Outdoor arena question

[kmully]

At my new farm there is a horse barn. Behind it the previous owner spread an area 180' x 60' with gravel (for a parking big trucks I think?) I'd like to scrape off all that gravel and work the area into a good sand footing outdoor ring. It's worked into the ground, not deep.The ground is clay under the gravel. I'm in the process of deciding what tractor to buy.
What sort of attachments would I need and how would I begin? In other words, how do I get that darn gravel off? Box blade, rear blade, FEL?
This is my first big spring project after moving in!

 

[Soundguy]

I'd box blade it if it was worked in.. though n angle blade will winrow it.. then you can box blade it up.. or loader bucket it up.

a landscape rake used on it after you work it with the blades may help as well.

clay is fine for a riding arenna.. just keep it fluffy...

soundguy

 

[CCWKen]

SG has good advice but it depends on what type of "gravel". When I think of gravel, I think of what's called Pea-Gravel around here or from 1/4-1/2" stone. That you can pretty much blade up into piles and haul off. If it's #2 base or larger stone that's packed, you'd be better off hiring a dozer service for a day. (Or a loader.) They can strip it and move it into piles. If you had a tractor with a FEL or rear bucket, you could then move the piles where you wanted at your leisure.

 

[KML]

I agree with Soundguy, A rear blade and the loader would get it done in short order.

A landscape rake would be good for the finishing touches and could also be a decent arena drag to help maintain the area in the future.

 

[horse7]

The rear blade I have wouldn't work on anything packed, but the box blade would.

The biggest problem is getting the subtle hills and valleys out of the surface (or worse, a slight height difference such as corner to corner), they don't look like much by eyeball on a tractor but they sure are noticeable when riding them.

 

[Heywood Jannockitov]

Why remove the gravel? I'd leave it there and spread your sand footing on top of it. It would make a good base along with the clay that is there already as it sounds like it is well packed in, not loose. What is the drainage in the area like now? Sounds like the area is already level since it was a parking pad. The length is good, but 60' is a little on the narrow side. Can you go 90-100 ft wide?
Ideally, you'll want a slight crown to the ring for surface drainage, or a fall from one side to the other. How soon do you want to ride in it after a heavy rain?
Depending on your budget, you might want to consider tile draining the ring or open swales around the perimeter to redirect possible runoff from the surrounding area. I just completed a 100 x 240 tile drained outdoor ring with a base of compacted crushed limestone screening topped with 2 inches of track sand plus 1 inch of concrete sand. It was not cheap, but it is heaven to ride in.

 

[kmully]

I like the sound of leaving the gravel where it is! It is actually not pea-gravel, its that large course 1" edge-y stuff and its not all worked in. There is a lot of loose stone on the surface.
Box blades intrigue me, until I started looking at tractors, I'd never heard of them. I'll have to do more research on this site.
The area is large enough to hire out for a "big machine" for the project. I just thought it would be a great project to say I had done it myself (with my own equipment) but it may not be practical. It doesn't have to be done in a hurry, we've just bought our dream farm!
Thanks for your great advice.

 

[Soundguy]

A box blade IS the IDEAL tool for cutting high spots and filling low spots... think of it as a light saber for dirt..

soundguy

The biggest problem is getting the subtle hills and valleys out of the surface (or worse, a slight height difference such as corner to corner), they don't look like much by eyeball on a tractor but they sure are noticeable when riding them.

 

[Egon]

If you want a proper riding arena do some research on what is required for soil, surface preparation and all the equipment available for doing the job. Different types of riding may require different types of preparation and equipment.

There will be a few threads on this here but they will be a few years old.

Note: What is said above reflects on those threads as I'm not familiar with surface preparation for riding rings.

The "Equine Folks" can get pretty fussy about the footing their steeds are subject too.

http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/attachments/38376-what-kind-harrow-use-horse.html

I found one thread. Cowboydoc is quite knowledgeable on riding rings. His daughter was involved in Barrel Racing and some real good success.

 

[Soundguy]

Remember egon.. some of us that have already replied are those equine folks you refer to.

I got 4 hay burners right now...

soundguy

 

[Egon]

You may be one of the many Soundguy. There are lots more out there you know.

 

[Rara Avis]

Arenas and Footing

 

[Rara Avis]

At my new farm there is a horse barn. Behind it the previous owner spread an area 180' x 60' with gravel (for a parking big trucks I think?) I'd like to scrape off all that gravel and work the area into a good sand footing outdoor ring. It's worked into the ground, not deep.The ground is clay under the gravel. I'm in the process of deciding what tractor to buy.
What sort of attachments would I need and how would I begin? In other words, how do I get that darn gravel off? Box blade, rear blade, FEL?
This is my first big spring project after moving in!

TR3 Rake Arena Drag by ABI Equine >>> Best Selling Arena Equipment

 

[LBrown59]

Remember egon.. some of us that have already replied are those equine folks you refer to.

I got 4 hay burners right now...

soundguy

I went and picked up 2 55 gallon white plastic drums the other day and the guy had 8 or 9 horses.

 

[Snitch]

If you don't remove the rocks they will surface at a later date due to the constant harrowing you will be doing to keep your footing good. Best thing to do is clear the round of the rocks and add dirt.(all depends on what area you are in for what type of dirt you need to fill with).

good luck - here's mine

 

[Mike_Kanzer]

If the gravel is large unfortunately you should probably remove it. The larger rocks will definitely surface when you work the ring. We have a 10" compacted crushed stone base that was put over the compacted subsoil with a network of drainage tile beneath that. The riding surface is 2" of sand. The compacted stone was laser leveled. My ring was definetely over-engineered but it drains really fast. You could ride in it 1 hour after a 2" rain storm. The most important part of the ring I think is the base - you could get away with a thinner layer of stone dust but the gravel should go - my two cents - Mike

 

[johns_dmax]

With gravel that size you will need to be concerned about getting stone bruises on any unshod horses. We like to pull the shoes over winter and are careful what type of surface the horses are on. Bruises and abscesses aren't fun to take care of.
I just finished our arena we started this summer. We had a guy with a dozer come out and level the area then I spread a layer of sand over the base. We previously had the top soil scraped off to level the hill and the area was down to a layer of clay over sandstone. Works well for the arena, not so well for setting posts for the fencing. Wife's happy with is so it was all worth it.

 

[Soundguy]

I'd use those slip on rubber shoes if I had lots of that gravel coming up..

soundguy

 

[Egon]

I'd use those slip on rubber shoes if I had lots of that gravel coming up..

Why not just prepare a proper ring?

 

[Soundguy]

Egon.. you need to find a new hobby besides giving me a hard time.

Did you bother to read this thread at all????? Post #2.. I suggested boxing and scooping the gravel OUT IN THE FIRST PLACE.

If the person didn't.. ( hypothetical situation) and built it on top the gravel anyway, and had some gravel coming up.. I said I'd slip on those rubber temp shoes on the horse to protect it.

Go heckle somebody else!

soundguy

Why not just prepare a proper ring?