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50-624: The Adelaide Showground holds many of Adelaide's most popular events, including the Royal Adelaide Show . The Showground (also popularly known as the Wayville Showgrounds) is located in the inner-southern Adelaide suburb of Wayville , just south of Greenhill Road . They are bordered by Goodwood Road (east), Leader Street (south), the railway line (west) and Rose Terrace (north). The Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of South Australia (RAHS) has controlled

100-698: A disappointing 11th after scoring 6 points. Miller rode in the United Kingdom for the Coventry Bees from 1983 to 1992, and was honoured with a testimonial in 1992. The Bees won two league titles in 1987 and 1988, going undefeated in the 1987 season, a feat never done before or since. Miller also rode for the Örnarna Eagles in Mariestad , Sweden , and helped them in winning the 1992 Elitserien Championship. He also rode for Polish 2nd Division club Polonia Bydgoszcz . Miller retired from speedway at

150-729: A meeting at Wayville and he was hooked. On 2 January 1933, Wayville hosted Round 2 of the four round qualifying series for the unofficial World Championship with the final to be held at the 509 metres (557 yards) Sydney Showground Speedway in March 1933. Queensland 's Dicky Smythe won the Wayville meeting from Bluey Wilkinson and Norman Evans. Harry Whitfield would win the Final at the Sydney Showground from Australians Billy Lamont and Bluey Wilkinson. On 12 January 1994, Wayville hosted

200-457: A more adult market. Rick Miller (speedway rider) Miller won two national BMX titles as a Webco-sponsored rider in his early teens. Miller then rode motocross in the southern California area before switching to Speedway. Miller started his speedway career in 1981, became pro the next year and won rookie of the year. Speedway credits for 1982 include the Ventura track championship and

250-617: Is a 10-minute firework show . Another major attraction to the Royal Adelaide Show is the array of free entertainment included upon entry. There are three main stages: The rides are a major drawcard at the show. Each year the event boasts over 50 rides between the Carnival and Kid's Carnival areas. The best-known ride is the permanent Skymaster Wheel standing over 40 metres high. Each year, rides can vary with some favourites going and newer rides appearing. Some larger rides in

300-466: Is also popular when run at the Showground, with many high-profile meetings held there including the now defunct "Castrol Cup", as well as exhibition races at the Royal Adelaide Show. Wayville also hosted the 2001–02 South Australian Speedcar Championship , the first time since 1978/79 that the championship was not held at Speedway City. Former triple Australian Speedcar Champion Warrenne Ekins from

350-672: Is an annual carnival and agricultural show run by the Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of South Australia . It is held at the Adelaide Showground , a dedicated venue located in Wayville , a suburb of Adelaide, South Australia. Core to the show are the competitive entries, such as livestock , pets, arts, food, beverages, and displays of skill. The show features entries in 63 competitive sections, and attracts over 31,000 entries annually. In addition,

400-571: Is sometimes referred to as "The birthplace of Australian Speedway", even though dirt track speedway in Australia actually started in Maitland , New South Wales , in 1923. The Speedway was held on an egg-shaped track that has been the main arena since 1926. The track itself has a dirt and sand mixture over a concrete base and is 510 metres (560 yards) in length. When used it was one of the fastest speedways in Australia with wide open corners and both

450-668: The South Australian Register (28 November 1867) "A special Grand General Show was held from Thursday 7 November 1867 to coincide with the Adelaide visit of Prince Alfred , Duke of Edinburgh". After the duke's visit, the society and show went on to receive his royal patronage in 1868. In 1887 the society ran their Spring Show concurrently with the Adelaide Jubilee International Exhibition , from 14 to 17 September, but at

500-960: The Australian Solo Championship in 1928 (6 laps), 1929 (3 laps), 1930 (3 laps), 1931 (6 laps), 1932 (3 laps) and again in 2002. It also was the Adelaide venue for the short lived Series 500 ( Australian Masters Series ) between 1995 and 2000, which featured world championship riders. Since the mid-1980s, World Champion riders to compete at Wayville have included six time World Champion Ivan Mauger of New Zealand, 1987 West End International winner Hans Nielsen and Tommy Knudsen from Denmark, six time World Champion Tony Rickardsson and 1990 World Champion Per Jonsson from Sweden, Simon Wigg , Michael Lee , Gary Havelock and Kelvin Tatum from England , inaugural West End International winner Rick Miller , Shawn Moran , Sam Ermolenko , Greg Hancock , Bobby Schwartz , and Billy Hamill of

550-743: The Newcastle Showgrounds which hosted four separate Australian championships in 1927, then had to wait until 1996 before the championship would return. The main arena was also the home ground of the West Adelaide Football Club in the South Australian National Football League from 1927 until it was taken over by the Australian Army after the 1939 season due to the outbreak of World War II . West Adelaide would win

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600-528: The Northern Territory won his second SA title, having previously won in 1997. Wayville holds the record in Australian speedway for the longest wait between hosting an Australian championship. Before the 2002 Australian Solo Championship, Wayville had not hosted the title since 1932, a gap of an incredible 70 years, only just eclipsing the former record of 69 years between championships held by

650-484: The Royal Agricultural and Horticultural Society of South Australia announced the show would be cancelled due to concerns surrounding the coronavirus. The following year the 2021 show was scheduled to go ahead but was cancelled about three weeks before the show; this is due to risks associated with the Delta variant . After a two-year hiatus, the show returned in 2022. The society runs a number of competitive sections at

700-602: The Sturt Football Club were looking play night football at the Showground (Wayville is in Sturt's Adelaide zone with their home ground Unley Oval just over 2 km away from the Showground). Despite the main arena having suitable lighting, Wayville has never been used for night football. The 510-metre-long track was also the home of harness racing in Adelaide from 1934 until 1973, when all meetings moved to

750-543: The "Old Exhibition Grounds" on the other side of Frome Road. The show had been extended from two to four days on account of the great interest shown, particularly in the display of sheep, which was of a very high standard. From May 1895, the Autumn Show was held at a new venue, the Jubilee Exhibition Building on North Terrace, and the horse events were held at the nearby Jubilee Oval . In 1896,

800-499: The 25,000 mark, making Wayville the best supported speedway in Australia during its formative years. It was during this early period in the late 1920s that a young Kym Bonython , later to be the a successful Speedcar driver, art gallery owner and the highly successful promoter of Adelaide's Rowley Park Speedway from 1954 to 1973, got his first taste of a sport which would become a lifelong passion. Bonython had managed to persuade his reluctant mother Lady Jean Bonython to take him to

850-739: The 3 round 1986 series, 3rd in the 1987 series held again over 3 rounds, 2nd in 1988 at the Veterans Memorial Stadium in Long Beach , 4th in 1989 at the Odsal Stadium in Bradford , England , before finally becoming a World Champion by winning the 1990 Speedway World Team Cup in Pardubice , Czechoslovakia alongside Kelly Moran , Sam Ermolenko , Shawn Moran and Billy Hamill . Miller's last appearance in

900-586: The Agricultural and Horticultural Shows, displaying both produce and livestock, were held at Botanic Park , and for many decades, shows were held twice a year in Spring and Autumn. The show was briefly suspended in 1852 during the Victorian Gold Rush. In 1856, the society held its first art exhibition: there were 178 entries, with 30 being from the well-known artist S. T. Gill . According to

950-714: The Olympic Park site in Homebush in 1998. The Claremont Showground in Perth still stands intact and in use by the Royal Agricultural Society of Western Australia, but the main arena which from 1927 until 2000 housed the Claremont Speedway , has been redeveloped with the speedway no longer in operation. The 586 metres (641 yards) speedway track was removed and while still the main arena of

1000-765: The President and Vice-Presidents and the Secretary, was appointed to supervise the work and confer with the architects and to report to the Executive. A railway siding was negotiated with the Railway Department, drainage and sewerage problems addressed, negotiations initiated with the Tramways Trust for an 'electric car' service, grading and levelling planned, and tenders called for erection of facilities. A fine draught horse pavilion has been erected and

1050-609: The SANFL premiership in 1927, their first year based at the Showground. West Adelaide merged with the Glenelg Football Club during WW2, and from 1940 were forced to play their home games at the Adelaide Oval until their current home, Richmond Oval , was opened in 1958. West Adelaide remain the only SANFL team to use the Showground as their home ground, though in the 2000s there were (ultimately false) rumours that

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1100-737: The Showbag Pavilion next to the Main Arena, and are mainly promotion for the companies that produce them. From the 1900s, showbags started as free sample bags that were given to visitors of displays. By the 1950s, as the original showbags grew in popularity, they eventually ceased to be free and a small fee of 3 or 6 pence was taken. Nowadays, over 350 different bags are available, and a single showbag can range from $ 3 to $ 135 depending on its contents. Showbags are mostly popular with young children and teenagers, although there are some showbags, such as Breaking Bad and Darrell Lea , aimed at

1150-542: The Showground, is now a fully grassed oval. The Melbourne Showgrounds main arena, which housed a 610 metres (670 yards) harness racing and speedway track, was demolished in 2002 and replaced by a 3,000 seat square main arena which also saw use as the home venue of the Melbourne Aces in the Australian Baseball League from 2010 to 2012. Royal Adelaide Show The Royal Adelaide Show

1200-579: The Supercross Masters. The showbag hall is used mainly for Adelaide Roller Derby home games. A pavilion at The Showgrounds was being used to vaccinate people against the COVID-19 virus in 2021. Centennial Hall, built to celebrate the centenary of the founding of the Colony (later State) of South Australia, and to house the 1936 Centennial Empire Exhibition, was opened on 20 March 1936. It

1250-895: The US Open National Championship in Owego, New York . In 1986 he won the inaugural West End Speedway International at the Wayville Showground in Adelaide , South Australia . He would come back a year later and finish third at Wayville behind 1986 World Champion Hans Nielsen and Tommy Knudsen (both from Denmark ). Miller was also a frequent member of the USA speedway team in the World Team Cup , finishing 3rd in 1983 in Vojens , Denmark , 2nd in

1300-641: The United States, Egon Müller of West Germany , as well as Australia's own Jason Crump and his father Phil Crump , Leigh Adams , Craig Boyce , Todd Wiltshire , and Adelaide's own Steve Baker (the 1983 European (World) Under-21 Champion ) and Ryan Sullivan . Other top riders to have raced at Wayville include 1991 West End International winner Shane Bowes , and multiple South Australian Champions Mark Fiora , Shane Parker , and Craig Hodgson . Riders who appeared at Wayville in its early years included future World Champions Lionel Van Praag (winner of

1350-742: The World Team Cup Final was in 1991 in Vojens, helping Team USA to 3rd place where he scored 4 points as the team reserve. Rick Miller rode in two Individual World Finals during his career. His first World Final appearance came at the Odsal Stadium in 1990 where he finished in 9th place with 7 points from his 5 rides. His second and last World Final came in 1992 at the Olympic Stadium in Wrocław , Poland where he finished

1400-436: The building of a sheep pavilion commenced. The site's main pavilion, Centennial Hall , was opened on 20 March 1936. Between 1940 and 1946, shows were cancelled, with the exception of a Wine Show in 1946, due to WWII and the military occupation of the grounds. In February 1966, a soccer match between traditional rivals Hellas and Juventus on the opening night of the show created much interest. Another area of interest

1450-540: The cars auctioned off (one donated to the Royal Show's archives). It was replaced with two portable coasters, a Zyklon model ZL42 roller coaster imported from Italy named The Big Dipper, and a Spinning wild mouse named Crazy Coaster. Both were very popular at the 2008 show. On 12 September 2014, an eight-year-old girl visiting Australia from Malaysia died after slipping from her seat on the Airmaxx 360. Operators of

1500-477: The development of the natural resources of our noble colony". On 8 December 1840, the first Show was held in the yards of Fordham's Hotel, Grenfell Street, and was an exhibition of produce which included vegetables, cereals, cheese, wool, and leather. The first show of livestock, the Agricultural Exhibition, was held on 20 October 1843 at Auction Mart Tavern, Hindley Street. From 1844 to 1859,

1550-555: The equivalent to powering 200 South Australian homes and saving 1,400 tonnes of greenhouse gas emissions per year. The size of the project meant that the Adelaide Showground is registered as a power station. The main arena of the Showground, which at its peak in the 1920s and 1930s held 35,000 people, but now can hold approximately 14,000, was known as the Speedway Royal during its heyday from 1926 until 1934, and

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1600-450: The final Australia vs England motorcycle speedway test to be held in Australia (as of September 2016). The test was the fourth and final test match of the series which was won 4–0 by the locals. Australia, led by Leigh Adams and Jason Crump, easily won the Wayville test with a score of 61–46. Wayville had hosted its first test, the second test of the 1933–34 series against England, on 7 January 1933. Australia, captained by Frank Arthur, won

1650-584: The first Live Stock Show was held at the new site. There were no shows held in 1915–1919 due to the effects of WWI and the Spanish flu epidemic . In 1925, the show became an annual event, and moved to Wayville. A report regarding the new site stated: The competition for best design for the new showgrounds drew fifty responses and twenty six firm designs. Mr C R Heath's design was awarded first prize of £500. Designs came from New Zealand , England and all Australian States. The Building Committee, consisting of

1700-604: The former Investigator Science and Technology Centre to the Edge Church . In 2006 it was announced that the formal title of the Showground would be changed from 'Royal Adelaide Showground' to 'Adelaide Showground'. In 2008 Premier Mike Rann announced that the largest rooftop solar installation in Australia would be installed on the new Goyder Pavilion, the centrepiece of the Adelaide Showground upgrade. The $ 8 million investment saw 10,000 square metres of solar panels installed, generating 14,00 mega-watt hours of solar electricity,

1750-424: The front and back straights being over 90 metres (98 yards) in length. In 1928, Wayville was promoted as "The World's Fastest Dirt Track Speedway". Wayville stopped hosting speedway meetings after 1934. Reasons for this remain unclear, though one theory is that as the arena was also used year-round as Adelaide's harness racing track it was felt that the speedway meetings chopped the track up too much. Another theory

1800-578: The inaugural World Championship at the Wembley Stadium in 1936 ) and Bluey Wilkinson . Others included Dicky Smythe, Vic Huxley , Alby Taylor , Sig Schlam , Frank Arthur , as well as local rider Jack Chapman. English stars Jack Parker , Harry Whitfield , and Norman Evans, and America's unofficial World Champion of 1931 Sprouts Elder also appeared at Wayville. Even for regular speedway meetings not involving overseas or interstate riders, crowds at Wayville during this period were regularly around

1850-560: The longer (845.50 metres), purpose-built Globe Derby Park which had opened in 1969. Wayville, which was shorter than most of the capital city trotting tracks in Australia, hosted the Inter Dominion championships on six occasions – 1937, 1949, 1954, 1958, 1963, and 1969. Other than hosting various outdoor events during the Royal Adelaide Show, the main arena also hosts the Adelaide leg of the annual Big Day Out music festival, as well as Monster Trucks and Motocross events such as

1900-427: The machine, C J And Sons Amusement, were later fined $ 157,000 due to inadequate maintenance. In 2019, The Beast, XXXL, Speed 2 and Extreme were banned from the Royal Adelaide Show for having a faulty backup restraint mechanism. The Happy Kangaroo ride was also banned for unknown reasons, despite appearing in the catalogue. One of the most notable and well known aspects of the show are the showbags . They are sold in

1950-578: The main carnival range in price from $ 8 to $ 20 (e.g. Speed 2 and The Beast). However most rides average at $ 10 with discounts available on select rides. In 2000, the Spin Dragon collapsed, injuring around 40 people, while in 2006, part of the Twin Flip ride collapsed, injuring four. On the last day of the 2007 Show, the Mad Mouse roller coaster was retired from service. The track was dismantled,

2000-719: The more notable events held in Centennial Hall were: Of the five Australian mainland capital city showgrounds main arena's, Wayville and the Brisbane Exhibition Ground are the only ones that still stand largely as they did in their formative years. The Sydney Showground in Moore Park is now Fox Studios Australia , though its main arena is still clearly visible, while the Royal Agricultural Society of New South Wales moved to

2050-482: The show features entertainment , exhibitors, sideshows, rides, and showbags . It is attended by up to half a million people every year, making it the state's biggest event. It is also regarded as "the longest running event on the South Australian calendar". The South Australian Agricultural Society was founded on 28 October 1839 "for the advancement of agricultural and pastoral knowledge, and to promote

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2100-609: The show in six categories: In 2014, 16,993 ribbons were awarded to individual prize winners. The Main Arena is the largest area of Adelaide Showground , and is the primary location for the 'Horses in Action' program (including the World Cup Qualifiers). In the evening, it features family entertainment, including V8 utes , motocross , and monster trucks . Every night of the show at 9:00 pm (weather permitting), there

2150-631: The show organisers and the Department for Education whereby Adelaide schools arrange a study-free day, enabling their pupils to attend the event. In 2004, 'The Wine Tunnel' with wine tastings was introduced to showcase South Australia's wines . Located in the Taste SA area, it also has cooking demonstrations and food samplings. In 2007, Centennial Hall was demolished due to the structural weakening of its concrete. The Adelaide Showground railway station opened permanently on 17 February 2014. Unlike

2200-571: The site since the 1920s, the land having been purchased by the South Australian government prior to the First World War. The Royal Show moved to the present site in 1925. The Showground has one of the largest under-cover exhibition spaces in the Southern Hemisphere, and hosts over 140 exhibitions and conferences each year, as well as University of Adelaide and University of South Australia examinations. The RAHS also leases

2250-402: The temporary Showground Central railway station (2003–2013), which was only operated during the show, the new station is serviced every day as a regular part of the Seaford, Flinders, and Belair lines. In 2017, the Main Carnival underwent a major face-lift with new paving, walkways, grass areas, toilets, bins and trees being added to replace the gravel and portable toilets. On 14 April 2020,

2300-415: The territory. They joined with the Royal Australian Navy Band , the Band of the Southern Command, the Band of the Central Command, and the SA Police Band , for a massed band display. In 1990, $ 1.3 million was spent on capital improvements. Prior to 1987, with a three-term school year, the show was always held in a school holiday period. With the changeover to a four-term year, arrangements were made between

2350-441: The test match (held on 7 January 1934) 28–25 with local star Jack Chapman leading the Aussies with 8 points. Australia's leading Sprintcar series, the World Series Sprintcars has also raced many times at Wayville, although the sand base of the track is not a favourite of the drivers (many drivers likened it to racing on a beach), and the series generally runs at the purpose-built Speedway City when in Adelaide. Sidecar speedway

2400-407: Was considered to be a significant historical landmark, and was one of the few remaining examples of 1930s Art Deco architecture in Adelaide. However, the building developed " concrete cancer " and was closed at the end of the 2005 Royal Show because it was unsafe. Demolition of Centennial Hall commenced on Wednesday 18 July 2007. In addition to University exams and the Royal Adelaide Show, some of

2450-403: Was that due to the Great Depression , the promoters could no longer afford to run meetings at the venue. Other than various demonstration runs at the Royal Adelaide Show, speedway would not return to Wayville until 1986, a gap of 52 years. This event was the first West End Speedway International in February 1986 featuring some of the world's best motorcycle speedway riders. Wayville has also hosted

2500-450: Was the Decimal Currency Board's display, with the 'Dollar Girls' on hand to explain the new monetary system to be introduced. In the 1960s to 1980s, new competitive sections for the blind and disabled were introduced, plus an additional four classes in the knitting and crochet section for the over 70s. Main Arena attractions included the Pacific Islands Regiment Band, which consisted of 75 Papuans and New Guineans from all parts of

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