Sand Agility Arena – The Story Behind a Premium Field
How we built a high-end training ground from the ground up

It all started…

The story of the sand arena

The beginnings: a field, a dog, an idea

At the start, there was nothing. Just a slightly bumpy field near my parents’ place, they’re farmers. I trained there, on a sloped ground full of holes, with second-hand equipment I found from a private seller in the Gard region. I still remember that road trip, over three hours away, with my brother and the little Trafic van, strapped to the roof with all the gear. A real construction site!

But it was already a first step, the beginning of what would become much more than just a training field.

What I wanted was to train on something high-quality. A real surface, flat, stable, no compromises. Something that would allow me to progress at my own pace, alone, whenever I wanted.
That was the original idea: just a field for myself.

The build: stakes, trenches, dumpers, and determination

So during the lockdown, on May 1st, 2020, I planted the stakes. I set up the arena with satellite guidance, levelled the ground with a friend using a backhoe and a laser. But most of the work, I did myself: about 300 dumper trips to level the soil. I learned by doing, trained with professionals, laid the hydraulic system myself, dug the trenches for the electrical wiring… And thankfully, I had the precious help of my father and brother, for advice, hands-on help, and lending tools and machinery.

That said, I broke three dumpers in a few months… maybe I was a little too motivated for one person.

The equipment arrives, and so do the requests

On March 8, 2021, six trucks of sand arrived. At the end of August came my first Galican jump order. Then in December 2021, I received the Galican contact equipment and the rest of the course. I was able to sell my old gear, a real turning point.

And then, without planning it, the first requests started rolling in. A friend wanted to come train, then a friend of a friend, and so on. Here, you could come whenever you wanted — alone, calm, and safe. It was exactly what many people were looking for but couldn’t find elsewhere.
People started telling me: “Your field is better than some competition venues !” So the project grew.

Milestones

• January 2022: first workshop with a guest instructor
• March 2023: first official qualifier
• June 2023: first approved competition
• January 2024: the business is officially in my name

The sand choice: six months of research

The sand wasn’t chosen at random : I wanted a stable, comfortable, non-abrasive surface designed for dogs, not horses. No one had dared to build a true sand arena dedicated to agility in the region. So I searched. I compared colours, density, weight, texture… It took me six months to find the perfect sand, one that’s gentle on dogs’ pads, doesn’t blow in the wind, and requires minimal maintenance thanks to an automatic watering system.

The spirit stays the same

Today, the arena has changed a lot, but it stays true to its roots:
a place designed for serious training, in total autonomy, and under the best possible conditions.