Hundreds of people turned out dressed for the rain, which had delayed the start of racing by an hour, before ditching their raincoats and umbrellas when the sun beat down.
Event organiser Julie Hughes said contingency plans were put in place to ensure the safety of the 17 entrants was paramount.
"There were slippery conditions to start, but then a dry track.
"The conditions for the start of the day made things more [tricky].
"There were a few wee spin-outs, but we put additional measures in place to cope with that.
"We moved the finish line to allow more braking distance . . . we went through plans B, C, D and E. We just kind of had to roll with it."
The course took entrants on a run of about 1.5km, starting outside the preschool on Durham St, then travelling to Villiers St, down a steep hill and around a chicane to end on Ramshaw Lane.
Mrs Hughes said the crowd favourite was Arrowtown preschool teacher Sara Bole, driving the Arrowtown Preschool's Rainbow Warrior.
"She was so funny. She came down and just managed to pass by Shotover Jet . . . just nipped him in the finish line and pumped her fist in the air.
"She had a fantastic spirit on the day."
It was the final run which got the crowd on its feet for the second time, when Roger Grant in Road Runner lost control near the finish line.
Mrs Hughes said Jason Steed, also known as James Bond, in the Colliers International trolley, "came racing down the hill" and pipped Mr Grant after Road Runner spun just metres from the line.
"The crowd were on their feet yelling . . . the finish was spectacular.
"You couldn't believe that finish."
However, it was really the Arrowtown Preschool which was the winner on the day, with between $5000 and $6000 raised in the event.
The final tally was still to be confirmed, with a hamper containing items given by Arrowtown designers being sold in a raffle at the Athenaeum Hall as part of the Arrowtown Designers' Sale over the weekend.
Stalls set up on Buckingham Green and at the entrance to Buckingham St also raised money for the preschool.
"It was just fantastic. The town was just packed. You couldn't get a park anywhere.
"It's all good for the town [and] it was just a really good community day out.
"Everybody went home safely and the St John wasn't needed."
Mrs Hughes said she was already thinking about next year's event and promised it would be "bigger and better".
