General News
10 August, 2025
Machinery, mateship and memories at MMFD
Everything about the Mallee Machinery Field Days at Speed is big. Beginning with the 46-acre site to the size of the machinery on show, the atmosphere, the number of volunteer hours and the crowds.
But get inside and you realise that the model for the 47-year-old strong event has the theme of community from the organisers to the exhibitors.
Located in a paddock just south of Speed, the event features a unique circular layout with 350 sites, a number that can expand to 450 with site sharing.
The farming community pride is on show with the slogan - 'Run by farmers, for farmers' - and with the backing of the Lions Club, it has a fascinating history.
It began with an idea by the Lions members looking for a project; they decided on a machinery exhibition synonymous with the surrounding broacacre farming community.
They drew a circle in a paddock and contacted farm machinery dealers, and the rest is history, almost five decades later.
The circular model has been maintained and has received many favourable comments from attendees.
"You can see it all by just walking around each circle and between the sites because they're big and it's a great event," said third-generation Watchum farmer Chris Colvert, who was attending with his son Ty.
The community theme extends to the catering, with the majority of food provided by more than 20 community groups who count on the event as their major fundraiser for the year.
Katie from Patchewollock said she had worked on the coffee site to raise money for their local school and was kept busy with a lineup all day.
Rob Sudholz from Natimuk said the Mallee Field Days were particularly interesting for him.
"These field days are especially interesting for me because as a broadacre farmer, it has so much for me to look at and an opportunity to see what's new on the market and talk to like-minded people," he said.
The queues were long at all of the food sites, but service was slick, and patrons could congregate in the centre of the site to enjoy almost nonstop country music and the surrounding atmosphere under cover.
But the most obvious of all, apart from the size of the machinery, the steak sandwiches and the strawberries, was the catch-up opportunity for people to chat and to enjoy a couple of days.
Guest speaker, former AFL great Tom Hawkins, grew up on the family farm in Finley and, since retiring from the game last year, has returned to join the agricultural community as a career.
Apart from talking about football and framing his message to the younger members of the community, he emphasised that no matter where you live or grow up, anything is possible.
He was a young boy from the bush with a dream, and with hard work and some luck that came his way, his dream to play footy like his father and grandfather before him came true.
Les Downe and Kevin Emonson were awarded Life Memberships for a collective 92 years of service to the Field Days and Lions.