I am hoping to make a galloping track in my back field. I’m thinking grass footing would be just fine, especially since it will be mostly only me using it. Anyone with experience doing this? I was thinking drag it first, then maybe take a roller to it to flatten out any pockmarks? Then mow it once a week or so? Thanks for any thoughts.
Grass can be fairly slippy when at all wet. Depending on your soil type and the drainage of the area, you’ll likely also have to take care not to use it too soon after a rain (even if dry enough on the surface) or you’ll do anything from deforming the nice flat surface you rolled, to punching gnarly holes in it, to turning it into mud soup in short order.
I used to board somewhere that mowed a track around the exterior of one of the hayfields after the first cut and kept it mown until snow made it irrelevant. I liked it and it was great for trot sets and galloping, but if I wanted a track to be able to use more consistently, grass wouldn’t be my first choice.
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How often will you use the track? Will you plan on using it outside of your grass growing season? Is the area well draining?
These are all things that can make your plan work well or not work at all. Grass is temperamental without the stress of foot/hoof traffic and that is at a walk, not a gallop.
You’re in my neck of the woods and our soil type is mostly silt loam and ledge - which can drain quickly if there’s a decent depth to the water table and it is situated in an area with good drainage… but as you know, there’s lots of hills here and our weather is mercurial and wet!
I have a grass ring for schooling (no dirt ring) and a bridle path that loops around the property and segues into the driveway. From October to late April (and any time June-Sept that it rains) I cannot use my grass ring without destroying/poaching the grass, not even at a walk… so something to think about if you are wanting to use this regularly. I actually made the bridle path because I was never able to ride in the ring, but I needed somewhere to exercise my horse without having to truck in somewhere.
Out of curiosity I looked at my horse’s work log from last year and counted the days I rode/schooled in the grass ring. It summed up to a total of 8 weeks – no wonder our dressage sucks 
If you have a back field, or the room for it, I’d first look at the areas in your pasture that have the best drainage. The ones that dry the quickest. I’d make a dirt track by tilling out the area (which will remove the grass), adding some sort of all-weather footing like stone-dust or even sand, then drag to even out the substrate.
My bridle path goes to the lowest part of the property and then loops around – but even then, it is way less muddy than the grass ring on any given day.
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Well, hello Beowulf, and thanks everyone for the ideas. I had forgotten to change my bio info on the CoTH db. I am now a proud small farm owner in upstate New York (moved last November) with one horse and soon two. There are definitely some low spots in that field. We are talking about adding some fill in those spots, but maybe I should start pricing out what it would cost to add footing. These comments are very helpful. Thanks again all! I’m sure I will have more questions as spring approaches!
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Upstate NY is completely different soil - so you may be good! Congrats on your farm, and small world… I just moved a few years ago from upstate NY to MA, so did the opposite of you … :lol: I didn’t ride much outside while I was in upstate NY but the soil type was much less boggy from what I remember.
The hayfield where we board is probably about 45 acres. There is a track worn around the outside and a few short trails that loop into the woods. There are a couple of longer straight parts that drain well and dry out quickly that are perfect for galloping. My horse loses his composure when my now 21 y.o. “granddaughter” rides him. He knows he gets to run. He loves to gallop in the snow. The DH maintains a wide track in the winter, packed and/or plowed depending on the snow conditions. .
