They seal the training tracks here. Ky does have a clay soil similar to parts of CA.
The actual racetrack is used regardless.
Ours is sealed and closed in anyicipation of rain (BM is always on top of the forecast!), and reopened once BM determines its dry enough. Sometimes it is reopened with wetter areas blocked off with cones or poles. But we also have a covered so can afford to be a bit more patient.
It depends on the ring and how it was built. My neighbor spent a lot of money on a truly all-weather type of base and footing with the corresponding drainage, etc. She can ride in sloppy footing without causing damage.
We went cheaper on the base as it really doesn’t rain here very much and I’m okay with having to take a day or two off riding. Our base does get soft if it’s really wet, and since the sand loses its firmness with tons of moisture their feet go straight to that soft base. So I tend to stay off of it until both the sand and base feel properly firm again - in this dry climate, that’s rarely more than a day or two.
I don’t think one can have a hard and fast rule for all arenas…it’s very dependent on how the arena was built and what materials were used.
Regardless, though, IMO it’s not worth risking ruining the footing to ride. Boarders rarely respect that, but as a BO who stands to have to make the thousands-of-dollars repair or deal with the endless complaints if the footing is in fact damaged, arenas and the rules set for them deserve respect from everyone using them.
This sounds just about right…and is inline with my experience. I posted in 2014 about the practice at our barn, but these days I wish we stayed off it longer. We are always eager to get back in, but if it’s too soon, it really wreaks havoc with the base.
Our ring gets sealed in Ohio before a big rain, it usually dries faster that way and we get back on it quickly. If we get an unexpected big rain and it wasn’t sealed first, we’re off it longer because it takes a long time to dry out. We have a sand mix over a base and so we try to save the footing by staying off it when it’s soaking wet with standing water. Fortunately we have an indoor to use when necessary it’s just smaller so we have to plan around each other timing wise, we can’t have as many in the ring at once as we can outdoors.
Side question: what does “sealing” an outdoor riding ring consist of. I’ve not heard this before.
Sealing is when the arena is dragged but instead of a harrow, they use a very heavy roller to make the surface smooth and even. Sometimes the best way to get a really tight seal is to wet the footing first a little, which can feel dumb before you’re getting rain, but a tight seal drains faster.
It’s also good to roll out your ring and reharrow in the dry seasons bc it can redistribute your footing more evenly.
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Our trainer’s ring is usually sealed and then closed until safe to use. Noting that not sealing it adds at least 2-3 days to its unusable time after a rain, compared to not dragging and letting the footprint depressions fill with water. Once the ring is sealed it obviously cannot be used without making the sealing pointless.
Theres a general use ring thst gets gets pretty hard, but is usable pretty quickly after a rain. We can also ride our use the ring: there are some places you can trot and even canter. We have also been known to commandeer the trail obstacle area for jumping.
I appreciate being at places that close the ring - its a good indication that they take ring maintenance seriously.
Current farm will occasionally close the ring, but the drainage is good so it’s not usually necessary unless its days and days of rain. If it looks like it’s going to be closed for more than a day, they’ll get out there with a puddle pump.
Another zombie, 5 year old thread resurrected but imagine the opportunity lost costs don’t come close to the cost of removing the arena fence ( so the heavy equipment can get in), stripping the footing, laser releveling the base, regrading, adding base material, level again, compacting, replacing the footing (often losing enough of it when moving and piling to need more footing material) and re erecting the arena fencing.
Oh, of course the ring cannot be used during this time. It takes longer then the time it might be closed for standing water,
Barns that do a lot of serious, heavy work like higher Jumping with more complicated exercises and courses or working faster with more patterns or tests like Reining or Dressage need a better, well maintained base designed for their needs. Protecting it becomes a much bigger deal however such barns always have another ring, indoor or ‘“sacrifice” sand ring or even just a field to at least allow exercise if the main ring needs to dry out for a day or two.
Some barns don’t need that kind of elaborate base and footing for their clients needs or can’t afford it at their board rate so there’s no need to protect it.
You can add the horse injuries from bad footing as it gets ruts and uneven, soft, etc when people ride in it wet…
In my arena at my farm I am very careful when to ride after a hard rain. I have mason sand over a stone dust base…Although there is never standing water when the rain stops, there is definitely water in the base. I usually give it a day, maybe 2. And then the next day I may just walk and trot, or maybe just walk.
I drag the ring often, sometimes after every ride, even though it is just me riding. And I try to make sure if I can, to drag before a lot of rain. This way it is smooth with no hoof prints at all, and when the ring is dry, it’s ready to use.
Oh yeah…the injury potential. Some scoff that horses can pick their way through uneven terrain. Sure they can. They can see the uneven spots.
You get your base torn up by riding in sloppy weather and/ or never grading it ( the base) and you get little potholes, that rut around the rail and low spots where the jumps sit if they aren’t moved much. Even show grounds. Then you dump some new footing over it and smooth it out so the horse can’t see the irregularities.
Voila, instant vet bill and no worries about where to ride for weeks.
