Butler County offers plenty of athletic talent, but believe it or not, the best pitcher in this area is an 80-year-old.

Horseshoe pitcher, that is.

Clarence Dixson has been racking up ringers at an astounding rate during the Butler County Horseshoe League season, and he's showing no signs of slowing down.

Dixson approaches each pitch in the same manner. After a few moments of focus, he lines up the stake, takes a stride and with a swing of the arm and a flip of the wrist, the shoe floats through the air, spiraling toward its target.

More often than not, the shoe curls around the stake, and Dixson struts away like he's been doing it his entire life.

Mostly, because he has.

“When I was a kid, I pitched horseshoes off of real horses,” said Dixson, a lifelong resident of Indiana, Pa. “We pounded pegs in the dirt. It was just a fun thing.”

After playing baseball in his younger years, Dixson picked up his childhood hobby during his 30s and began pitching in horseshoe tournaments all around the state.

He was slinging ringers one out of every three tries from 40 feet out, but eventually doubled that figure.

At 70 years old, men start standing 30 feet away and Dixson's percentage continued to soar.

This year, Dixson has converted ringers on 68.9 percent of his attempts (364-for-528).

He is a member of the National Horseshoes Pitchers Association, where he claimed a world title in the 2009 Elder Men's 30-foot Division F Finals in Illinois with a 62 percent ringer rate.

Despite the past success, Dixson claims he's pitching better now than ever.

“I've been getting a lot of attention,” Dixson elaborated. “I hadn't pitched in this league for a couple of years. They see me there and say, ‘How much did they pay you to come back and play?'

“I get a kick out of that.”

The recognition is well deserved.

In Week 8 of the league, Dixson tallied 53 ringers in 66 attempts (80.3 percent). It was one of four times he's topped 70 percent this season.

One of the few pitchers to beat Dixson a couple of times this year is teammate Homer Page, 76, who has been the president of the Western Pennsylvania charter of the National Horseshoe Pitching Association for six years.

“Homer is a very good pitcher, too,” said Dixson. “We try to pitch as many ringers as we can. We don't like to miss, but sometimes you do. ... I don't get too many lucky ringers.”

That's good news for his opponents, because he rarely needs them.

“He's always been a pretty good competitor,” said Page of Dixson before noting the keys to delivering an on-target pitch. “Once you get the technique down and can get the shoe to open, then it becomes 90 percent concentration. And it has to be there all the time.”

Some distractions are impossible to ignore, though.

Dixson made his return to the league after missing the past two years due to health complications.

After triple-bypass surgery at the age of 70, Dixson suffered a heart attack at 78. He was given a pacemaker and defibrillator, but was back at the horseshoe pit just four months later.

Dixson is no stranger to bouncing back quickly.

“I had the triple-bypass surgery done in November and I was skiing with my daughters that January,” he said.

Dixson continues to play in the Butler County league because it's “relaxing” and he enjoys the “camaraderie.” His competitive drive is also a reason to make the 160-mile round trip each week with his two friends, George Zayac and Fred Knapik.

“After playing sports all your life, (horseshoes) is about the only thing left,” Dixson said.

He's excited to return to the World Tournament later this month in Louisiana, where he will pitch five games per day for three days in a row. Luckily, the tournament is held inside with air conditioning, making the task far less daunting.

The game of horseshoes is just one of his loves, though, and certainly not the most important.

Dixson has been married to his wife, Joanne, since 1955. The 56-year marriage — which is even more impressive than his ringer rate — produced four children. He expressed deep care for each of them.

Clarence and Joanne tied the knot a year after Dixson returned from his only extended absence from Indiana — a three-year stint in Korea while serving the U.S. Army.

Dixson reflected on the days that preceded his pitching prowess.

“We had a very good softball team in Korea,” he explained. “We got down to the end of the season and one of them go, ‘Hey Dixson, I hear you're getting out. Why don't you enlist for a couple more years? If we win our next game we'll get to go to the United States to play.'

“I said, ‘I'm going to the United States, but I'm not going there to play softball. I'm getting out of this stinkin' place.'”

Suddenly, Dixson glanced at his watch and his head popped up with a revelation — his match was approaching.

“Well, I better start practicing,” he said.

As the saying goes: Practice makes perfect.