Aerial View of the Farm
Friday, October 12, 2012
Fall Competitions
Check out the wrap up reports on the fall Horse Trials, Hunter Pace and the Jumper Show / Derby on the SGF Competitors Corner
Monday, September 17, 2012
Quality Schooling Standards for Sale
Kevin has been hard at work building jumps for our upcoming event and he decided to make some schooling standards to sell. He has several 4' standards completed and ready to be picked up at any of our fall competitions.
These are quality standards made with:
If you do a little research you will discover that these standards are reasonable priced for the quality workmanship and materials that will make this standards long lasting. Check out the pictures below
If you would like to order please use the on line order form.
These are quality standards made with:
- pressure treated lumber throughout (not just on the parts that come in contact with the ground)
- mitered corners
- recessed holes at 3" increments
- bases attached using glue, screws and bolts
- 4' - $80 / pair
- 5' - $95 / pair.
If you do a little research you will discover that these standards are reasonable priced for the quality workmanship and materials that will make this standards long lasting. Check out the pictures below
If you would like to order please use the on line order form.
Latest News
Lots of information for the upcoming Stone Gate Farm Horse Trials can be found Horse Trials page of the SGF website.
Notes to Competitors is now listed on Competitors Corner page
The Volunteer assignments for the Sept 22 - 23 horse trials are available on the Volunteer page of the SGF website.
The prize list for the Jumper Show and New Jumper Derby & Team competition is now available on the Stone Gate Farm website
Notes to Competitors is now listed on Competitors Corner page
The Volunteer assignments for the Sept 22 - 23 horse trials are available on the Volunteer page of the SGF website.
The prize list for the Jumper Show and New Jumper Derby & Team competition is now available on the Stone Gate Farm website
Stone Gate Farm Goes "Green"
Stone Gate Farm is going "green" by encouraging recycling while at the farm. Look for the blue recycling cans where you can dispose of you plastic, glass and aluminum containers.
Jumper Show & New Jumping Derby Info
Information on the Oct 6th Jumper Show and Jumping Derby are now posted on the Competitors' Corner
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Putting on the "Big Top"
In addition to all the other nick names this project has been given; it now has another ... the circus aka the "big top" because it looks very similar to that and because activities on this farm often seem like running a circus. Anyway, back on topic. Tues Terry Weaver and his sons came to measure and remeasure and prepare for the big job on Wed. The cement wall was 1 1/4 inches too small. Not bad for a structure 100' in diameter.
The crew from started Wed morning @ 6:30am and finished setting the last piece at 9:30 Thurs morning. I have to admit I was in awe of what these men and their machines could do just as I was with the cement crew and the trucking guy and everything else related to this project. Everything started out really smooth with setting the panels on the bolts that had been drilled into the cement on Tues. However, when they got close to the half way point the weight of the panels began to put uneven pressure on things and started to shift. No problem, just a little good farmer ingenuity as my husband calls it. He brought out a tractor, excavator and dozer and attached cables to stabilize everything. Problem solved.
But remember that inch and a quarter, well they started to address that by grinding a little off each panel and the excavator was relieved of it's duty as cable holder and was no used to hold each new panel in a little tighter. Finally they were ready for the final panel. After a little discussion it was decided to take the header out and bring in the final panel in from the bottom and bring it up. The left side had to go under panel # 1 and over panel # 33. While the crane lifted, Dave's loader tractor tipped it while the guys muscled it into place. It took a little bit but success!!
Now the header needed to be put back into place. If it was a little tough getting it out, it was going to be a lot tougher getting it back in. With the help of the crane which lifted it a little, Dave on the tractor and 2 guys on ladders it was finally wedged back into place with a good ol' sledge hammer putting on the finishing touches.
All that was left to do was to put on the top cap. The two pieces first had to be bolted together and then lifted into place. This was a piece of cake after what they had just completed. The crew just has to finish up tightening a few nuts and bolts and their job will be done.
I have taken a bunch of pictures but I have to tell you; you had to be here in person to really appreciate it. It was really impressive and definitely has the WOW factor. Kyle will be putting it to good use right away as he has a couple of real greenies here for training and I think we'll use it for a place to have lunch during the upcoming Lucinda Green Clinic (June 3-4)
Many thanks to Vincent from Great Lakes Construction who was the person in charge of removing the domes from the City of Akron's Water Treatment Plant and who answered Dave's countless questions, to Doug Davidson for hauling and helping to unload the 5 loads of panels, to Precision Poured Walls for a great job of pouring the walls, to Chapel Zimmerman who brought the 162 yards of concrete, to Tony Weaver and the rest of the crew of Weaver construction for putting on the big top AND of course to my husband Dave!! He is the one who saw the ad in the Farm and Dairy and asked what I thought, spent a lot of time on the phone gathering information and finding the right contractors (good job on that one) and spent countless hours preparing the site which was on the side of a hill. All of that and he won't even have a use for it himself! Well not for its intended use anyway. Although I do think he had a little fun with this project ;)
For those of you who haven't been here is awhile you can see where the dome is by going to this link to the Google map of the farm which was taken about a month ago. If you zoom in you can see the site for the dome between the east dressage arena and the stabling barns. Enjoy the pictures and come out and see it some time.
Jackie
The crew from started Wed morning @ 6:30am and finished setting the last piece at 9:30 Thurs morning. I have to admit I was in awe of what these men and their machines could do just as I was with the cement crew and the trucking guy and everything else related to this project. Everything started out really smooth with setting the panels on the bolts that had been drilled into the cement on Tues. However, when they got close to the half way point the weight of the panels began to put uneven pressure on things and started to shift. No problem, just a little good farmer ingenuity as my husband calls it. He brought out a tractor, excavator and dozer and attached cables to stabilize everything. Problem solved.
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| The dozer & tractor with cables attached |
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| The ho holding the panel tight |
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| The discussion on how to get the last panel in |
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| Whew, that must have gotten his heart rate up there |
All that was left to do was to put on the top cap. The two pieces first had to be bolted together and then lifted into place. This was a piece of cake after what they had just completed. The crew just has to finish up tightening a few nuts and bolts and their job will be done.
I have taken a bunch of pictures but I have to tell you; you had to be here in person to really appreciate it. It was really impressive and definitely has the WOW factor. Kyle will be putting it to good use right away as he has a couple of real greenies here for training and I think we'll use it for a place to have lunch during the upcoming Lucinda Green Clinic (June 3-4)
Many thanks to Vincent from Great Lakes Construction who was the person in charge of removing the domes from the City of Akron's Water Treatment Plant and who answered Dave's countless questions, to Doug Davidson for hauling and helping to unload the 5 loads of panels, to Precision Poured Walls for a great job of pouring the walls, to Chapel Zimmerman who brought the 162 yards of concrete, to Tony Weaver and the rest of the crew of Weaver construction for putting on the big top AND of course to my husband Dave!! He is the one who saw the ad in the Farm and Dairy and asked what I thought, spent a lot of time on the phone gathering information and finding the right contractors (good job on that one) and spent countless hours preparing the site which was on the side of a hill. All of that and he won't even have a use for it himself! Well not for its intended use anyway. Although I do think he had a little fun with this project ;)
For those of you who haven't been here is awhile you can see where the dome is by going to this link to the Google map of the farm which was taken about a month ago. If you zoom in you can see the site for the dome between the east dressage arena and the stabling barns. Enjoy the pictures and come out and see it some time.
Jackie
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| Panels waiting to be put in place |
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| The center support was on a platform on top of a lift |
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| The airlift it the third of 34 panels |
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| Fourth Panel |
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| The crane was inside the structure to begin with |
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| Window panel preparing for liftoff |
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| We have liftoff |
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| Gliding into place |
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| A 1/3 of the way done (the easy 1/3 as it turned out) |
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| Inside looking out |
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| 8 left to go |
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| Putting into place is getting more precise |
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| Dave looks like he's flying a kite |
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| Taking the header out |
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| The last one!! |
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| Guiding the last one into place |
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| Tipping it into place |
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| Getting closer |
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| Just a little more |
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| Quick, get those bolts in |
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| Crane removing some of the pressure so the header can get back in |
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| Tightening the bolts before the top goes on |
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| The top cap |
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| View from the east (driveway side dug into the hill) |
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| View from the west |
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| View from the North (the arena side) |
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| View from the South (the barn side) |
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| From the top looking up the hill |
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| A new judge's stand ? |
Tuesday, May 29, 2012
Dave's "Big Idea" - Let the Building Begin
Today is the start of the final phase of Dave's Big Idea aka known as the dome, covered round pen, the space ship or as Dave has been calling it "the $2 steak". The $2 steak you ask ... that's when you go to the grocery store to buy a $2 steak & end up spending a whole lot more money on other things. Well that's kind of what happened with this project ;) In any case, I have missed blogging about the beginning of the building phase of this project, putting up the cement wall.
The site prep took the better part of the month of April and the wall was poured the week before our Winona Horse Trials on Mother's Day weekend ...whew Dave was a very busy guy. As they say a picture is work a thousand words so I'm going to let the pictures do the talking.
It took 30 days for Dave to prepare the site and 3 days to pour the walls!!
If you missed the earlier installations of Dave's "big idea" here are the links:
http://stonegatefarmeventing.blogspot.com/2011/12/daves-really-really-big-idea-phase-1.html
http://stonegatefarmeventing.blogspot.com/2012/04/site-prep-for-dome.html
Well I have to go and see what this crew has gotten done so far. Stay tuned, we should have the roof on in a couple of days.
Jackie
The site prep took the better part of the month of April and the wall was poured the week before our Winona Horse Trials on Mother's Day weekend ...whew Dave was a very busy guy. As they say a picture is work a thousand words so I'm going to let the pictures do the talking.
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| A 6' cut into the side of the hill |
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| Digging for the footer ... follow the dotted line |
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| Hauling topsoil to make a berm on the south side of the new show jumping arena |
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| View from west to east - footers have been poured |
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| A different perspective |
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| Pouring the footer |
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| More pouring of the footer |
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| Rebar in the footer - Wie's ears ;) |
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| Unloading the forms |
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| More unloading of forms |
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| Setting the forms and rebar |
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| 3 of the 7 trucks that each brought 2 loads!! |
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| Pouring cement |
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| The boom had a reach of more than 100' |
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| The boom is above the trees |
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| Finished product from the inside looking out |
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| The outside |
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| Packing up the forms |
If you missed the earlier installations of Dave's "big idea" here are the links:
http://stonegatefarmeventing.blogspot.com/2011/12/daves-really-really-big-idea-phase-1.html
http://stonegatefarmeventing.blogspot.com/2012/04/site-prep-for-dome.html
Well I have to go and see what this crew has gotten done so far. Stay tuned, we should have the roof on in a couple of days.
Jackie
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