Alabama hosting 2016 World Horseshoe Pitching Championships
MONTGOMERY, Ala. — The sound of thousands upon thousands of clanks, thuds and more than a few sighs will be echoing under one roof in Montgomery over the next couple of weeks.
Montgomery is the host site for the 2016 World Horseshoe Pitching Championships, a twoweek event that began on Monday and lasts through Aug. 6.
Held at the city’s multiple-use facility at Cramton Bowl, the entire event is free for the public to watch in person, and it will also be streamed online.
“We’ve got 934 pitchers coming from 44 states, as well as Canada and Switzerland,” said Tina Hawkins, promotions director for the National Horseshoe Pitchers Association. “Anytime during the day that somebody wants to come watch the pitching, they’re more than welcome to come out.”
Horseshoe pitching might seem like a simple game — take a horseshoe, throw it and try to ring it on a pole. But organizing a popular event like this with nearly 1,000 players is no simple task. There’s a lot of preliminary play to get through before the actual championships.
“Each player will play a minimum of three days,” said Hawkins. “They will play five games a day for three days for a total of 15 games. At the end of their three days, there will be a champion decided in each of the classes, which we call preliminary class play. After nine days of preliminary class play, we take the top ringer percentages, and the number of players is determined by which division it is, and form a championship group and play for the actual world title.”
Contestants compete in eight different divisions for their share of $160,000 in cash and scholarships, according to information from the Montgomery Area Chamber of Commerce Convention & Visitor Bureau.
Among the competitors clanking their way to the top will be Allen Frances, the returning men’s champion. “He is going for his 21st win,” said Hawkins.
The event is also predicted to be a ringer for Montgomery’s economy. According to the Convention & Visitor Bureau, it’s expected to bring an estimated $1.5 million to the Montgomery area.
“We are thrilled to host this event for the National Horseshoe Pitchers Association, which boasts over 15 million members in both the United States and Canada,” said Dawn Hathcock, vice president of the Montgomery Area Convention & Visitor Bureau. “Our Multiplex is the perfect spot for a tournament of this size, with room for 60 horseshoe courts and comfortable seating for over 1,000 spectators. With such a wide scope of participants traveling to our city for this event, we hope to attract even more world championships to our facilities in the future.”
Montgomery was announced as this year’s championship host site in 2014, when it beat out Spokane, Wash.
So what goes into a world-championship horseshoe pitch? Hawkins’ answer might just make your head hurt a little: “They have to pitch well.”
“There really isn’t any one single secret of technique or thing to do to make you a top player,” said Hawkins. “It’s different for every person. However many people you have in a tournament, you’ll have that many different ways to throw. It’s a personal thing. It’s what works best for you.”