Patent ID: 8657695

Claim:
An equestrian area on which horses move, comprising an upper, equestrian surface layer, and a sub-surface support layer which includes a plurality of laterally arranged load bearing structural modules, each of which comprises a top wall and a bottom wall spaced therefrom by one or more supporting elements so as to define an interior volume between the top and bottom walls, and each module being provided with at least one open aperture to permit the flow of water into and out of the volume, and there being a system for retaining water within at least some modules in the sub-surface support layer, wherein a water permeable layer that is impermeable to solid particles of the upper, equestrian surface layer is provided between the structural modules and the equestrian surface layer, and wherein a wicking system is in fluid communication with the interior volumes of at least some of the modules and has portions extending upwardly to transfer water to the upper, equestrian surface layer from the sub-surface support layer.