Giorgia Burns' riding arena, Glasgow

The Brief

Having started horse riding in the early years of her childhood, Giorgia quickly rose up the ranks in the equestrian riding world and now competes on an international level – and has become somewhat of a sporting hero in her home country, Scotland.

This month, Giorgia hit another milestone having completed construction on her very own full-size horse riding arena based at Riskend Farm, Kilsyth in Glasgow.

Meeting the criteria set by the industry, the competition standard equestrian arena required top-end materials and workmanship to mirror the facilities that Giorgia would be competing on for national and international competitions.

The Solution

Levenseat Specialist Sands, leading supplier of specialist silica sands and part of Aggregate Industries, supplied 300 tonne of its pioneering ProArena 100™ range of natural silica, free-draining sand - expertly mixed with stabilising fibres from Greenwell Arenas - for the 1,500 square metre riding arena.

Adam Hogg, Territory Sales Manager for Levenseat Quarry, Aggregate Industries said: “The choice of footing is one of the most important considerations when it comes to arena application. Crucial to this specification was that the sand compacted well under foot – providing a safe and comfortable experience for both the horse and the rider.”

Giorgia Burns said: “This was a huge project for me and my parents to take on, one that could not have been achieved without the on-going support of Levenseat Sands.

“I have been horse riding for a number of years now and the difference I can now feel when using another arena’s riding surface, just from a deeper understanding of how the sand should perform, is incredible.

“It’s so important that the correct materials are specified for a sport which requires a lot of time, money and dedication from the offset – otherwise a rider’s performance will not only be effected, but the health and safety of the horse too.”

Levenseat Sands’ range of natural silica sands have a high silica content, typically above 90 per cent, making the sand hard-wearing with low attrition rates and a 'sub-angular” grain shape and a naturally occurring colour range.

The Levenseat Pro range of specialist sands is a trademarked range of market-leading sands, produced using a unique production process and tailored for each market sector to provide unrivalled quality sands. Sands are washed and blended from a variety of coarse, medium-coarse, medium-fine, fine, and very fine sands, and can also be mixed with a range of amendments to create high performing rootzones, landscape and divot mixes.