New school surface

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Bestdogdash

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Hi
I am having a new 30 x 60 school built and want it get it right, so am hoping you can give me a little advice!

1. Is this the right size ? I want to school, school jumping and also generally work in when the weather is dreadful. My horses are all 16.2 plus.

2. What surface ? Have to say very very confused and the more I find out the more confused I am ! I know wax is the new thing, but I can't get over the feeling it is rather an unforgiving surface for use several times a week - is that unfair ?

Any good or bad reports would be so helpful. Thanks !
 
We put a new surface down on our existing arena in the autumn and took advice from Landtech Solutions - google or find them on facebook - and they were really helpful and advised me and I went for rubber which has been a godsend this winter. Despite the snow there was only one day we couldn't ride on it.

I'd go for as big as you can manage as it will be easier to jump in.
 
As said, as big as you can if you plan to jump courses etc in it. Ours is 45 x 35 and I can managed a course of 6 maybe 7 on my 17.1 but that's the limit. We have just sand (was mainly a financial decision, built by my OH before I knew him)... it does freeze, but other than that I love it. I don't like over-soft surfaces as it puts more strain on the soft tissues in the legs, so I keep ours sprinkled in the summer to keep it damp & firm. The plastic mix ones look good, Charles Britton uses them at his venue.
Maybe look for places to go and have a look at different surfaces, venues, riding schools, friends etc and see what you think?
 
Rubber topped will make it less likely to freeze....mine has never frozen in 13 years.

Mine is 55 x35 and I used to get a full 12 fence course in that .now do dressage and wish it was 60 long so I could do my zig zags etc in right place. If I did it again would do 60 x 40 to cover all eventualities.
 
I find a lot of rubber too deep and spongy, especially for jumping on. I also find them hot to stand on in hot weather - so the horses must feel that too.. They are the easier option usually though.

My friend has had a waxed sand indoor, and it is superb. Hasn't even needed much maintenance and its over a year old (as in hardly been rolled etc). It feels so much better to ride on than the rubber ones around that I use.
 
Thanks all - I am doing a little re-measuring to see if I can squeeze in an extra 10 m width - I don't think it will add too much to the cost (at least that's what I am telling OH :))

All views on the surface appreciated. I also hate going in too deep. I was wondering about a sand / fibre / rubber mix ?

Thanks !
 
Surfaces are quite tricky and often financially driven decisions. If you call round the national suppliers they will be able to give you names/ addresses of people in your area which already have their surface and you will be able to go and look at them yourself.

Rubber is least likely to freeze - depends on where in the country you are and how critical it is you can use if 365 days a year.

Wax - won't need watering - almost all other need moisture so if we have a really dry summer you'll have to get hose pipes out - tricky if your on metered water.

Fiber - cheaper option 100s of different kinds some disintegrate over time, some blow away.
 
If money is no option go for one of the treated, mixed surfaces from somewhere like Martin Collins. There is a reason that Olympic venues, Olympia etc don't go with rubber, straight sand etc.

If that's not the case your choices will depend on what you're willing to compromise on. For instance, if you are not able to irrigate it easily that will limit your options.
 
Our yard has a 30x40 and its sand and rubber. Personally I hate the (or should I say my boy hates ) the surface. Rides deep if not harrowed between uses (hard on a yard of 26) and rediculously hot on summer- it hit you on entry. Ours has frozen in winter apparently that is due to the rubber breaking up over time and cracks getting into the pieces which then hold the water and set hard. I love sand and fibre mixed together. Soft enough to jump but firm enough the support the leg so soft tissue less likely to be damaged
 
I have sand/fibre mix with a light covering of rubber and I find this perfect. Stops the surface drying out too much, and insulates against frost etc.
 
Our outdoor is 60m x 40m, really is a perfect size, and it has a silica sand and Clopf surface......it's amazing, and very very rarely needs irrigating. Never gets deep and only freezes if we have rain and then a very cold night.

Our indoor is 60m x 20m and has the Andrews Bowen Olympic 2012 surface on it which is incredible. It's waxed but it doesn't get compacted like a lot of waxed surfaces. If you can afford this surface, go for it.
 
TarrSteps said:
If money is no option go for one of the treated, mixed surfaces from somewhere like Martin Collins. There is a reason that Olympic venues, Olympia etc don't go with rubber, straight sand etc.

If that's not the case your choices will depend on what you're willing to compromise on. For instance, if you are not able to irrigate it easily that will limit your options.
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I got several quotes for our menage at work and was pleasantly surprised by the Martin Collins quote, was only a few hundred pounds more than the other less known suppliers. I know they did Stonar School's arenas which are amazing.
 
I've just had a silica sand surface topped with Flexiride put in. The Flexiride looks like rubber but is shreds of car upholstery carpet. Because it is softer than rubber it flats and compacts so you ride on top of it. It protects against frost and keeps the sand moist in summer. It also is low maintenance, I've seen it jumped on all weekend in a 2 day jump clinic and there was really no indication it had been ridden on.
Obviously the waxed surfaces are the best but of the cheaper alternatives I looked at Flexiride appears to give the best year round surface and unlike rubber is environmentally sound and will be easier to dispose of in years to come if I ever need to.
 
We now have flexiride. It never freezes, is always rideable and is very low maintenance. It is a really springy surface and is not deep.
 
Hmmm have heard mixed reports on flexiride, the consistency differs from batch to batch & I'm told its delivered in skip loads, that vary in load size, some have complained they were quoted 2£k for a top up as short delivered. I'd investigate fully before ordering. Carpet fibres/ shreds can be ordered direct without using a 3rd party.
 
Oscar said:
Carpet fibres/ shreds can be ordered direct without using a 3rd party.
Click to expand...

Anyone care to PM me with where I can get this direct? I've too heard variable things about the flexiride company but a friend has one and hers is perfect (v low maintenance and little watering required in summer) - hers is old tho and I undertand they've changed the composition.
So I like the theory if I can get the right quality stuff.
 
Size wise go for as big as your budget will stretch, and planning will allow. OH builds quite afew squarer menages (eg 40 x 40) which customers ask for for jumping. Again depends where your putting it.

Surface wise, wax is costly but a must for an indoor. Rubber onto is your best bet for not freezing, but will still freeze if the temp is low enough. Thb all surfaces bar wax will freeze to a certain degree, due to moisture in the sand. Sand and fibres fab when wet, but can dry out in dry spells. However premixed surfaces ride better than sand with fibre rotovated in the top few inches, the premixed is blended before laying and so the fibre is all the way through the surface creating a stronger 'root' like system. At home our own menage has Martin Collins clopft pre mixed which performs better than our old sand and fibre school at our old place, doesn't dry out as much.

If you need anymore help pm me.
 
undertheweather said:
I got several quotes for our menage at work and was pleasantly surprised by the Martin Collins quote, was only a few hundred pounds more than the other less known suppliers. I know they did Stonar School's arenas which are amazing.
Click to expand...

Unfortunately in my view Stonar arenas are not kept amazing. These types of surfaced with large amounts of "wadding" need to be regularly harrowed in order to keep the material mixed with the sand. I saw the arena the other day and it was basically 2 inches of fluffy material sitting on the top of a hard sand base :(
 
I have had my Turfloat surface of approx 10mths now and I'm really pleased with it. The fibres have not risen to the top and its bedded into a lovely surface they only time it gets deep is if its over lunged on during a really dry spell.
 
We have wood fibre on ours ( not to be confused with wood chip which I hate). It's fab to ride on. It's like riding on grass when it's perfect. The surface gives under the foot and then springs back up when the hoof lifts off. Ours never freezes and drains really well. And it's sooooo cheap!! Only downside is it can blow away in gales. We've just put windbreak around our arena and intend to make sure we water it when strong winds are forecast. I love it!
 
Was going to lurk and not comment but felt a little bad as we are now trying to decide on our surface! I was set on silica sand and rubber, but was concerned about the smell ( school is close to our house) and the expense of removal should we want to upgrade. Glad someone mentioned the heat retention as I hadn't considered that, but yes the rubber heats up alot ! Have heard lots of positive stuff about flexiride, mainly on here, so had some samples sent and it looks good! so we are very tempted to use flexiride.... will be following this thread with interest. We had a drama this morning when the lorry delivering the stone for the drainage nearly got stuck in the mud after all the rain :eek:
 
After 3 years of trying to decide what surface to out on I finally finished it yesterday with flexiride. It looks great although didnt get a chance to ride on it today. It seems soft and springy but not deep and I'm hoping I won't have to water it either.
 
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