Thanks for your responses 
We’re going to drag one more time right now to see if we can fix the waves. We were going to try dragging in circles this time maybe - any tips on how to drag out the waves? The first time we dragged the arena we dragged standard pattern. So, the second time I’m thinking circles?? I think our drag company (ABI attachments) for our rascal pro says about 5 mph. And, we’re going to set it at 1/2” - I just found out our neighbor used to have an arena and dragged it themselves, so I’m going to see if they can come out tomorrow and check our adjustments and watch us drag and make sure we’re doing everything right.
Update: we measured the drag to see where we were at when dragging this morning and it measures 3/4” - so we’re going to do 1/2” now - I think that’s okay??
Please post info about your drag setup. Picture would be even better. Unless you tell me otherwise I assume you’re using a drag connected to a tractor three point. Footing is always going to pile up on the outside of your turns. Try dragging in straight lines. Back up to one end, pull straight to the other, then raise the drag off the ground and back up to repeat another straight line. Finish off by dragging the far end across where you have left front wheel marks.
Time consuming but the end result will be much nicer. Also there will be way less stress on the tractor hitch components and less risk of damaging your machinery. Rock shaft component repairs don’t come cheap.
1 Like
Thank you! Sorry I thought I mentioned in the other post that it’s a rascal pro from ABI attachments and we are using a Polaris ranger to drag it - we are dragging right now at 1/2” - this morning we dragged at 3/4” without weight in the back - this time we put 3 bags of feed in the back to add some more weight
1 Like
Are you using the profiler blade? The arms that attach the profiler blade leave those lines.
I think we are I have to double check with my dad
Update: We just dragged again, and it’s much better—everything is a lot more level and settled.
We dragged between 5–10 mph and had the rake set at 1/2”. This time, we also went in the opposite direction. Earlier this morning, when we first dragged, the depth was set at 1”–1.5”, which I hope wasn’t a big mistake. I’m a little worried about going that low on the first few drags, but now we’ve brought it up to 1/2”.
Our arena hasn’t been dragged or ridden in since it was finished about four months ago. The last thing done to it was steam rolling, so it was pretty compact.
I just hope we did everything right on our first couple of drags today. I know it’s a learning process, but I think we’re starting to get the hang of it now. And, anymore helpful tips going forward would be super appreciated
10 Likes
If the waves persist, you need to drag perpendicular to them to settle them back out.
Seems like you’ve got it worked out though! Nice arena!
5 Likes
That looks much better! You got it! You didn’t do any harm this morning, just got some “experience”! No harm no foul.
4 Likes
We have the big version of the rascal and it took quite a bit to get used to it, especially with how to set the teeth.
The waves may be from the drag “porpoising” behind your Ranger. Visualize going over a speed bump-the drag bounces at a different time than the Ranger does. So go slowly through the waves to minimize the bounce.
You can knock down the waves and overflow lines by doing overlapping circles up and down the opposite sides. Just make sure the inside wheels of your Ranger are on the already leveled circle so that your next circle is level with the prior one.
And then finish with the long straight pattern as you’ve done.
Greys
3 Likes
Thank you so much for all the responses 
1 Like
Arena Update: My trainer came out to the barn yesterday for the first time and looked at the arena. She said it was pretty deep and soft, which I had noticed too before she even mentioned it. She said it needs a lot more watering. It hasn’t been watered or dragged since it was finished about four months ago, and I’m worried we may have messed up by letting it sit that long.
I’m not sure what to do now. I hope this can still be fixed, but I’m concerned it’s a problem. I wish I had taken pictures of it dry yesterday—my footprints were sinking deep into the sand. Since then, we’ve watered it twice, and now it’s pretty wet. But it feels even softer—like I’m sinking through it even more, which I know can happen when it’s really wet. Still, I thought it would feel a little firmer.
The footing is just very soft and deep. The arena guy said he did 3 to 4 inches of sand, closer to 3, and my dad measured it yesterday at about 3.5 inches to the base. When you look at the arena it looks really nice, but when you step onto it, it’s deep and soft.
We’ve put so much time and money into this arena and we were so excited to finally ride in it, but right now it doesn’t feel usable. I don’t know if we just need to keep watering and dragging and give it more time, or if it’s always going to be too soft because something wasn’t done right. I’m hoping it’s an easy fix and not something permanent.
What type of sand did you use? That’s definitely going to make a difference.
We did about an inch of a local concrete-type sand mix that is used for arenas around us in our most recent arena, and it’s working well so far. It is firmer after a rain (we don’t have irrigation in place yet) but it’s never really deep/soft. It also sat a bit after being completed while we were waiting on some other construction to move the horses home.
Long ago previous farm, we used 2 - 3 inches of concrete type sand, and ended up removing half of it - we had a nice big sand pile the horses loved to roll in LOL. So that might be an option if you otherwise like the sand and it’s just too deep - remove some of it off to the side and see if that’s better.
Hopefully it’s just a footing depth issue - or do you feel like the base itself is soft?
Thanks for your response! I’m hoping it’s an easy fix like footing depth and we can just remove some like you said if we need to. My dad said the base is very firm and hard, and I’ve felt it and it seems to be. The arena guy said the sand used is what the rock quarry recommended. This is the text he sent me when he was doing the arena:
“Normally septic sand is too fine for horse arenas however the stuff that they were calling septic was course and it is what he recommended and I thought it was the best Sand there.”
I think it’s also considered river sand. I’ve attached a picture of what the sand looks like. He said he gave us 3-4 inches, more closer to 3 and my husband measured it yesterday and it’s about 3-3.5 inches depending on the area. It’s fluffy right now I think maybe it was too dry when we dragged it, but I don’t know if that would make it deep and soft like that.
1 Like
I have found that almost everyone puts too much sand into the arena. Heavily watering it will help it be firmer and settle more, then when it dries I’d set the tines shallow so you’re only fluffing up a bit. I found that my ring was better after a good winter where the sand got mixed in a bit with the base and wasn’t so deep.
3 Likes
I agree with this. It happened to me, too. I wanted to do 2" and I got talked into doing 3". Which I feel is too deep in spots (I have difficulty getting it even). I do have fiber mixed in, so that helps the firmness, but it’s still too deep in spots.
One thing I will say is that I’ve found it takes a lot more water than I thought it would. It depends on your water pressure, of course. For me, I don’t have great water pressure where my ring is, but 10 minutes water would make only a very negligible difference. I have to water my ring in 3 sections and I water each section for about an hour each (depending on how dry it is to start).
1 Like
Water until the water bill makes your eyes pop, then add more water.
My sand surfaced standard dressage arena has 10 Rainbird Falcon 6504 partial circle sprinklers around its perimeter in 10 zones (one sprinkler runs at a time and is rated at 17.1 gallons per minute). Water pressure from my well is 60 PSI, supplied from well to sprinklers by 1-1/2 inch PVC pipe, stepped down to 1 inch right at each sprinkler head, and I run water to it a minimum of 3 hours every day and even more in the summers, to keep the footing non-dusty and firm.
My well does not deliver the sprinkler rated 17.1 gallons per minute, but delivers around 10 GPM maximum, so I’m delivering approximately 1,800 gallons per day to the arena. That’s equivalent to 2.5 or so inches of water daily, so unless there is a real deluge of rain one day, I still need to run the irrigation system that day to keep up with footing requirements.
1 Like
Thank you for your responses! I’m feeling a bit down after talking to my trainer this morning. She came out again today, and we’ve run the sprinklers three times in the past 24 hours. We went out right after watering this morning, and the footing is like soup—soft, loose, and slippery.
My trainer thought watering would help firm it up, and so did I, but it’s actually worse. She said she’s not an arena expert, but she knows the difference between a good arena and a bad one—and ours is not good. She said the footing is too deep and loose, and suggested that adding an additive might help.
It’s just disheartening because my parents put so much money and work into this arena, and now it’s unrideable. They want to call the arena guy and tell him he needs to fix it, since he recommended this sand as the best option for an arena. Now it seems like that wasn’t true.
My trainer mentioned GGT footing mixed in as a possible solution, but we can’t even go that route because my dad’s drag isn’t built for it. I just feel hopeless and at a loss. We thought we did everything right, and I don’t even care about not being able to ride—I just feel awful for my parents. They gave so much to make this possible for me, and it’s hard not to feel overwhelmed with guilt knowing how much they put into it. I can’t stop thinking about it, and it’s really weighing on me.
This is after being in the sun all day, it was really soupy and sloppy after the sprinklers this morning - it’s still really deep and soft.
1 Like
Adding fiber to unstable footing will not fix the underlying issue.
Get a sample of the footing and send it out for particle size analysis - it could be the distribution, it could be the angularity, it could be both. Give your arena builder a heads up of the problem, give them a chance to fix it. Be prepared to take some out and amend with another type of sand to provide stability.
4 Likes
