Conference noted::equitation

If you'd like to have a standard dressage arena then you'll
need to clear room for the following dimensions:

20 meters X 40 meters (approx 67 feet X 132 feet) is a small dressage arena.
20 meters X 60 meters (approx 67 feet X 197 feet) is a large dressage arena.

Melinda

    My arena is 90 feet x 150 feet.......this has turned out to be a
    really nice size.  It feels very roomy with 3-4 horses working
    at the same time and still there is space for jumps and trotting poles.

    I still don't know what size the width should be, but the area in
    which I would like to put the ring, has at least 150 feet in length
    of cleared land...which could be expanded to 200 feet easily with
    a little clearing of some brush...does it make sense to make the
    ring 150 feet at first and then expand if I feel I need more room?
    If I were to go 200 feet in length, can the width be smaller, or
    should it be 100 feet or more?
    
    		Thanks, Nancy
    

    	Nancy,,something to consider,,you ca always make the ring larger,
    and use portable steel panels to cut it down if your training program
    requires a smaller area.
    
    	Just a thought,
    		George

    
    okay, what is the correct size (in feet) for a 60meter x 20meter
    dressage ring?
    
    I have been getting conflicting reports.  A meter is 3 feet 3 inces . 4
    so that comes up to 200 feet x 70 feet.  is that right?
    
    Louisa (who's hubby is putting in a ring for her) :-) OH JOY!

    A 30 x 70 meter pad (98.5 x 230 ft) is recommended if your building a 
    standard 20 x 60 (66 x 198 ft) ring. I didn't give myself this extra
    area around the outside and I wish I had. I would be nicer, raking
    when the ring cover doesn't extend out isn't as easy.
    
    I had the 'exact' demensions somewhere, along with the diagonals
    (X square times Y square = Z square) to square it up, I'll try to
    find them. The longest tape I could find was 100 feet when I did mine,
    so I laid the ring out in three 20 meter sections, squaring each to
    get it accurate. I'll try to find the numbers. 
    
    Sharon

    
>>    I have been getting conflicting reports.  A meter is 3 feet 3 inces . 4
>>    so that comes up to 200 feet x 70 feet.  is that right?
    

    I get 65.62 x 196.85

    I also agree with building it alittle bigger.  Raking sand out of
    the grass does not seem like fun to me.

    Oh and Louisa, no need to send a 'thank you' directly.
    Bill

    re: making it a bit bigger
    
    Not to mention the space around the perimeter you will loose to fencing
    (assuming you plan to enclose it).
    

    
    Thanks for the idea of making the ring a little bit bigger.  I will add
    that into our plans.
    
    Bill, Touche' :-)
    
    ps.  Things are looking good for our ring.  It looks like this ring
    will cost us just about nothing - and it will happen very fast :-)
    My husband has the equipment to do the job (big savings) and now he's
    made a deal for all the loam we take out, we will trade for the crushed
    stone  and some other footing!  All we'll need to bring in is the sand
    & shavings mixture
    
    that brings me to another questions:
    
    What top footing are some of you using?  So far, everyone seems to like
    the sand & shavings mix.  Any other ideas?
    
    Louisa

    Mine is just sand, no shavings.  To be exact, 3 inches of sand on top
    of a clay base.  Works out great, I see no reason to add shavings to it
    - it drains wonderfully, and I don't seem to have much problems with
    dust, either.  For the last few years it's been virtually
    no-maintenance - since I only occasionally do ringwork now it doesn't
    get a ton of use and you can't even see a 'track' around the perimeter,
    so I haven't had to even rake it in the longest time.    

    For the Dressage ring, I couldn't find my old figures so I did them out
    again (I needed them anyway). 
    The exact dimensions in feet are 65'-7 1/4"  x 196'-10 1/4'
    for a large standard type ring.
    Since I squared it up using three 20 meter squares (65'-7 1/4 x 65'-7
    1/4") the diagonals are:
    
    92'-9 1/2" across one 20 meter square
    146'-8 3/4" across two 20 meter squares (or a small dressage ring)
    207'-6" across the large ring (if you have a REALLY long tape!)
    
    To lay the letters take the meter distance and multiply by 3.28.
    (20 meters x 3.28 = 65.6') to get the .6 into inches multiply by 12.
    (.6 x 12 = 7.2") total 65'-7.2".  
    
    Sharon
    

    Sorry for the late response but I've been on vacation. Officially, a
    dressage arena measures 20m x 60m or 66 feet by 198'. We made ours 70'
    x 200' to keep the footing out of the surrounding area. Don't plan to
    fence it so we didn't make it any bigger.
    
    Re how to keep your lines straight and square. 
    
    The simplest trick is to use a 30 x 40 x 50 triangle. Put a stake where
    you want the corner. Measure 30' along one side and put another stake.
    Measure 40' up the other side. Use a second tape measure attached to
    the stake which is 30' from the corner and adjust the line of the 40'
    side until the 40' and 50' marks on the tapes match up(i.e. you're
    exactly 50' from the stake on the other side). Put a stake where the 2
    tapes cross. Your triangle should look like this:
    
    X = stake
    
    		X
    		|\
     40'	| \ 
    		|  \ 50'
    		|   \
    		X____X
    		  30'
    
    This trick will work with *any* multiple of 3 x 4 x 5.  Somebody mentioned 
    the geometry of triangles before and gave the formula: 
    
    C squared = A squared + B squared or C x C = A x A + B x B... 
    You can use that to prove to yourself that you can multiply the 3 4 and
    5 by any number and the 3 x 4 x 5 trick works(as long as you use the
    same number to multiply each time!). For example:
    
    Basic:  	5 x 5 = 3 x 3 + 4 x 4 ==> 25 = 9 + 16
    Times 2: 	10 x 10 = 6 x 6 + 8 x 8 ==> 100 = 36 + 64
    Times 5:	25 x 25 = 15 x 15 + 20 x 20 ==> 625 = 225 + 400
    Times 10:	50 X 50 = 30 x 30 + 40 x 40 ==> 2500 = 900 + 1600
    
    Now you can stretch a string or whatever along those stakes to mark
    out the sides of your arena. Measure off to the other corner on the
    same end of the arena and put a stake at that corner. Square the other
    long side the same way and then put stakes at the other 2 corners. If
    you've squared the 2 corners correctly and run the lines for the other 
    sides correctly, the fourth side should already be square when you mark 
    the other corners. You can check it just to be sure.
    
    
    Footing:
    
    3" to 4" of sand over a good draining base works well in most places.
    Out here in Monsoon City, that would hold too much water in the winter
    because even the best drained places have a high water table in winter.
    Deeper sand is too hard on tendons & ligaments. So, we put down 2" of
    sand over the gravel just to serve as a barrier against big rocks
    working into the footing. Over the sand, we put 3" to 4" of what we
    call "hog fuel" which is really just shredded tree parts(Not bark!).
    It's the scrap parts of trees that the lumber mills grind up. It's
    kinda like Fibar but cheaper. That works pretty well as the water drains 
    through into the sand an gravel. The "hog fuel" doesn't move around
    much so it doesn't strain legs as easily as deep sand would.
    
    Hope that helps.
    John

    An easy way to square up the ring using the diagonal method (using John 
    or my figures) when you have only one tape.  Lay the two markers on the 
    short side first. Start at one marker and come up the long side to 
    (in my case 65' 7 1/4"), hold a stick on the tape, Keep the tape taught 
    and make an arc in the sand a few feet long.  Now start at the other
    marker, come across to where you just made the arc, hold a stick on the
    tape at 92' 9 1/2" and draw another arc in the sand.  Where the arcs
    cross is where you put your third marker.  Put a marker on the other long
    side the same way to make a square.  Now come off these two new markers the 
    same way. 
    Two squares make a small ring with 'B' and 'E' already marked, three 
    squares make a large ring, with a bit more measuring to do to get any
    of the letters.
    

    
    Thanks!
    
    I had some folks up this weekend (a survayer, a structional engineer, and a
    few horse people) and the ring is supposed to be 200 x 67 (feet).  We
    are going to  make our ring 204 x 71 (feet) to leave room for fencing
    of some sort.  I wish I could make it a tad larger, but that is
    stretching it as it is.
    
    I need to know if there are any books or something that talks about how
    much footing there should be?  The owner loved the plans we showed him
    (we had all the grades maped out - very professional) :-)
    
    but he does not seem to want to take my word for the footing.  I told
    him (taking the grades in consideration) that we would put down crushed
    stone (for drainage) then use about 3" to 4" of stone dust firmly
    packed - then about 3" of a sand and shaving mix.  The shavings help
    keept he dust down/espally when you water the ring - the shavings hold
    the water in longer ... etc ..
    
    but he would like to see something in writing or in a book.....
    
    any ideas on a book?
    
    Louisa 

    USDF sent out a small booklet to NEDA members called "Under foot - The
    USDF Guide to Dressage Arena Construction, Maintenance and Repair"
    There's a number in the booklet 402-424-8550, maybe they could send you
    one.  If not, I could lend you mine if your nearby, I'm in Hubbardston.
    
    Getting the 'right' sand is very important. It shouldn't be too dusty
    or too grainy.  Most construction crews just go for price.  I highly
    recommend you make this clear to them.  Melinda Johnson tells me my 
    ring has the best footing and is the least dusty of any she teaches
    in.  My husband and I did the drains and under surface, but if your
    in my area and want a perfect top the guy who did mine has done a lot.
    He says he's got the mix down pat, His name is Tim Hardacker,
    508-928-4001. 
    
    (By the way 20 meters exactly equals 65' 7.2", but it depends on just 
    how close you feel like getting)
    
    Sharon

    There's also a book called "All-Weather Surfaces For Horses" by
    Ray Lodge and Susan Shanks. The tack catalog description reads:
    "A comprehensive and invaluable guide to the provision of all-weather
    surfaces for horses, covering the choice of site, drainage,
    construction, materials, maintenance and common causes of failure.
    Essential reading for anyone who is considering construction of an
    indoor or outdoor school or lunge ring.  Includes invaluable
    information for the takeoffs and landings for cross-country obstacles
    as well as footing for gallops and racecourses."  Costs $18
    
    EQUUS had a 4 page article on arena construction, footing etc in the
    Feb 1989 issue(EQUUS # 136) too. EQUUS also had an article on dust
    control in arenas by using "polymer crystals" (read jelly pellets) in
    the December 1990 issue(EQUUS # 158).
    
    BTW, the EQUUS article reccommends *exactly* the kind of thing you're
    proposing: compacted base allowing for drainage; compacted crushed rock;
    1" of compacted sand followed by the finish footing. They specifically 
    mention a sand and shaving mix as being a good inexpensive way to get 
    decent footing that retains moisture.
    
    
    Hope that helps.
    John

    On vacation I finally got a price for granite curb stones to
    build a small wall.

    Wouldn't your dressage ring look picture perfect if the edging was
    angled granite curbing ?

    About $3,000.00, and borrow a big truck.  Your talking 25,000 lbs.

    Bill
    ps: who hates landscape timbers.

    
    Bill, that would be nice - and seeing my hubby is a stone mason and
    owes all his own 10wheelers and backhoes it would cost me next to
    nothing :-)  
    
    Louisa