[email protected] Footing Selection Rebound. and Maintenance
6
[email protected] 22 June 2014 • USDF CONNECTION horse health connection I n the March issue, I covered the main points of the recently re- leased Equine Surfaces White Pa- per, a document published by the Fé- dération Equestre Internationale (FEI) covering the latest in footing research (“Horse Health Connection: Tech- nology and Footing Research”). Tis month, I’ll delve into practical applica- tion of the fndings. Review: Key Points Te Equine Surfaces White Paper de- scribes the mechanical properties of footing that afect a horse’s performance and safety. Tese include hardness, fric- tion, cushioning, and rebound. Hardness. Te footing material should be soft enough to allow the hoof to sink into it immediately after it hits the ground so that the downward movement of the hoof is decelerated gradually and concussion on the limb is reduced. Friction. Frictional resistance de- termines how far the hoof slides for- ward. Too much friction stops the hoof abruptly and contributes to con- cussion; too little friction allows the hoof to slide uncontrollably. Frictional resistance also stabilizes the footing so that the hoof can push of efectively. Cushioning. Cushioning decreas- es stress on the limb when it is loaded by the horse’s weight. Rebound. If the footing rebounds at the appropriate time, it may make the surface feel more lively. Te recipe for appropriate hard- ness, friction, cushioning, and rebound is diferent for each sport, which pres- ents quite a challenge in providing footing for multipurpose arenas, such as those used for both dressage and jumping. Te importance of provid- ing safe footing was underscored at the 2004 Athens Olympics, where footing problems were blamed for severe inju- ries to three jumpers. Footing for Competition Arenas Dressage horses perform a range of gaits and movements that involve dif- ferent types of interactions between the hoof and the footing. Highly col- lected movements, such as piafe, are performed at slow speed and are high- ly reliant on the horse’s having good balance. Performance is facilitated by grooming and leveling the arena so that the horse can anticipate exactly how the surface will feel during these high-precision movements. In the extended paces, the horse must generate large propulsive forc- es to push of the ground into a lofty suspension. Te surface needs to of- fer sufcient frictional resistance to support these propulsive forces, but it should also allow the fast-moving hoof to slide further forward at land- ing in order to avoid an increase in concussion. Evidence of hoof slide is seen when the footing sprays forward in front of the hoof (Figure 1). In lat- eral movements, such as half-pass, the medial (inner) and lateral (outer) edg- es of the hooves should be able to dig into the surface as the horse rolls side- ways over the hoof (Figure 2). By comparison, the primary foot- ing requirement of jumping hors- es is security during push-of, land- ing, and turning. Jumpers exert much larger forces than dressage horses, both at push-of, when adequate fric- tional resistance is needed; and dur- ing landing, when good cushioning Footing Selection and Maintenance Latest research and best practices for training, competition, and your horse’s soundness By Hilary M. Clayton, BVMS, PhD, Diplomate ACVSMR, MRCVS JENNIFER BRYANT CRITICAL INGREDIENT: Even, regular watering is critical in keeping sand-based footing safe and ridable Download the FEI’s Equine Surfaces White Paper. Digital Edition Bonus Content
Transcript of [email protected] Footing Selection Rebound. and Maintenance
22 June 2014 • USDF ConneCtion
horse health connection
in the March issue, i covered the main points of the recently re-leased equine Surfaces White Pa-
per, a document published by the Fé-
dération Equestre Internationale (Fei) covering the latest in footing research (“Horse Health Connection: tech-nology and Footing Research”). Tis month, i’ll delve into practical applica-tion of the fndings.
Review: Key Points
Te equine Surfaces White Paper de-scribes the mechanical properties of footing that afect a horse’s performance and safety. Tese include hardness, fric-tion, cushioning, and rebound.
hardness. Te footing material should be soft enough to allow the hoof to sink into it immediately after it hits the ground so that the downward movement of the hoof is decelerated gradually and concussion on the limb is reduced.
Friction. Frictional resistance de-termines how far the hoof slides for-ward. too much friction stops the hoof abruptly and contributes to con-cussion; too little friction allows the hoof to slide uncontrollably. Frictional resistance also stabilizes the footing so that the hoof can push of efectively.
Cushioning. Cushioning decreas-es stress on the limb when it is loaded by the horse’s weight.
Rebound. if the footing rebounds at the appropriate time, it may make the surface feel more lively.
Te recipe for appropriate hard-ness, friction, cushioning, and rebound is diferent for each sport, which pres-ents quite a challenge in providing footing for multipurpose arenas, such as those used for both dressage and jumping. Te importance of provid-ing safe footing was underscored at the 2004 Athens olympics, where footing problems were blamed for severe inju-ries to three jumpers.
Footing for Competition Arenas
Dressage horses perform a range of gaits and movements that involve dif-ferent types of interactions between the hoof and the footing. Highly col-lected movements, such as piafe, are performed at slow speed and are high-ly reliant on the horse’s having good balance. Performance is facilitated by grooming and leveling the arena so that the horse can anticipate exactly how the surface will feel during these high-precision movements.
in the extended paces, the horse must generate large propulsive forc-es to push of the ground into a lofty suspension. Te surface needs to of-fer sufcient frictional resistance to support these propulsive forces, but it should also allow the fast-moving hoof to slide further forward at land-ing in order to avoid an increase in concussion. evidence of hoof slide is seen when the footing sprays forward in front of the hoof (Figure 1). in lat-eral movements, such as half-pass, the medial (inner) and lateral (outer) edg-es of the hooves should be able to dig into the surface as the horse rolls side-ways over the hoof (Figure 2).
By comparison, the primary foot-ing requirement of jumping hors-es is security during push-of, land-ing, and turning. Jumpers exert much larger forces than dressage horses, both at push-of, when adequate fric-tional resistance is needed; and dur-ing landing, when good cushioning
Footing Selection and MaintenanceLatest research and best practices for training,
competition, and your horse’s soundness
By Hilary M. Clayton, BVMS, PhD, Diplomate ACVSMR, MRCVS
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CRITICAL INGREDIENT: Even, regular watering is critical in keeping sand-based footing safe
and ridable
Download the FEI’s Equine Surfaces White Paper.
Digital Edition Bonus Content
Pages A2-.indd 22 5/7/2014 2:09:24 PM
USDF ConneCtion • June 2014 23
is required. A surface that performs optimally for jumpers is safe for dres-sage, but dressage riders may feel that it lacks rebound or feels “dead” to ride on. At competitions in which dressage and jumping are performed in the same arena, it is difcult to provide footing that is optimal for both disci-plines, and some compromises may need to be made.
Footing Considerations During Training
Good footing is invaluable for pro-ducing a top competitive performance (Figure 3) and for maintaining long-term soundness; but it’s not neces-sary—and probably not in the horse’s best interest—to ride on optimal foot-ing all the time. Horses beneft from regular exposure to a variety of foot-ing materials and to diferent types of terrain (Figure 4). if their only experi-
ence is with fat, perfectly manicured turnouts and impeccably groomed arenas, they will not be well prepared to cope with the footing challenges they may encounter at clinics or com-petitions. Diferent types of footing, uphill and downhill slopes, and un-even terrain are part of the normal equine environment. Without them, the horse is deprived of valuable sen-sory input that stimulates the devel-opment of appropriate coping mecha-nisms to protect against unexpected
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FIGURE 2. In this trot half-pass left with rider
Adrienne Lyle, the medial edge of Wizard’s left
front hoof and the lateral edge of his right hind
hoof will dig in to the footing.
FIGURE 1. When the hoof slides as it contacts
the arena surface, the footing sprays forward.
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24 June 2014 • USDF ConneCtion
events, such as stepping in a hole.Preserving your horse’s sound-
ness is another reason to vary the sur-faces you ride on. if a horse always trains on the same surface, then the same type of stress is applied to the limbs day after day, and damage may eventually accumulate to the point that it becomes evident clinically as a repetitive-strain injury. For example, although waxed-sand composite sur-faces have the advantages of imposing lower concussion and providing bet-
ter cushioning as compared with sand, they also have higher frictional resis-tance that stops the forward sliding movement of the hoof more abruptly than sand or dirt. interestingly, some racetracks are now reverting to dirt.
A few years ago, race tracks changed from dirt to synthetic sur-faces, based on the assumption that footing consistency and horse safe-ty would be improved. Te statistics show that the transition to synthetic surfaces was indeed associated with
a reduction in catastrophic injuries (fractures), although some veterinar-ians believe that there has been a cor-responding increase in soft-tissue injuries. Research is needed to deter-mine whether dressage horses work-ing exclusively on synthetic surfaces are predisposed to specifc types of injuries.
it is important to do some training on a surface similar to what you will encounter in competitions, given that training and competing on dramati-cally diferent surfaces is likely to have a negative efect on performance. if necessary, ship to a facility where you can work on a surface similar to that installed at the show grounds at least a couple of times before the competition.
Footing Materials
turf is the traditional surface for equestrian arenas but is seldom used nowadays in top-class competition
horse health connection
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FIGURE 3. Te waxed-sand composite surface
in the Rolex arena at the Kentucky Horse Park
provides excellent footing for competitions.
Team and individual silver medalists Laura
Bechtolsheimer and Mistral Hojris compete at
the 2010 Alltech FEI World Equestrian Games.
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USDF ConneCtion • June 2014 25
venues. Te biggest problem with turf
is that its mechanical properties are
highly dependent on the moisture
content of the soil, meaning that the
weather has a major infuence on the
state of the footing.
Te majority of arenas today are
sand-based, often with other materials
added. Sand varies in its mineral con-
tent and in the size and shape of the
grains. Te mineral content determines
the hardness; harder sand is preferred
in arenas because it is more durable.
to determine the hardness, put a small
amount of the sand on a hard surface
and crush it with the back of a spoon.
Soft sand will turn to powder, while
hard sand will resist being crushed.
Te sand grains may be more or
less angular or rounded in shape. An-
gular grains ft together more tightly,
whereas round grains tend to roll over
one another like tiny ball bearings.
Sand with rounded grains rolls under
the horse’s hooves and shifts more with
use. Angular sand with grains in a vari-
ety of sizes is more stable under foot.
Te sand used in riding arenas
is usually washed to remove the fne
particles that turn to dust when the
surface dries out. it is usually recom-
mended that sand in a dressage arena
be two to three inches deep.
Te properties of sand-based foot-
ing are most afected by its moisture
content. Watering increases sand’s
hardness and frictional resistance.
Deep, dry sand lacks stability and
tends to give way as the horse pushes
of, which makes it very tiring for the
horse. if the rider is not careful, the
early onset of fatigue associated with
this type of footing can lead to soft-
tissue injury.
inconsistency in moisture con-
tent is a common problem, from wet
spots caused by uneven drainage, to
dry spots in areas that receive direct
sunlight, to varying moisture content
resulting from sprinklers that do not
water the surface evenly. inconsistent
footing may cause the horse to shorten
his stride, trip, slip, or lose his balance.
Additives are often mixed with
sand to improve its performance as a
riding surface. one inexpensive op-
tion, rubber, is available as crumbs
about 0.25 inch in diameter that are
mixed into the sand, or larger piec-
es of one to two inches in size that
are laid on top of rolled sand. Rub-
ber crumbs reduce surface compac-
tion because the rubber pieces do not
change in volume under compression;
when the hoof steps on the rubber
crumbs, the crumbs bulge sideways
and open up pores in the sand sur-
face. in addition to reducing compac-
tion, rubber increases the elastic re-
bound of a surface.
Another relatively inexpensive op-
tion is wood chips. Regular and fre-
quent arena maintenance is important
FIGURE 4. In complete contrast to the footing
in the Rolex arena, this photo shows a barefoot
horse negotiating a rocky trail. If conditioned
appropriately, horses can cope with extreme
types of footing.
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good footing is invaluable
for producing a top
competitive performance
and for maintaining long-
term soundness, but it’s
probably not in the horse’s
best interest to ride on
optimal footing all the time.
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26 June 2014 • USDF ConneCtion
horse health connection
when using either wood chips or large rubber pieces in order to maintain surface consistency and to reduce the risk of slipping.
other materials that are common-ly added to sand are fbers, felt, and polymers. Fibers, which act in a similar manner to the roots of turf grasses, are particularly efective in stabilizing sand. Tere are several proprietary brands of footing, each having a specifc mix of various types of natural or synthetic f-bers and rubber that are added to stabi-lize the surface, reduce compaction, and increase elastic rebound.
Te application of wax to arena surfaces binds the particles together, which improves cohesion, decreases dust, and reduces the need for water-ing. Waxed surfaces tend not to de-velop deep hoof prints, and they give the horse more security when turn-ing. However, synthetic surfaces tend to compress with heavy use and may become harder as a competition pro-gresses unless they are maintained with sufcient frequency.
Te wax material usually consists of byproducts of the petroleum refn-ing process, along with parafn and other waxes. in hot climates, some components may soften and melt in the sun. if this happens, the charac-
teristics of the surface will change. on racetracks with synthetic waxed sur-faces, race times are slowest when the temperature is highest, which is due in part to melting of the wax. Cold weather also afects the characteris-tics of a waxed surface. Te wax needs to be reapplied periodically, with the frequency depending on arena use, maintenance procedures, and the lo-cal environment.
Footing Maintenance
even if your footing is perfect, it won’t stay that way without regular mainte-nance, which may include watering, harrowing, leveling, and rolling (Fig-ure 5). Te goals are to reduce com-paction and to maintain the consis-tency of the surface throughout the arena and over the course of time.
Harrowing reduces the hardness of dirt or sand footing by breaking up areas of compaction, and it fufs up the surface by introducing air into the footing material. Rolling compress-es loose footing material and lev-els the surface. Watering keeps dust down, and the surface tension of wa-ter also increases the footing’s hard-ness and frictional resistance. Deep, dry sand especially benefts from wa-tering to reduce hoof slide at contact
and to provide resistance during push of. Footing manufacturers can pro-vide specifc information regarding the ideal maintenance procedures for each type of footing.
Te type and frequency of mainte-nance needed for your own arena de-pend on many factors, including con-struction of the base, drainage, type and depth of surface material, the lo-cal environment (including whether the arena is indoors or outdoors), how much it is used, and for what purpose. in general, dirt surfaces require more maintenance than synthetic surfaces. Removing manure and other contami-nants is an important part of keeping an arena in good condition.
Dressage-specifc research on are-na maintenance is lacking, but in the racing world it has been shown that the fewest injuries occur in races run immediately after the track has been groomed. inconsistency of the sur-face—uneven compaction, moisture, or depth—is known to increase the risk of injury. even a small change in the way a surface is maintained may afect the way a horse moves.
Te surface’s moisture content af-fects the adherence of the footing par-ticles. to a point, watering increas-es footing’s shear strength (frictional resistance) and stability; but when the surface becomes saturated, shear strength decreases. For sand, maximal shear strength is achieved when the moisture content is between 8 and 17 percent. Te optimal shear strength
FIGURE 5. Harrowing breaks up compacted
footing and aerates the material, making the
surface feel springier to ride on.
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As of April, the title of Hilary Clayton, BVMS,
PhD, Diplomate ACVSMR, MRCVS, changed
to professor and Mary Anne McPhail Dressage
Chair emerita. She stepped down as the frst-ever
Mary Anne McPhail Dressage Chair in Equine Sports
Medicine at Michigan State University’s College of
Veterinary Medicine, East Lansing, a position she had
held since 1997. At the same time, she was also a
professor in MSU’s Department of Large Animal Clinical Sciences.
A world-renowned expert on equine biomechanics and conditioning,
Dr. Clayton is continuing her work as president of Sport Horse Science,
LC, which is dedicated to translating research data into practical advice
for riders, trainers, and veterinarians through lectures, articles, and pri-
vate consultations. A USDF gold, silver, and bronze medalist, she remains
a member of the US Equestrian Federation Dressage Committee and a
USDF Connection contributing editor.
Dr. Hilary Clayton Leaves McPhail, MSU Posts
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USDF ConneCtion • June 2014 27
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varies with the discipline; for dressage, it should be low enough to allow the hoof to rotate on the surface when the horse’s body is turning (Figure 6). For jumping arenas, the ideal moisture content is usually a little higher than for dressage arenas.
Environmental Concerns
Before you make decisions regard-ing footing, consider the longer-term efects on the environment. Synthet-ic surfaces may pose a disposal issue because the materials will not reinte-grate into the environment, and the cost of disposal in a landfll can be sig-nifcant. it may be possible to reuse the material in a landscaping project, such as to create a pathway.
Although the type of footing af-fects your horse’s performance and safety, many materials are quite ad-equate for training dressage horses if they are well maintained in a man-ner that is appropriate for the specifc type of footing. Just vary the terrain and the type of footing to reduce the risk of repetitive-strain injuries. s
FIGURE 6. A dressage arena’s footing needs to
ofer good traction but not so much that the
hoof cannot rotate on the surface when the
horse is turning, as the inside hind hoof is do-
ing in this canter pirouette.
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