Getting ready to build some ditches for schooling purposes at my boarding barn. We currently have XC fences from 18" to BN. How big should we make these things? We may, at some point, have a derby or mini trial, but they will mainly be used for schooling. They will probably be revetted with telephone poles, but we might use treated lumber. I was thinking internal width of 2 ft and 3 ft. Neither will be deep (although I may dump some black rubber mulch in one to make it more looky). Do those sound like appropriate sizes?
Hi! good resource here, see pages 7-9. But lots of other info about ground lines etc too. Happy building ! https://useventing.com/resources/documents/USEA-XC-Course-Design-Guidelines-2020_v2.pdf
From the description your “ditches” should really not be anything more than lumber/telephone poles embedded in the ground with minimal depth such that there is no concern about a horse stepping in them. Those are the kind of ditches that can help develop the confidence of both horse and rider. I would not make the ditches like the one I did for at home. However, if you make your ditches correctly, you can also use them as trakheners (as shown) or Weldon’s walls.
The ditch is 2’9" deep, 3’ across so that there is a distinct “fear factor” we can work on if needed. I used pressure treated 6x6 landscaping lumber. Your dimensions make great sense if you keep them very shallow. Just use white rock to provide a strong contrast and skip revetting.
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Keep the widths depths the same but if you have room make 2 sets. One with neutral dirt/mulch in the bottom and the other with something very different (sparkly rocks, tinsel etc.) to provide something easy and then more mentally challenging.
I forgot about that! Thanks!
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Thanks! Yes, planning to keep them quite shallow. Reverting a deeper ditch is a lot more work, anyway!
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I looked in to building a home ditch for schooling purposes but ultimately have been too cheap to invest in a permanent fixture attached boarding barn.
But as a result, I can tell you that my ideal ditch is a uniform 2’-2’6” deep and V-shaped, basically being inches wide at one end and ~3’ wide at the other end. Approximately 18’-24’ overall width. Why so deep, even for a baby horse? It teaches them not to step in it. I’ve been lucky so far, but have been told that very bad things can happen if your horse thinks it’s safe to step in a ditch (makes sense to me). But the suuuuuper skinny side is still inviting and great for teaching babies about ditches.
My ideal ditch is basically a box that is flush with the ground- maybe sticks up ~2” or so. To construct, you build a box the dimensions of your future ditch (so, V-shaped, tapering to 3’ wide, and 2’-2’6” tall). You dig a gigantic hole, plop the V-shaped box in the ground, and fill back in around the box, using some limestone on either side to help firm up the footing at the landing/takeoff. Line the bottom of the ditch with landscape fabric and some gravel to hold it in place. This can easily be mowed over (take bush hog or batwing across the ditch- wheels stay on real ground and whole thing is easily mowed!). When jumping, use PVC or wood rails on the lip to rivet it. Your very short lip of the box-in-ground holds the rails in place.
This type of ditch is also quite versatile. You can build a trekehner using a show jump in the bottom of it. You can make a ditch and wall with a panel and show jump standards on one side. You can build all sorts of coffins.
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