Only The Best In The Grandest Parade Of All

Sun Herald

Sunday April 1, 2007

By Amy Lawson

SHOWBAGS, rides, fairy floss and dagwood dogs may be the big drawcards of Sydney's Royal Easter Show for some, but when it comes to pinpointing the essence of the show, you can't go past the grand parade.

When the organisers of the show began the tradition of grand parades a century ago, they could not have foreseen the iconic event it would become.

What started as a convenient way to showcase all the prizewinning animals at one time has become a focal point and highlight of the show.

John Aitken, general manager of events and marketing for the show, said he was expecting up to 25,000 spectators to fill the NAB Arena for the 100th anniversary Grand Parade on April 11.

"Agriculture is still the cornerstone and essence of what the show is about. It's still on centre stage," Mr Aitken said. "We don't want to lose sight of the fact that the Royal Easter Show is about the country coming to the city.

"It's an opportunity for city people to come and show support for their country brethren and the grand parade is a great opportunity to cheer on the exhibitors."

There will be four grand parades at the show this year.

The first will coincide with the show's official opening on April 11 after the majority of judging is complete and the winners are ready to be presented to the public.

The other grand parades will be held on April 13, 14 and 16.

Although there are scant records of the first grand parades at the show, it is understood that the "parade of agricultural excellence" was the first of its kind in the world, and remains the largest.

Prior to 1907, different animals were paraded separately, but in the first grand parade horses and cattle were on show together.

Since then, the grand parade has expanded to include goats, sheep, alpacas and pigs.

"The thing that remains the same [after 100 years] is the sense of pride that people participating in the grand parade feel," Mr Aitken said. "It's showing off excellence - those judged the best of their kind in Australia."

Terry Goodear, general manager of events for R.M. Williams, estimates he has been involved in almost 100 grand parades since 1983.

Mr Goodear, who used to open the grand parade with Carlton's six- and later eight-horse Clydesdale team, said the major change over the years had been the standard of livestock and competitors involved.

"Scientific advances in breeding and feeding and conditioning has brought about an obvious lift in the quality of stock," Mr Goodear said.

"In most grand parades there are Olympians and world champions in different fields - equestrian, showjumpers, carriage drivers, breeders.

"The standard of what's in the arena at any one time is incredible, and it's a good example of what we're doing in this country."

Mr Goodear, who now drives a two-horse Waler team for R.M. Williams in the grand parade, said there was a great deal of kudos for the competitors involved.

"It's a display of excellence and to be part of that is a real honour," he said.

The grand parade will be a highlight for a group of students from the state's west.

Kerry Pinnell, a teacher at Canobolas Rural Technology High School in Orange, is taking eight students to the show this year, a tradition she established more than 20 years ago. The students have given up their lunchtimes and worked before and after school since the start of the term to get their horde of goats, poultry and plants ready for competition.

"Going to the show is the culmination of a lot of hard work over the year," Ms Pinnell said.

"It's 10 days of tears and glory."

Ms Pinnell said the grand parade would be a highlight for the students, aged 13 to 16, albeit a somewhat scary first-time experience.

"Being in the grand parade is quite daunting for the kids, there's a lot of people, spotlights and cameras - even for the adults it's an exciting time," she said.

Ms Pinnell said getting kids involved in agriculture from a young age was vital. "It's important for the future because they've got to realise where everything comes from," she said.

"Unless you can get kids back on the land it's going to be dreadful."

Julie Hudson, 15, said the work that she and the other students from Canobolas had done preparing the animals in the lead-up to the show would stand her in good stead in the future.

© 2007 Sun Herald

Back to News Index | Back to Home