archived from the original on 1 December 2023. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
16. "Alcohol-related presentations to emergency departments on Crate Day in Waikato, New Zealand". journal.nzma.org.nz. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 28 March 2023.
17. Wilkinson, Jeremy (7 December 2015). "Complaint laid with SPCA about crate day plans to roast miniature horse". Stuff. Archived from the original on 14 December 2023. Retrieved 14 December 2023.
18. ^ "Drunken 'Crate Day' antics attract flak". NZ Herald. 4 December 2023. Archived from the original on 16 December 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
19. Gibbs, Tatiana (6 December 2022). "Crate Day drivers ignore DOC rules and hoon through rare bird nesting area". Stuff. Archived from the original on 8 December 2023. Retrieved 12 July 2023.
20. Kerr-Laurie, Brett (3 December 2023). "Crate Day carnage: 4WDers terrorise endangered bird colonies on riverbed". The Press. Archived from the original on 3 December 2023. Retrieved 3 December 2023.
21. Topp, Shelley (12 December 2024). "4WD community thanked". North Canterbury News. p. 2. Retrieved 12 December 2024.
22. Crate Day - Official Music Video, archived from the original on 9 March 2023, retrieved 9 March 2023
23. Gill, Sinead (3 December 2022). "The band touring four cities in 12 hours, in honour of crate day". Stuff. Retrieved 7 April 2024.
24. "DARTZ - The Hardest Working Band In New Zealand". Newzician Magazine. Retrieved 7 April 2024.

• Unofficial observances
• Observances in New Zealand