Galloping track?

[sarafina]

Good morning group - Mr. 'Fina and I are planning our mini farm, and we have an approximately 8- 10 acre parcel that I am looking to turn into pastures, barn and arena. I have been kicking around the idea of making a galloping track around the perimeter. Two sides would be relatively flat and two sides would provide some good slope.

Has anyone created such a thing, or should i just plan on galloping around my turnout fields (which is what I do at my boarding barn now…) I"m trying to reason out the extra cost (fencing) and PITA factor (mowing and maintaining) versus what a freaking blast it would be to have. Since we are “first time farmers” we’re trying to be extra careful about planning to put everything in the right spot. (read: drainage, grading and ease of use)

Many thanks in advance!!

[PeteyPie]

I have nothing to contribute except my opinion that that is a cool idea.

[Simkie]

Eyeballing my 10 acres, I just don’t know if I’d be willing to give up the space needed. Sure, you could pretty easily give up the 12-15 ft or whatever for the actual track, but you’d really have to round those corners for galloping, which would eat up a LOT more (I would think.)

That would be super cool, but draw it out on the google earth overhead and see if you can live with it.

[LaurieB]

I would love to have a galloping track, but I agree with Simkie. I think it would eat up more room than you might initially think. I also think that the footing might require a lot of extra maintenance if you are always galloping in the same restricted area.

[PeteyPie]

Oh wow, I would think you would want it to be way wider than 15 feet. Wouldn’t you? I would want it at least 40 feet wide. Maybe it could widen and narrow at different points. The fences would have to be very safe.

If the galloping track were only fenced on the outside and it was simply a path around the edge of a pasture with no inside rail, then the track could be much narrower.

What’s the plan, OP? I am intrigued.

[sarafina]

Good points about the rounded corners. I should study this - great tip on zee googles. We’re kicking around the idea of acquiring more land (5 acres across our rural lane - better for an arena, i think), but it’s not a given. The track would definitely be in the area mentioned, but if I didn’t have to use some of it for an arena, it might be more workable.

[sarafina]

Ha - well, the plan is really to provide a way for me to do some good forward trot and gallop work without having to use an arena. I have about a two acre relatively flat space to work with now, and it’s quite lovely for a gallop, and we also have a hilly pasture for this kind of work too - I wanted to replicate this . but if I cut up the area like i want to, my pastures will be smallelr than 2 acres, I believe, and I’ll have to stop and turn more. Maybe what I could do is put gates(like 2 large ones together) in to gallop thru so I can use the perimeter?? The double fencing does seem like a mainetnance nightmare.

[Mukluk]

I have always thought it would be fabulous to have a galloping track. I would put a long sloping bridge over the driveway so the horses could run non stop all the way around. But alas I lack the acreage and the dough. Perhaps one day I will win the lottery.

[The_Centaurian]

I am glad Mukluk brought up the driveway; that was my question.

Also, if you do not fence the perimeter of your property, and choose rather to leave a little room between the pasture fence and the property line as your lane, then what happens if your neighbors decide to build a fence-- will you still have enough room to gallop between your fence and theirs?

I can imagine building a perimeter fence, then building an oval pasture inside the perimeter, with your gallop lane all around. This is roughly how I have seen some racing farms fenced. If you kept the gallop lane grass, you could use it for occasional turnout when the pasture(s) needed to be rested.

Sounds expensive, though… not sure what kinds of trails or fields you would have access to that might suit the same purpose.

[Jealoushe]

You don’t need it that wide at all! In Ireland they have gallops - they are only as wide as the horse. They seem relatively easy to make but they probably require at least some grading. I also want to do this and it’s in my future plans, but I also am not certain how to go about it. I will be using the perimeter of my property. The tracks in the UK and Ireland were mostly sand/dirt and woodchip. Over time they make a really lovely all weather surface.

[HungarianHippo]

I think using gates to open up both sides of the cross-fencing is a great idea. I sometimes have to lead my horse pretty far to open or close certain field gates before I mount up, and it’s a good warmup for both of us.

My hayfields are 8+acres each and I have to say that it really is quite fun to let her loose for 1/4 mi or more with hardly any turning. But, it’s also true that most of my saddle time is spent working on normal stuff, lots of circling, etc. So if you think about it in those terms-- how often a week will you use it and for how long?-- the huge expense, loss of grazing, and extra footing & fence to maintain probably aren’t justified.

[wendy]

Oh, do it! I’ve boarded on farms that had a de facto perimeter trail- they’d actually created it by putting in double-fencing separated by 10 feet? as required by law for the area for the outside fence for a horse farm. Even if not required by law, it’s a great idea- it keeps the public away from the horses at the periphery of the farm (no chomped fingers or snack-feeding), and it’s much harder for a horse to get loose. Anyway, this perimeter trail was the best thing ever for hacking, hand-walking, getting in some really forward work. They had sharp corners and just turf for footing so a real gallop wasn’t in the cards, but it could easily have been turned into a galloping track. Not really sure how wide it was, but wide enough for two horses to pass or ride side-by-side.
I say go for it!

[Frog_Pond]

I’ve seen a few Standardbred barns that built an oval track around the barn & paddocks that they used for daily training, and these are 5 acres or less including a house. The tracks are maybe 20’ wide, with a stone dust/screening surface that they maintain themselves. You’d need a decent tractor for that. None of them are fenced. I found it pretty scary to ride green horses on them (no fence, they bust into that huge trot and can’t believe you want them to go slower) but, it’s the norm in that world!

[HannahsMom7]

[QUOTE=sarafina;7921327]
Good morning group - Mr. 'Fina and I are planning our mini farm, and we have an approximately 8- 10 acre parcel that I am looking to turn into pastures, barn and arena. I have been kicking around the idea of making a galloping track around the perimeter. Two sides would be relatively flat and two sides would provide some good slope.

Has anyone created such a thing, or should i just plan on galloping around my turnout fields (which is what I do at my boarding barn now…) I"m trying to reason out the extra cost (fencing) and PITA factor (mowing and maintaining) versus what a freaking blast it would be to have. Since we are “first time farmers” we’re trying to be extra careful about planning to put everything in the right spot. (read: drainage, grading and ease of use)

Many thanks in advance!![/QUOTE]

My barn was a TB training barn in its day. there is a 1/2 mile dirt track just up a bit from the main farm. It is quite wide and the BO keeps up with the care of the track. It is not fenced in, but some of the center is a grassey area with jumps to ride in and 2 HUGE paddocks for group turnout.

[crosscreeksh]

Something else to think about. Putting the track “inside” the pasture might be easiest, but I know I can’t ride through most of my pastures without being mobbed by the resident horses!! The geldings want to play…the mares want us GONE!!! As someone said…you really only need a narrow path unless you are galloping pairs…8-10 feet is generous and if the pasture fence is to the inside you can turn the corner easily by just rounding off the pasture fence corner. For safety…I’d run at least a single strand of tape (electric or not) to the outside “in case” you had an issue and your riding horse got loose. You would want some sort of containment. ps: I LOVED our “real” training track back in NC. You could hack around/warm up nicely before going on to the ring or cross country jump course.

[D_BaldStockings]

If there are horses on the other side of any of the fences, either make them taller than you think -6 ft., or make the lane 10-12’ wide… Horses tempted to lunge at or over a fence to harass the galloper are just not safe with lanes too narrow; 3’ is nothing for a horse to reach if determined.

Not to mention the damage to the pastured horse if it is fool enough to kick the fencing.

-Be sure any lane is wide enough to drive trucks, spreaders and equipment down; someone is going to have to maintain the surface whether grass or stone mix.

[jbonifas]

I’d say a min of 10’-0, leave it grass, fill in any holes and go for it. It would be like going out on cross country at a show, they don’t have groomed pathways.

[rustbreeches]

I’ve galloped race horses on a lot of farms. Nothing fancy was done to any of the tracks. The path was just one horse wide around the perimeter of a field, just inside the fence line. Some places would spread used sawdust bedding to provide a bit of cushion. There was no inner rail or outer rail. Some were too tight to breeze around, but were fine for galloping and 2 minute licking

[tangledweb]

If you can afford it and will use it, go for it.

One thing to consider depending on the layout of the property, is a gravel driveway down one side of the property could be 1/3 of your track without losing any space that was not already taken.

[sarafina]

Wow- fantastic ideas and things to think about - thank you so much for the input!! Our driveway is long (about 200yards) and flat, and located at the western edge of of our property. I was going to run fence along the side of it, and then curve around in front of the house, and run it all the way along the treeline to the eastern side, and then turn and head south (along the lane) until I hit the driveway again. The plan was to make it wide enough for the tractor to fit through for mowing/manure spreading. I was thinking of a no climb fence with a board on the top. our ultimate plan is to grow a hedge like they have in Ireland along the front edge of the farm - for privacy and animal containment. but that’s a several year project that will need constant attention. There are many goats and sheep where I board now, and my horse is used to galloping in a field with other animals (and herd them at her whim), but NOT other horses (I’m not too keen on that idea). So my containment plan may include escape artists such as sheep and goats (they may provide some “landscaping” as well, so I hear). The farm itself will only have two horses and possibly a pony or donkey so i can trailer one horse off the property. However, there are several sheep and goat farmers who will “lend a herd” on occasion to assist with land management.

We do have many trails and state parks in the area, but I’m not yet familiar with what they have to offer in terms of getting in a good gallop. ( I don’t really want to be the a$$ who is tearing around if the folks are more laid back in their enjoyment of the trails…) Should those prove viable, I may shelve this idea and save the money. Excellent food for thought - you all have provided things to think about and ideas I had not considered. thank you!!