All motorsport enthusiasts and [district] residents are invited to attend this proud moment ... as we unveil the memorial.
- Paul Chalker, organiser, AGP 90 years
JANUARY 15, 1927 is a significant date in history.
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The first-ever Australian Grand Prix for all-power racing cars was held on this day at the Goulburn Showground.
The race preceded the 100-mile road race of 1928, held at Phillip Island, which was later claimed to be the Australian Grand Prix.
The Grand Prix at Goulburn in 1927 was a series of handicap races.
The winner, Geoff Meredith of Windellama, drove a Type 30 straight eight Bugatti.
The event included motorcycle races and a horse race.
Meredith, a sheep grazier, hand-cranked his French-made, two-litre, in-line eight cylinder engine and donned just a protective cloth helmet to take on the dirt track.
He raced the oval circuit in a series of heats against seven other drivers, who raced two at a time.
He proved to be the fastest and won fifty pounds for first prize.
One year after he won that first Australian Grand Prix, Meredith died on the Isle of Man in the United Kingdom.
He was there, still in pursuit of motorsport, as part of an Australian motorcycle team when he contracted pneumonia.
This weekend marks the 90th anniversary of that first Australian Grand Prix for all-powers racing cars.
This Sunday, January 15, from 9.30am to 12.30pm at the Goulburn Showground, the Celebrate Goulburn Group has a big morning planned to mark this anniversary.
A life-long Goulburn resident, Paul Chalker, with the help of Gil Whitehouse and the group, has completed a memorial to this first Grand Prix and it’s a winner.
“All motorsport enthusiasts and [district] residents are invited to attend this proud moment for Goulburn as we unveil the memorial at 11am,” Mr Chalker said.
“We will have a static display of historic race cars on Braidwood Road around the memorial wall.
“Some cars will be doing a few laps of the outer track at the showground between 10am and 11am.
“Shannons Insurance, a major sponsor of the memorial, is bringing their Big Green Truck memorabilia display.”
The Big Green Truck is set up with an indoor memorabilia area, a stage area and a viewing platform above.
Anyone who owns a vehicle with Grand Prix history is invited to display their car with a notice as to the significance of its Grand Prix history, along with any relevant memorabilia.
Intentions to display such cars should be lodged with Laraine Whitehouse: 0408 786 685.
A booklet on the early life of Geoff Meredith will be on sale for $10.
There will also be a “Bol d’Or” (endurance race) held at Wakefiled Park to commemorate the anniversary. It will be on Saturday, January 14, 10am-4pm.
Entry to both Saturday and Sunday events is free.
