Horseshoes may not require running, participants make good pitches as athletes

Horseshoes is an activity that haphazardly walks the line between sport and something else, between skill and luck, between leisure and legitimate competition.

Sure, some physical effort is required.

"It takes talent and practice -- lots of practice. It takes talent to throw 40 feet, get your shoe to flip right, and get on that stob," said Mike Davault, an Advance resident who plays regularly in sanctioned tournaments.

And mental effort also is a necessity as competitors carefully take aim at the toothpick-thin stake, then patiently watch as the opponent takes his turn uncontested and often cope with the frustration of watching a would-be ringer rattle off at the last second.

If the physical and mental efforts are combined correctly, a repeatable motion evolves and a pitcher's potential can be reached. Some people find the task easier than others. It took Cori Stoverink of Leopold, Mo., 10 years to become one of the best woman pitchers in Missouri.

"It takes a while to get good. It takes dedication," said Stoverink, a two-time championship round runner-up at the Missouri Horseshoe Pitching Association state tournament.

She attempts to repeat her unique motion each time she picks up a shoe but admits that's not nearly as easy as it sounds.

How well she throws depends largely on how intently she is able to concentrate on her motion. But it's a fine line. "I'm usually thinking too hard when I'm missing," she admitted. "It's a mind game the whole time you're out there."

Although horseshoes are thrown throughout the United States and in countries around the world, Missouri is distinguished as one of the most popular places to play.

The state has the largest charter in the National Horseshoe Pitchers Association and also is the home of the largest sanctioned club in America, according to the MOHPA website.

Pitchers, including Davault and Stoverink, play in smaller sanctioned events and practice year-round in preparation for the state tournament. Practice, for the majority, consists usually of finding the nearest pit and tossing shoes for a while.

In other words, we're not talking about weightlifting, cardiovascular training or other extreme forms of fitness required to excel. A person who might not be able to run up and down the court for an entire basketball game still can toss a ringer or two.

The biggest physical hurdle pitchers face is the summer climate.

This is particularly true for those who participate locally in SEMO Horseshoe Association events. The independent league is of the throwback variety, with mostly dirt pits rather than the clay ones found in sanctioned events throughout the country. Competitors are as much friends as foes, and husbands and wives face off regularly.

The weekly tournaments draw people from as close as Jackson and Chaffee and as far away as Kentucky. For just $5, anyone 12 years of age or older is allowed to pitch whether they have a registered ringer percentage or not.

In another retro move, competitors are randomly designated partners. Horseshoes, at least today, is traditionally played in solidarity, with pitchers facing each other heads up.

Still, whether it's one-on-one or team-against-team, there will be a winner and a loser in the end. A competition takes place, and competition is the basis of sport. Without a scoreboard the sport-or-not debate cannot exist.

"I love the competition," said Mike Massa, who travels up to two hours from Patterson, Mo., to play in events because there are none in his area. He practices as much three times a week preparing for the Sunday tournaments.

It could be argued that the SEMO Horseshoe Association competition is closer to backyard brawl than battle, and 86-year old Irv Vandeven, the circuit's eldest competitor, would agree. Although he still attends about half of summer schedule's events he conceded, "Some people get mad when they play, but I'm not that way. I just play for fun -- if I lose, I lose."

Thirteen-year-old Martin Williams, who already boasts an impressive 54-percent ringer percentage, suggests just the opposite is true for him. "I get mad when I lose and happy when I do win," he said with a shy but unapologetic smile.

Williams' mother, Melody, who plays alongside her son each week, may best sum up the complicated dynamic of the circuit where one must balance the fun of playing with friends with the desire to destroy them in competition.

"We're one big happy family," she said. After a pause, she added, "Well, most of time we're happy."

___

Horseshoes By the Numbers

14-15 inches -- regulation height of stake

15 million -- number of people estimated to play horseshoes in the U.S. and Canada

52 -- members of the Missouri Horseshoe Pitchers Association Hall of Fame

89.62 -- current percentage of ringers thrown by America's top male player, Alan Francis

1910 -- year first horseshoe tournament open to the world was played

Sources: www.horseshoepitching.com and www.mohpa.us.