Arena surface recommendations

L

Littleredcat

New User
Joined
24 October 2019
Messages
3
Visit site
Hello I am currently in the process of building a new arena (eek exciting) but I’m having a meltdown over surface.

I WAS initially looking at stand-alone carpet surfaces however I have been reading reviews that they go dusty in the dry weather (a distant memory now!)

I need something that doesn’t freeze or blow away (we are at 1000ft so it can get a bit chilly and breezy however there is some natural shelter to the arena).



I do not have a massive budget either and as sand is so expensive it’s pushing me down the fibre route.

My current thought process is edging towards

a) a stand-alone automotive carpet with sand running through the top.

Equestrian direct claim many happy clients with this surface - other companies say that it doesn’t knit together? Will the sand disappear into the surface over time?

b) a combi surface as suggested by carpet gallop (3” of chopped carpet 3” automotive carpet)

c) sell a kidney and get 4 inches of sand and have an automotive carpet topper

I do mainly dressage and low level jumping (1.10 ish maybe)

Anyone have these surface options? I’d be most grateful for your reviews ... good OR bad!!!!
 
One option to help prevent the surface blowing away is to attach some fairly cheap scaffold netting to the fencing around the arena. We just did this following a top up of our arena and it seems to be working fairly well so far.
 
Zibby said:
One option to help prevent the surface blowing away is to attach some fairly cheap scaffold netting to the fencing around the arena. We just did this following a top up of our arena and it seems to be working fairly well so far.
Click to expand...

Thank you. That’s a good idea!
 
yeah netting also stops lots of critters coming into your arena and digging holes. But if you have trees nearby it also turns into a leaf catcher.

I have ridden on several flexiride arenas and I much, much prefer the ones with plenty of sand. if you are cutting back on sand then they are best if you roll them quite often to get the bits to knit together. One yard only had harrows and that was TERRIBLE. We have it with lots of sand where i am now and it's a very versatile low maintenance surface that gets lots of use and is stable with a little bit of bounce but not too much. I've been here nearly a year and the YO has dug the edges in once and that's it.

I had sand and fibre before but that required more looking after in hot or dry weather and was also more inclined to freeze.
 
milliepops said:
yeah netting also stops lots of critters coming into your arena and digging holes. But if you have trees nearby it also turns into a leaf catcher.

I have ridden on several flexiride arenas and I much, much prefer the ones with plenty of sand. if you are cutting back on sand then they are best if you roll them quite often to get the bits to knit together. One yard only had harrows and that was TERRIBLE. We have it with lots of sand where i am now and it's a very versatile low maintenance surface that gets lots of use and is stable with a little bit of bounce but not too much. I've been here nearly a year and the YO has dug the edges in once and that's it.

I had sand and fibre before but that required more looking after in hot or dry weather and was also more inclined to freeze.
Click to expand...

Are the arenas you have ridden in the sand base with the FR topping?
Yes that’s the reason I’m shying away from sand and fibre- we are on a private well so when it’s dry our water supply dries up so there’s no chance of arena irrigation! Waxed surfaces are out of the question due to budget.
 
I think the one I'm on now is sand with fr on top.
Previous place was mostly FR with a small amount of sand through it. That was much more springy, it was better when it had been left alone to bind together but heavy jumping (or the YO harrowing) ruined it for a week or so. I really think it needs rolling if you have more FR
If its mainly FR it basically wont ever freeze tho.
 
If you want to jump on it then I personally think a good layer of proper silica sand is essential. The fibre alone arenas I have visited have all been too loose and springy. The horse's limb works best on good-firm turf, I would worry that the bounce back on the foamy surfaces is going to change the biomechanics significantly
 
What people don't understand about arena surfaces is, unless you have an indoor, you can't have it all!

My priority was for the surface not to ride deep. Obviously, I'd also love it not to freeze but the amount of days it would be frozen could affect me a lot less than a surface that consistently rode deep. In order for a surface not to ride deep, it needs to retain moisture but if a surface retains moisture, it is more likely to freeze. Can't have it all.
 
Fanatical said:
What people don't understand about arena surfaces is, unless you have an indoor, you can't have it all!

My priority was for the surface not to ride deep. Obviously, I'd also love it not to freeze but the amount of days it would be frozen could affect me a lot less than a surface that consistently rode deep. In order for a surface not to ride deep, it needs to retain moisture but if a surface retains moisture, it is more likely to freeze. Can't have it all.
Click to expand...

No indeed. The thing I like about the flexiride/sand mix is that it is has the stability but even when pretty frozen, the top layer has enough give for walk exercise to be absolutely fine. So you can still get your horse worked even if the roads are too frosty to get out for a hack. When I had a mostly sand arena it needed the harrows running over before even walking was possible.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Top