November 2003

Bust Arena Dust Monsters

We’re going to use water to control arena dust, unless it’s in short supply. Then, we’ll use commercial products.

Fox Dale Farms, in Calgary, has used Maryn Dusting Oil for three years.

A man-made riding arena with sand or dirt footing beats a bumpy grass arena hands down—except when it comes to that choking dust that can arise from the dry footing. It’s even worse when it’s in an indoor arena in the winter with the doors shut.

Watering the arena is the most popular solution.  While it’s effective, it’s either labor-intensive—dragging a hose around the arena and doing it yourself—or requires an expensive, complicated installation of pipes and sprayers/nozzles.

Water sprayers can be frustrating when the pipes freeze in the winter or the nozzles clog, and they can cause uneven areas of bogs and dry spots. Overhead “gravity” systems without nozzles can be…