Darwin Beer Can Regatta go along with the regatta, including concerts, a thong-throwing contest and the "Henley-on-Mindil" competition (named after the Henley-on-Todd Regatta), where participants run their "boats" around like "Flintstones" cars. The Darwin Regional Tourism Promotion Association was the organiser of this event until 1978 when the event came under the aegis of the combined Lions Clubs of Darwin. Other events held on the day have included a thong-throwing contest and a competition for the best novelty hat. The 2014 Darwin Lions Beer Can Regatta took place on 6 July 2014, watched by 15,000 people and attended by visitors from all over Australia.
Henley Royal Regatta was clear that open women’s events would be dominated by foreign competitors, while events closed to foreign competitors would not serve the desired purpose. Another difficulty was the length of the course. The standard distance for international women's races was at that time 1000 m. It was clear that races over the full Henley course (2112 m) would not be appealing to women's crews preparing for international championships. Peter Coni, who was elected as Chairman of the regatta’s Committee of Management in 1978, was supportive of the idea of introducing women's events. However, he had had little time to take