Adelaide’s historic Morphettville racecourse is the home of the South Australian Jockey Club and is the only remaining metropolitan track in South Australia.
Morphettville hosted its first race meeting in 1876, some 25 years after racing began at other venues in Adelaide, and is named after John Morphett, who became chairman of the SAJC in 1873.
Morphettville racecourse, located 10km south west of the Adelaide CBD and five minutes from Glenelg Beach, became the last remaining racecourse in Adelaide in 2009 following the closures of the Victoria Park and Cheltenham racecourses.
The SAJC conducts more than 60 race meetings a year at Morphettville, utilising two tracks after the inner Morphettville Parks track was completed in 2009.
Morphettville holds two major racing periods not too far apart.
The major racing carnival at Morphettville racecourse is held each year in April and May and features four Group One races including the South Australian Derby, Goodwood Handicap, Robert Sangster Stakes and Australasian Oaks.
However the biggest crowd occurs for the Adelaide Cup held in early March. The Cup hasn’t always been that early in the year but State Government decisions means it’s held then.
Morphettville’s main course was resurfaced in 2002 and has a circumference of 2339m with a 334m home straight. The track is 32 metres wide and has wide turns and a home turn camber of 4 percent which can suit horses racing off the pace.
Races on the main course are run over distances from 1000m to 3200m with chutes providing starts for races over 1100m and 1200m to the dogleg home turn and also 1800m and 2000m along the side of the course.
The newer Parks Track has a circumference of 2100m with a home straight of 320m. The Parks track is 25m wide with a 5 percent camber on the turns.
With the closing of the Cheltenham and Victoria Park racecourses, the Parks course was designed to accommodate all racing that the main track can’t hold and that provides for some Listed and Group races previously held at those tracks over distances up to 1400m.
Morphettville was the home of so many famous race names over the years. Many Melbourne Cup winners came from Adelaide in the 60s including those associated with the Cummings name and also had a lot to do with dual winner Rain Lover.
