Ballarat Agricultural & Pastoral Society is celebrating the 150^th anniversary of its formation in 2006.  With so many show societies folding in recent years, the milestone of 150 years is an outstanding achievement for both the organisers and the many volunteers who have freely given their time and effort over the past century and a half.

The Ballarat Agricultural & Pastoral Society was established in 1856 with the first shows held in 1859.  Originally located outside of the Ballarat city environs at Learmonth, the Society moved into Ballarat, to showgrounds located at Lake Wendouree in 1861.  This site was occupied until 1934 when the Society relocated to the present showgrounds on Creswick Road.  Plans are currently being discussed for the Society to make another move in the future to a purpose built showground.

The Ballarat Agricultural & Pastoral Society maintains a long and proud history of dedication to rural Ballarat and surrounding areas, offering primary producers many agricultural and livestock events through out the year. By far the most anticipated and well loved of these events is the annual Spring Show.

As with all agricultural events, the Ballarat Show has undergone an evolutionary process over the years since its inception.  As one of the largest agricultural shows in country Victoria, Ballarat Show maintains the long tradition of the agricultural shows everywhere by bringing together the city and country. From a vast array of livestock events, to sheaf tossing and wood chopping competitions, displays of needlework and cooking to high performance cars and sideshows, there are events and amusements to satisfy both competitors and spectators alike. The show is Ballarat’s oldest community event and, despite Ballarat’s reputation for providing interesting weather conditions, attendances of up to 30’000 people have been recorded in recent years.

The horse events have always been a main stay of the Ballarat show since its early days.  Originally, horses were displayed for their practical purpose, involved in ploughing competitions and the like.  Later on, they began to make an appearance to be judged on their confirmation and performance as led and saddle exhibits.  These events have evolved into the modern show ring that we know today.  Like all areas of the agricultural show, the horse section has had to move with the times in order to survive, such as the introduction of the 3 ring circus in the 1990’s, allowing competitors to maximise their qualifications for the Royal Shows.  The introduction and development of various horse breeds in the past century  & the need for specialised rings to cater to these animals has seen the rise of large breed sections at the Ballarat Show.

The 2006 Ballarat Agricultural Show will be held from the 10^th to the 12^th of November.  With 3 days of equestrian events on offer, Ballarat has provided a new look horse competition for the 2006 show.  Commencing on Friday 10^th November the traditional District Show Day, open to all horses and riders within an 80km radius of Ballarat PO.  This day incorporates both showing and novelty events and is aimed at encouraging local riders to compete in a friendly and relaxed environment.

The Saturday horse program offers three large open horse rings, with turnouts, led classes, open saddle & rider classes. The three rings will provide anyone wanting to qualify for the major events such as Melbourne Royal, plenty of opportunities. The Henderson Trophy, with garland and rug will be awarded to the Supreme Saddle Exhibit of the show. There is a separate ring for newcomer saddle horses & show hunters, with a Supreme Champion award up for grabs for the best show hunter exhibit.  Pony Club riders have also been catered for with a separate pony club ring, with the Frank Broadhead Trophy to be awarded to the Champion Pony Club Rider.

Saturday Novelty events have been expanded with over one thousand dollars in prizes on offer in the three main events and all the events earning points for the 2006/2007 ANRA Inc. Horse of the Year Series.  James & Son Stockfeeds has kindly provided sponsorship for many of the events in the novelty program.

Sunday the 12^th has been set-aside for an All Breeds Show with the Society offering seven rings, with classes covering a multitude of led and ridden horse & pony breeds, coloured horse classes, a Riding Pony Qualifying event and a full open led and ridden ring. There are 15 Supreme Champion sashes to be won across the seven rings. The program is structured to try and provide competitors with at least two led & ridden classes should they chose to participate.

Each year the society sponsors an individual horse breed to be the feature breed of the show.  This year the magnificent Morgan horses will be featured.  Renowned for its courage and versatility the Morgan horse was first introduced to Australia about 100 years ago.  The Morgan has become more and more popular as the years have progressed & has made a regular appearance at Ballarat Show for some years now.

Harness enthusiasts are also well catered for with a large harness program being offered in the afternoon, including a Supreme Harness Exhibit.

Official showjumping events will again held on both Saturday and Sunday with Ballarat Grammar is again the major sponsor for all the showjumping events. Due to new space requirements, the jumping events have been moved to the Ballarat Pony Club grounds in Victoria Park.  The excellent jumping surface at this ground should appeal to competitors at all levels.  There are a variety of official EFA events on both days for many different grades and include the Young Horse Classic Cycle Series on Saturday 11^th and the Open Ballarat Championship on Sunday 12th. With over $2000 in money and trophies to be won on the Sunday alone, the jumping competition is an attractive option for competitors. Official course builder will be David Sheppard. Pony club jumpers have also been catered for with a full program of pony club jumping events commencing on Sunday.