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California Riding Magazine • June, 2009 HIT-Draingrid |
Water conservation has been a top-of-mind subject for many years now, but it’s always been tough to tackle in the world of arena maintenance. A subterranean irrigation system is just the ticket, says footing expert Hilo Nick of Footing Solutions. Nick discovered the system in Europe earlier this year and debuted it stateside with a display model at the World Cup Finals in Las Vegas, where “we received great feedback.” The innovative system combines the HIT-Draingrid base module with special drip lines for subterranean irrigation. The result is an all-weather, high performance, low maintenance and energy efficient arena base. The system uses just half the water required in overhead sprinklers, water trucks and other methods of maintaining the moisture in footing. Because the water is coming up from the ground, it is not subject to loss from evaporation and wind.
Water conservation, however, is only one of the benefits of the HIT-Draingrid. The grid itself provides extra spring adding to shock absorption in the footing and the underground irrigation method makes for a more stable riding surface with better traction from the ground up. For these reasons, elite jumping and dressage riders have been especially enthused about the product. Made of elastic polyethylene raw material, the grid provides ideal drainage, creating truly all-weather riding arenas, not to mention mud-free paddock surfaces. The drip lines in the below-ground grid facilitate even irrigation throughout the area, making puddles and dry spots a thing of the past. In the paddock application, the grid can be used with or without the drip lines. Soiltex blended with high quality sand is the final component in this innovative arena construction and maintenance approach. When mixed with silica sand, this blend of special synthetic felt and fiber assures spring and stability in the top riding surface. “We clearly understand that so much is riding on your surface,” says Nick. “Our ultimate value is your horse’s comfort and your success.” Based in Santa Barbara, Footing Solutions has been bringing the best in German arena technology to the U.S. for two years. The company has quickly established a great reputation among North American equestrians. Footings Solutions’ other products include a line of geo-textiles, a blend of synthetic felt and fibers, and a water-absorbing additive, both for use with sand; the High & Low Tide arena system; and a high tech engineered arena drag. These systems and products have been used successfully in Europe for over 15 years, while the HIT-Draingrid is newer. “I found it in Europe this past March,” Nick explains. “It is actually widely used there in private barns and training centers.” Its popularity in Europe is due to both horsemanship interest and environmental conscientiousness. Footing Solutions’ next challenge is to find a way to recycle water collected in the drainage network. “We’re not quite there yet,” Nick says, but given the track record of her company, probably not too far off from introducing yet another innovative arena product.
For more information on the HIT-Draingrid arena construction system, contact Hilo Nick at 1-800-532-0131, info@footingsolution.com or visit www.footingsolution.com. |
