Tournaments at the End of
the Pavement
1978 - 2009
By Janice Boling
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Horseshoe tournaments at the End of the Pavement
We held horseshoe tournaments at the End of the Pavement, in Bill Bowers Cove, at Trout Camp and at private homes.
We played horseshoe tournaments at night, through the week, on Sundays, and on holidays. Our largest tournaments would have 50 or more players taking hours to finish. We played until one team was declared the winner. The runner-ups got a percentage of the pot but the winners took home most of the money.
No matter how long the tournament lasted, sideline betting kept the crowd around to cheer on the champions. At the End of the Pavement we bet on everything from pounds of air pressure in a tire to who would kill the biggest buck.
Hambone and Raymond win the tournament
Hambone and Raymond split a winning pot in the late 1990s.
There is a plaque somewhere that someone made for the occasion -- previous winners had their names engraved on it. We had lots of nice, wooden plaques through the years but I have no idea who ended up with them.
Electric bulbs light the horseshoe pits.
That is Richard and Raymond beside the guy in a purple jacket. I think Jill and Gomer are in front of the tree.
Crowd of people at the horseshoe tournament
During horseshoe tournaments, we grouped up at both ends of the horseshoe pits, around the fire, on the backs of trucks, on benches, and in camp chairs.
At some point we started calling ourselves the Old Country Boys & Girls. That was Tony Rich's idea. A real club meant we could collect dues. This money went for food, trophies, t-shirts, supplies like paper plates, and to help pay the light bill.
I don't remember what year we finally got a power pole, but it was a day to celebrate -- no more noisy generators constantly needing to be filled up with fuel.
Junior in the horseshoe pit
Looks like a good crowd but where were the horseshoes? Maybe Junior knew.
George and Gary win the pot and a trophy
I think George and Alice hosted this tournament at their house so it is fitting that George and his partner won. I wish I knew who was shooting a peace sign.
If this is the day I think it is, I put on a show later that night. I showed my ass -- at least that is what I was told later on. I hope no one got a picture of that.
A group of men gathered at the End of the Pavement
It was time to draw up a tournament. Tournaments could go on for hours. It took some skill just to keep up with all the games. Visit Wikipedia for more information on the game of horseshoes.
The largest tournament of the year
Jimmy and Brian were looking very patriotic with those flags in the background. Happy 4th of July!
Drawing up partners for a tournament
Vince, Brenda, Porky, Gary, Shawn, Harry, Doug, Julie, and others gathered around the table under the shade tree.
We held tournaments even in the winter months.
This was before there were trailers at the End of the Pavement. I think the electric lights were brand new at this time.
We held tournaments in the rain.
Rain did not stop the horseshoe games. We just put up tarps and hoped for the best.
Pete was standing in the foreground -- with the white hanky in his back pocket.
Watching the tournament
Diane, Sherry, Tar Tar, Darrell, and Jeremy gathered around the table during a horseshoe tournament.
Billy and Raymond win at Trout Camp
Every year right before Trout season, we would leave the End of the Pavement and head to the big overhanging rock in Suches for Trout Camp -- The Shope Fields. We camped right beside the river for a week every year and held a huge horseshoe tournament on the weekend.
Sometimes over a hundred people had tents and campers up and down the creek. I don't know the year of this tournament, but Billy and Raymond won. It's dark so it must have lasted all day!
See more pictures of horseshoe games at Trout Camp.
Camping at the End of the Pavement during 4th of July
4th of July was one of the largest tournaments of the year. During the 1990s, the whole place filled up with cars, campers, tents, grills, and people!
Gary and Timmy talk with two women.
Lots of people met up at the End of the Pavement. Since there were no bars or nightclubs, the End of the Pavement became a popular watering hole.
Horseshoe tournaments meant different things to different people.
Many came because they loved a good game. For some it was a way to get some exercise. For others it was an excuse to gamble. Many people used the time to socialize. Some people came just to get out of the house.
Cheeseburgers on the grill
We had all kinds of food. Wild game, hamburgers cooking on the grill, BBQ chicken, whole pigs, pots of chile, Mexican cornbread, homemade ice cream, and every type of stew you can imagine. Everyone had a specialty. Gwen made this wonderful dip with Velveeta cheese, hot peppers, and hamburger meat. I was always tempted to eat the whole bowl. Jill made delicious Bloody Mary's and mixed drinks. Raymond cooked up savory trout and other meats. Gary was famous for deer hams -- he baked them in an oven bag with taters, carrots, and onions. Hambone brought fresh grapes from the concord vines in his yard. Ramps, pickled eggs, hot sausages, Slim Jims, and hot dogs were on the menu along with every side dish known to southern kitchens. If we ran out of food, someone took a trip into town. We used to buy sacks of Sloppy Joes at the IGA. They cost fifty cents each.
We also ate a lot of sweets. People kept candy for the kids. Women made cakes and pies. Most people ate sweets for dessert but Hambone never waited for the end of the meal. He piled cake and pie on top of his food and ate it all at the same time. Maybe he was worried it would be gone when he went back for more but I think he just liked it that way.
Donald throws some shoes.
We had silt fence up to help keep toddlers away from the horseshoe pits. One lick to the head with a horseshoe could mean a concussion or brain damage. That never happened, thank God.
George, Richard, Larry, Marie, and Raymond
I think Marie was keeping score. Keeping score was sometimes a complicated business especially if there were 20 or 30 players. We used a round robin or elimination type system to determine the winning team.
Grapell, Tony, and Diane take home trophies
Road trips were not common but they did happen occasionally -- even if just to the next town. One time a bunch of us headed out to Towns County for a Budweiser Horseshoe Tournament. We were sweating it, watching our opponents throw ringers, one after another. We played for fun but these were professionals.
Did we stand a chance of winning? Of course we did. Tony, Grapell, and Diane all won a trophy. I was so proud of them. Horseshoes was our game and I am sure the End of the Pavement produced some top players. Want to bet on it?
Hambone and Gomer at the Budweiser Tournament
This tournament was held at the Georgia Mountain Fairgrounds. We played some talented professionals but still came out on top.
Raymond takes his turn throwing horseshoes at the tournament.
There were trophies for every age group and gender. We brought a lot of them home to Union County.
Photo by Brenda Flemming
A February birthday party
Maryanne, Brenda, Shawn (better known as Porky), Tammy, Lee Ann, and James were all February babies. Brenda took this picture at an indoor tournament / birthday party we had around 2000 at Gary's shop.
We didn't have indoor tournaments very often. We had a crowd that day! A variety of people dropped in including a preacher or two. There were a lot of faces that I didn't know but we all got along and had a great time.
Women not only played horseshoes, they won!
Marie was probably the best female horseshoe player to ever play at the End of the Pavement. She gave it everything she had and often came out the winner.
Richard and Marie won the tournament on this day in 1997 and got trophies to prove it.
Lots of people at the tournament
We had tournaments every Sunday afternoon for over 30 years.
People enjoyed the great outdoors in winter, spring, summer, and fall.
Larry, Bill, Mike, Miss Hockey, Ann, Vince, Jerry E, Richard, Gwen, Janice, and others gathered at the End of the Pavement for a horseshoe tournament.
Men socialized at the horseshoe tournament.
Shaun, Hambone, Edgar, and Kevin gathered up at the End of the Pavement.
Photo submitted by Sherry Wade
Two End of the Pavement trophies
These were two horseshoe tournament trophies that Sherry saved.
The last horseshoe tournament at the End of the Pavement was held on July 5, 2009.
Why did the End of the Pavement come to an end? I think we just got tired of seeing everything change for the worse.
As the old timers died off, the younger generation wanted to do things differently. They made messes and left them for us to clean up. Meth became a problem. Land taxes went up. Law enforcement agencies sent warnings and set up road blocks. All kinds of vagabonds started hanging around, not doing their part to keep the place up.
Many of us were having grandchildren and found it easier to stay at home in our comfortable living rooms. Things change. Eras come to an end. That's life.
Do we miss it? Of course.
Maybe Larry will let us have a reunion. That would be fun.