Arena Size for Jumping & Dressage Work?
I am preparing to build an outdoor arena, but I’m not sure which size would work best. I would like to be able to practice dressage and some jumping in it. I dont believe I have the room to build an arena big enough for full jump courses in the spot where I want it at but thats alright.
So I just need something big enough to be used for dressage (standard size arena) and some jumping practice.
It would be nice if you could provide me with pictures of your arenas and tell me their sizes as well as give recomendations!
Thanks in advance to everyone!
I can offer a recommendation. Regardless of the finished size you settle on try to formulate the long and short sides to accommodate a 1 to 3 ratio. The whole idea of proportionate sizes in your riding arena is to allow the rider to ACCURATELY evaluate the circles, corners, turns and of course, straightness of the horse. The standard arena is 20m by 60 m. But even more important than that is the footing. Smooth. Even. Good drainage. Access to water to keep dust down. And a commitment to keeping it in excellent shape.
The last thing you want worrying you or your horse is if he has to watch where he has to place his feet in order to get to where you want him, whether on the other side of that perfect circle or over that jump.
Well how big could you go? A small size would be a 120 x 70 which could have some jumps in it and may be big enough to do dressage.
Dressage is usually longer and narrower, where jumping is wider. I think the minium for dressage should be something like 130×65
You could do like 130×80 to give you good room.
We have a small indoor at the barn Im at now, probably one of the smallest Ive ever rode in. I manage to set up 2-4 jumps in it though. Only time I really have problems is doing flat work with green horses that dont really collect or anything and just want to fly around a small ring.
Not sure what size it is, but I would guess 80×60 (just a guess!) here is a pic
http://www.enchantedacressc.com/photos/albums/farm/e.jpg
The standard size for most arenas is a 40m x 20m arena.
This will provide you with enough room to do some decent flat work, and also to put up a reasonable jumping course in it.
standard arena sizes are 20m x 40m and 20m x 60m
a size like those would be suitable for little jumping practice like grids or small courses and stuff like that, probably not for full courses though (:
You could make a large arena for jumping and then when it is time for dressage, bring in the border and letters to fit the size need for dressage. That’s what I see a lot of barns do. You could do 80 x 120. Or go on a larger scale then that.
A standard (Small) dressage arena is 20 meters by 40 meters.
A large one is 20 meters by 60 meters.
A jumping arena that is a good size will usually be about 30 meters wide and 60 meters wide.
I’d go for something 60 meters long and between 20 and 30 meters wide.
I used to ride at a barn that had a HUGE indoor and outdoor and they were both about sixty meters. The indoor was 25 meters wide and about 60 meters long, and the outdoor was 30 meters wide and about 55 meters long.
What you can do is do a larger arena, and then have poles to make the size of a dressage arena. You don’t need to do the entire thing with poles, but the standard is 2 for each corner and one on each side, or more if you have the poles available, and get (or make) some dressage letters you can place around your "arena."
A lot of people do that.