Feet Of Clay, Heart Of Iron

Matt Tullis: Brian Simmons does not like the clay at this year's World Horseshoe Tournament in Knoxville, Tenn. It's powdery, slippery. Even the non-horseshoe pitchers can tell this, because the bleachers in the convention center, where the tournament is being held, are coated in a light gray dust and the concrete floor has gotten more slick with each passing day. The clay dust gets on Simmons's shoes and then the shoes slip out of his hand. It's supposed to be Kentucky Blue Clay but that is hard to believe. More like Kentucky Synthetic, one man says. It makes it damn hard to pitch a horseshoe with the accuracy normally attributed to a man like Simmons.