Schooling Track
More often the term track is used in connection with dressage riding. Here, horses are ridden on tracks and in track figures.
Division of the riding arena
The riding arena can be divided into several tracks. In the whole and also on the circle, these tracks are numbered from outside to inside. A track is 1.5 meters wide, so that a horse with rider has enough space. The first track is on the very outside, directly at the border of the arena. The second track is 1.5 metres away from the railing / riding arena boundary. The third track is 3 meters away from the boarding area/riding arena boundary. The fourth track is 4.5 metres from the boarding area/riding arena boundary and so on. Whoever rides on the second track leaves 1.5 m from the boarding area, whoever rides on the third track keeps 3 m away, etc.
Schooling track and course rules
These further inward tracks are important, especially with regard to the course rules or the course order.
The outer track is reserved for the faster riders. The rider who rides at a walking pace does so on the 2nd or 3rd track in order not to slow down others. This means that if there are several riders trotting and cantering in the arena, the first track must be left free in the walk and the third track must be avoided.
If a rider avoids an oncoming rider, he does so on the second track. Also, holding and reversing should not be practiced on the outer track when others are still riding in the arena.
The 2nd track is also used to check rideability. Does riding straight ahead and turning away also work without the limitation of the fence? If not, the horse is not sufficiently limited by the outer aids. That means riding on the different tracks, away from the first track can train the horse's straightness and balance.
Whoever is on the left hand has the right to the outer track, that means to stay on the outer track when another rider is approaching. Unless you are at a walking pace and other riders are trotting or cantering, the outer track must be kept free regardless of the direction.
Care of the schooling track
If the same path is ridden very often in a arena, it is recognizable as a groove in the ground. Usually this is the outer track on the whole. So whoever shovels the outer track right, balances this groove by returning the sand thrown outwards and inwards by the horse's hooves. This is important so that the horses have a flat surface to walk on and not a hill and uneven surfaces.
The shoe of the horse
The shoe of the horse and how it moves is determined best on hard ground. The sound of the movement on hard grounds helps, for example, to detect defective positions and lameness. If one leg sounds different than the rest, this indicates a problem. A missing shoe, for example, is noticeable by a dull track sound. If it rattles hollow, the shoe is usually loose. A wrong placement of theshoe can result in a two-part clatter, for example. A hardly noticeable sparing, because the leg pinches somehow, results in a softer track sound. It is therefore worth listening when you lead the horse through the stable alley.
