Outdoor arena question

kmully · Oct 2, 2008

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 · Oct 2, 2008

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 · Oct 3, 2008

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 · Oct 3, 2008

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 · Oct 3, 2008

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 · Oct 3, 2008

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 · Oct 3, 2008

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 · Oct 4, 2008

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

horse7 said:
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 · Oct 4, 2008

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.