When you are ready to video your ride, you MUST perform in a regulation sized arena. It must be properly set up and accurately measured for several important reasons:
1. Accurate choreography execution – Your freestyle is designed with specific movements at precise locations in the arena. Without proper setup (letters, boundaries, measurements), you won’t be able to execute your planned choreography as intended, affecting both technical execution and artistic impression.
2. Music timing and synchronization – Your music is choreographed to specific movements at specific locations. If the arena dimensions are incorrect, your timing will be off, breaking the harmony between horse, rider and music.
3. Technical scoring – Judges evaluate the technical execution of required movements, which must be performed at specific locations or between specific markers. Without proper setup, you risk performing movements in the wrong places, resulting in lower scores. For example, you may be asked to ride 12 meters of half pass, or a 20 meter circle.
4. Spatial awareness for horse and rider – Both you and your horse rely on arena markers to maintain orientation. A properly set up arena provides necessary reference points during your performance.
5. Maintain consistency with competition standards – In competitions, arenas are set up to standard specifications. Training in a properly set up arena ensures what you practice matches what you’ll experience in competition.
6. Judge’s perspective – Judges sit at specific positions around the arena and expect to see movements from the correct angles. An improperly set up arena can change these angles, affecting how movements appear to judges
If you do not have access to a dressage arena, you can make one. Purchase a 200-foot surveyor’s tape measure for this. Do not attempt to do this with a regular tape measure because they are too short, and it will affect your accuracy. These are less than $35 on Amazon!
Arena Layout
Large dressage arenas are set up 20 meters wide and 60 meters long. Letters surround the rectangle that help guide riding precision. Staring on the 20-metre side and traveling clockwise, the letters go: C, M, R, B, P, F, A, K, V, E, S and H.
What You Will Need
The following supplies can be collected before you start the process for maximum efficiency.
- Four stakes to mark corners
- Dressage Arena letters
- You MUST have at least B and E marked out on your arena
- A 60 meter measuring tape (for a standard 20x60m arena)—Surveyor measuring tape
- A diagram for reference might be helpful (like the one below)
Setting Up the Corners of the Area
Use the first stake and place this at the corner between letters “C” and “M”.
Place the second stake at the corner between “C” and “H”. Measure these 20 meters from the first stake.
The third stake will be at the corner between “A” and “F”; this time 60 meters from the third stake position.
The last stake can be placed between letters “A” and “K”, which should be 20 meters
