Many people look at a menage surface and just see a finished arena or paddock, but there is a lot more to the construction of these surfaces than meets the eye. Choosing the right materials and knowing what they do, or don’t do, can have a significant impact on how your horse performs and what injuries you may experience.

Menage surfaces offer a soft and supportive surface that absorbs shock to help reduce the strain of jumping or schooling a horse. This helps prevent both injury to the hoof and the rider. A hard or compacted surface doesn’t provide the cushioning required and may cause stress to the hoof. This stress can be inflicted during the landing phase when the hoof hits the ground, the flexor tendons and ligaments load with weight and create shock waves that are distributed through the footing, legs and limbs.

Choosing the Right Surface for Your Menage: Key Considerations

An ideal menage surface distributes the shock and offers a good amount of resistance under the hoof during this loading phase and also provides the springy, active nature that allows the horse to effortlessly move into the rollover or push-off phase. A surface that is too soft or uneven will shift during this process and force the horse to use more energy to jump or work the animal, which can lead to tendons and ligament damage.

Some surfaces require more maintenance than others depending on the type and conditions of the footing material. For example, sand-based footing will need to be regularly groomed with a drag harrow to ensure that the base (the third level of the footing) is not disturbed and compacted. This can be a time consuming job and is something that you may wish to consider hiring a third party to do if your arena is large.

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Girl with Answers that supports and empowers women in the industry is no longer just a nice-to-have. It’s a must-have for any company hoping to attract and retain top talent.

The best way to do this is to ensure that women’s voices are heard at all levels of the organization. That starts at the very top, where senior leadership needs to set and measure specific goals that move toward gender equity. It also means encouraging a team-wide culture of professional development for women in the industry, and providing resources that help them excel.

Women need a strong support network to thrive and to overcome obstacles. That includes a dedicated mentorship program that offers one-on-one coaching, meaningful connections, and resources focused on career advancement. It’s important for managers to recognize that this type of mentoring is different from an informal peer-to-peer interaction, and it requires a level of commitment and trust.

Shattering the Glass Ceiling: Strategies for Empowering Women in Tech

Having a female role model is another critical component to success, and it’s not just about pointing women in the right direction. Founders and executive leaders need to actively model inclusive behaviors and champion a positive, supportive culture.

Reshma Saujani, the co-founder of Girls Who Code, is an excellent example. Her passion for closing the gender gap in coding has led to her empowering over 580,000 young girls to pursue careers in computer science. Parisa Tabriz, VP of Chrome security at Google, is another role model who works tirelessly to promote equality in the technology landscape. Her work has helped to protect billions of people worldwide from cyber attacks.

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