East-West Arena Construction Blog

According to the United States Dressage Federation, "Dressage is a French term meaning “training” and its purpose is to develop the horse’s natural athletic ability and willingness to work, making him calm, supple and attentive to his rider."

Sand is a very generic term. It means a mineral substance that has particles smaller than gravel but larger than silt or clay. Sand is defined by the size of the particles, the shape of the particles, and the minerals used to make up the particles. As footing, sand is also defined by how deep the sand is. 

When building a custom equestrian arena, there are several things you must bear in mind: the design for your arena, construction of the arena, and finally maintenance. Custom arena construction is a specialized project, requiring expert knowledge.

Designing a Custom Arena

As a long and costly project, arena construction is not something to be embarked on lightly.

What type of arena will this be? Dressage arenas allow for highly-competitive sporting events – and require special materials in order to ensure proper footing for the horses. Similarly, jumper arenas require a different layout and footing materials.

Where will the arena be? There may be drainage and other considerations particular to this property.

A professional team can help you to balance these considerations, while being realistic about your budget.

In higher education today there is a lot of competition. One way you can draw top tier families who will be future benefactors is with a good equestrian program. Here are some things parents are looking for:

• Single gender vs. coed- most equestrian schools are coed so you may consider going single gender to limit trouble and make yourself stand out.
• Enrollment- this means teacher to student ratio. A lower ratio sometimes indicates quality to parents.
• Acceptance rate- most equestrian schools have and acceptance rate which is above 40 percent. Many parents want a more selective school for their child.
• High quality equestrian facilities- a good arena can mean safety for the children as well as for the horse.

In April 2014 the Federation Equestre Internationale (FEI) released a White Paper describing years of study of the effect of various horse footings on the health of horses competing in the FEI sports and regular racing. The full document can be downloaded from the FEI. The following is a brief summary of the FEI's findings about jumping horses and footing. 

Not every horse owner and rider knows what to consider when it involves the riding surface for their horses. Little do some of them know that one of the most important elements in the development of their horse during its training is choosing the right Horse Arena Footing. When working at a high level of performance your horse will tend to experience a lot of stress, which makes it important to have good arena footing to make your equine partner as comfortable as possible.

Becker College offers students the chance to live both the bustling, cosmopolitan lifestyle in Worcester, New England’s second largest city or a quiet, rural life in the historic, New England town of Leicester. The combined enrollment of the two college campuses is over 30,000 students. Of this number, 22 students make up the Becker College Equestrian Team, which the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association ranks as one of the top-five teams of Massachusetts and Rhode Island.

If you already have a dressage arena you may be looking to refurbish it, add some updates, or otherwise alter the layout. Or may be looking forward to a new dressage arena layout altogether. If you have never had a dressage arena, some uncertainty about layout is understandable. There's an amazing number of options to choose from in terms of dressage arena layout.

If you are looking for colleges that have equestrian programs, it is important to not only look at the degree programs that they offer, but also look at their equestrian facilities. One school you may want to look at is our Featured College Equestrian Facility: Sweet Briar College.  The Harriet Howell Rogers Riding Center in Sweet Briar, Virginia, is ranked as one of the best college riding centers in the nation.