Advice please? Cover arena or make windbreak?

[brightlights]

Hi everyone,

<tl;dr: We often have entire weeks of gale force wind and can't keep show horses in consistent work. Is it possible to make a windbreak so our arena is less spooky/rideable during these periods or do we need to put all our money into a covered arena?>

I would love to know if anyone has had success making an arena windbreak that provides enough shelter in a high wind area! My husband and I have a lovely arena but are on the side of a mountain and regularly have days of near-constant wind gusts of 60km/h and above. Our boundary is bordered by massive trees and hedge, as well as plenty of birches, so there's a lot of motion and NOISE on these days. When I try to ride through this, it tends to wreck my horses' heads rather than keep us going.

I wonder if anyone can give advice? I have had a rough 18 months struggling to keep my horses regularly in work (forget showing), sound, and happy due to the wind (and essentially the wind tunnel we live in). Many days in the last year we have wanted to give up. Moving is not possible. We can just about scrape together the price of a covered arena, BUT we can't put it over our current one (!) so would need to build a second and keep it fairly small, at 18 x 36m.

What would you do? These are our options:

- Try to make the current arena less open and spooky by closing the post and rail fencing and mounding topsoil into a bank on the windy side

-Build a smaller, closed-fencing enclosed arena of 18 x 36m next to our stables, where two sides are already covered by 3m tall banks

-Use that same space to build a covered arena

The expense of the covered makes me feel sick when I could put in a secondary outdoor AND two all-weather turnouts for half the price and probably keep my horses happier. We'd still be facing crazy wind but maybe I'd get more riding days? Or maybe a gale is a gale and only a covered arena would make our property functional? What would you do?

 

[Equi]

I think the first step would be to ask a local estat agent how much value a totally new covered arena would add to your land at sale (even if its not going to be sold) we have a covered walker at my house and the basic answer was "if you knock it down it won't affect the price. If you fix it up, it won't affect the price) My point being, don't spend ££££ if you don't -need- to.

The wind breaks may work in the intrim and i don't see any point in building another subpar arena as 18 would be quite tight unless you have a very small horse, and you may find you end up using it as a turnout pen. Its every horse owners dream to have a large indoor arena, so if you can afford to without compromising your life reuse the area you have and build a proper indoor. If you're gonna do something do it right

 

[brightlights]

If you're gonna do something do it right

Thank you for your reply. I totally agree. Unfortunately we live in a conservation spot and are really riding the edges of trouble with this one. We will need to call it a sheep shed (we have acquired a small flock) to be able to do it at all. Our current arena is in a location on the property that planning won't allow building over. I agree the size for the new one is essentially a lunge pen/turnout but I have a stable full of horses I struggle to do anything consistent with at the moment and their health and my sanity are taking a real beating. Surely something to get us through the rough weather patches has to be better than nothing, right?
<edit to add: Yikes, I sound desperate! Gale day here and trying not to hit the chocolate... or something stronger )

 

[Equi]

In that situation yeah, something is better than nothing for sure!

 

[ycbm]

We are Peak Park and anyone putting up that size shed gets regular unexpected drop-in Ranger visits to make sure they aren't being used for horses, so I'd be very wary. I have the same issue with wind at 1100ft and I've ridden a handful of times so far this year. I'd love a "permitted" agricultural shed but I wouldn't dare.


ETA 18 x 36 is only 10% smaller than a full size dressage arena, it's plenty big enough to ride in. I used to ride in my barn a lot before I had an arena and it's 12 x 27 m

 

[be positive]

Having recently moved to a high exposed property with high winds I would go for the indoor even a small one will be a huge difference, I am not riding now but can imagine how tricky it would be to try to do anything most days, I have a large, 20ft x 60ft store which is totally windproof, easy to work in and is totally different from other areas of the property obviously too small to ride in but it is like a different climate.
As for adding value it depends what your long term plans are, it may not add value but will be life changing, give you are better quality of life and may be a good selling point if and when you sell, I have too many outbuildings so one is being taken down and will be reinstated as an extra paddock as I am short of grazing, a local builder thinks I am mad as it has a value but for me it has none and the place is for me to enjoy, I don't think it will devalue it but will probably cost more to do than it will add.

 

[mariew]

It would also be worth making sure having an indoor arena wouldn't cost an arm and a leg in some kind of tax. I know it just to be really expensive for riding schools but not sure on private use.

 

[Gloi]

Our outdoor is surrounded with a solid mass of trees and bushes several feet thick which works reasonably well. The horses often get turned out in a similar patch so are well used to the noise.