With the accuracy of a programmed drone missile, Art Ross tosses his 2.5-pound horseshoe toward a vertical iron peg 30 feet away. On target, he is rewarded with a satisfying clink, the sound of a perfect ringer, during a June tournament in Pocatello. When settled snugly around the peg, the shoe is his Lady Luck, but when she slips off target, Art nicknames her a fickle and betraying Jezebel.

Art’s two lucky shoes, painted shiny gold, have clinked thousands of times during the past several years, often enough for him to win titles locally, statewide, and beyond. In 2007, he won the Elders “C” class at the World Horseshoe Pitching Championships in Ardmore, Okla.

He concedes his wins and ringers - he tosses with 57 percent accuracy, the highest percentage of pitchers in southeastern Idaho - are due more to daily practice than luck. Percentages are based on how many ringers out of 100 shoes a competitor throws.

“I’ll throw 150 to 300 shoes a day in my backyard,” says Art, who joined the Gate City Horseshoe Pitching Association after retiring in 2004. “It takes me about two to three hours. I don’t do it all at once. I’ll toss a few then take a break.”

His friend Bob Zausch who tosses with 47 percent accuracy suggests a way to toss ringers consistently without luck or daily practice. “I just need a pair of magnetized shoes. I should throw more often at home, but I can’t seem to find the time lately,” he says with a chuckle.

Bob’s accuracy rate was high enough in June to win contests in Pocatello. “I won yesterday, and I’ve won worlds when they were held here in Pocatello in 2004,” he says, pointing to his cap embroidered with Senior “M” Division World Champion 2004.

Art and Bob are among 15 million pitchers nationwide who enjoy hurling horseshoes, according to the National Horseshoe Pitchers Association (NHPA). It is a sport that appeals to families because participants range in age from children to seniors. From May to October, regardless of whether their horseshoes clink for a ringer or clunk out of contention, Art and Bob enjoy competing in leagues sanctioned by the Gate City Horseshoe Pitching Association every Tuesday and Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at Ross Park and in local unsanctioned bar leagues.

“We do this for the camaraderie,” says Art, who competed in Idaho, Utah, and Arizona during the past 18 months.

“And for the competition,” adds Bob. He, Art, and two other friends play on the Five-Mile Inn’s #1 team, flinging 50 shoes each during singles and doubles contests. They agree pitching horseshoes is a great way to meet people and is cheap entertainment.

“There is no membership fee to pitch in an unsanctioned tournament or league,” Bob says. “To pitch in the sanctioned tournaments or league, there is a $25 fee to cover the Idaho State Horseshoe Pitchers Association fees and the NHPA fees.”

Art and Bob are among 16 members of the Pocatello association and 104 pitchers statewide who have registered with the NHPA, says state association president Brian Poole of Pocatello.

“The bar leagues are really active in Pocatello,” Brian says. “We have 64 four-member teams.”

Art and Bob, who are both 75, compete in the “elder” division, for those 70 or older. “In that division, you get to throw from 30 feet, instead of 40 feet. Women also throw from 30 feet,” Bob says.

When they toss, Art and Bob throw a “flip,” in which the shoe turns over once before hitting the peg. “Other people make it spin,” Art says. “Everyone has an individualized throwing style, depending on what you’re comfortable with and what works for you.”

Along with an individualized throwing style, each competitor has a personalized pair of solid iron shoes, purchased for $40 to $80 from the national association. While Art’s shoes are shiny and gold, Bob’s are a faded blue and red. “They look pretty good compared to yesterday, when they were caked in sand and mud,” Bob says, laughing.

The weekend Pocatello tournaments in which Bob and Art compete attract pitchers from as far as Idaho Falls and Sun Valley. Pocatello is a popular venue on the state’s pitching circuit because the pits are in a shady section of the city’s Ross Park.

“In 1990, our association built the 26 pits here,” says Bob who helped with the project. “We built this pavilion and brick barbecue in 2006 using money we raised from sales of T-shirts and hats at tournaments.”

This summer’s competition has helped Bob to prepare for the state singles tournament during Labor Day weekend in Coeur d’Alene.

Bob and Art do not plan to compete in this year’s world championships. “They’re too far away, in Louisiana,” Art says. “But in 2013, when they come closer to home, in St. George, Utah, we’ll all go.”

More information about horseshoe pitching may be obtained from Brian Poole at 208-237-3459, the state association’s website at www.pitchwithus.com/idaho, or the national website at www.horseshoepitching.com