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Horseshoes is an outdoor game played between two people (or two teams of two people) using four horseshoes and two throwing targets (stakes) set in a sandbox area. The game is played by the players alternating turns tossing horseshoes at stakes in the ground, which are traditionally placed 40feet (15.38 m) apart. Modern games use a more stylized U-shaped bar, about twice the size of an actual horseshoe.
Official Rules of the Game of Horseshoes from the NHPA
The National Horseshoe Pitchers Association (NHPA), the recognized governing body of the sport of horseshoe pitching in the United States, maintains an up-to-date set of rules.
The game begins with a coin toss to decide who goes first. The winner of the toss throws both horseshoes—one at a time—at the opposite stake, and then the second player throws both of their horseshoes—again, one at a time—at their end. After scoring, the next round is done in reverse order, or by throwing back at the original stake. Play continues until one player has at least 15 points at the end of a round. NHPA sanctioned games are generally played to 40 points, or a shoe limit of 40 or 50 shoes. The horseshoes-in family friendly games-can be made of either plastic or metal.
In horseshoes, there are two ways to score: by throwing "ringers," or by throwing the horseshoe nearest to the stake. This scoring system gives rise to the popular expression "Close only counts in horseshoes and hand grenades." A ringer is a thrown horseshoe such that the horseshoe completely encircles the stake. Disputes are settled by using a straightedge to touch the two points at the ends of the horseshoe, called "heel calks." If the straightedge doesn't touch the stake, then the horseshoe is a ringer.
One player pitches both shoes in succession to one pit, followed by the other player. This is formally called an inning. Normally only one pitcher can score points per inning, however some leagues and tournaments play "count all", in which all points in each inning are counted. A horseshoe that ends up within 6 inches of the stake counts for one point, so long as an opponent’s shoe is not closer. If both of one player's horseshoes are closer than the opponent's, two points are scored. A ringer scores three points. a "leaner" and or "toucher" in sanctioned horseshoes is where the shoe is leaning at any height or touching at ground level, even dirt can be moved to see if it still leaning or space is seen between the stake and shoe, this counts for two points. In the case of one and a closer horseshoe, both horseshoes are scored for a total of four points. If a player throws two ringers, that player scores six points. If each player throws a ringer, the ringers cancel and no points are scored. If two ringers are thrown by one player and one ringer by the opponent, the player throwing two ringers scores three points. This is typically called "two dead and three" or "three ringers three" for score keeping purposes. Such occurrences are called "dead ringers" and are still used toward the pitcher/ringer average. Back-yard games can be played to any number of points that is agreed upon, but are usually to 21 points, win by 2. In most sanctioned tournaments the handicapped divisions pitch 50 shoe games, most points win. If there is a tie, the pitchers pitch an additional 2 innings (alternating pitch) until the tie is broken. Championship divisions, or non-handicapped divisions are pitched to 40 points, regardless of the number of shoes pitched
Single points in amateur games must measure 6 inches or less from any part of the shoe to the nearest part of the stake. Also, a game cannot be won when an opposing player, tossing a shoe, bumps an opponent's shoe to cause the opponent to reach the winning score be it eleven or twenty-one. The game winning point must be attained by the person tossing the horseshoe pertaining to his own score. Examples: If a player has 10 points and an opponent has 8 points, and the player with 10 points tosses a horseshoe and bumps his opponent's horseshoe for a ringer, the opponent scores 3 points for a total of 11 points, but does not win the game because of the 2 point rule. If a player has 9 points and an opponent 8 points and the player with 9 points tosses a horseshoe and bumps his opponent's horseshoe for a ringer, the opponent cannot score 3 points, because the winning point must be attained by his own toss. However, the opponent can take two points, bringing his total point score to 10.
This was all inspired by the fact that Clague Rd, has been closed for repair work, and this street has been a good alternative to get to eastbound I-90 by going down Hilliard. This street is very unique in itself. It has two lanes going down opposite sides of a creek that goes down between them. BOTH lanes are two-way traffic, so be careful. One of the first times I went down the street I met someone coming the other way and incorrectly blinked my lights and honked my horn at them. Also the speed limit is 25 mph and is regularly patrolled, so be forewarned.
You are looking for a somewhat camoed container, but it shouldn’t be too difficult for the trained geocacher’s eye.
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