Practical Pistol (I.P.S.C.)

Practical shooting is an international sport, promoted in more than sixty countries. The International Practical Shooting Confederation is the governing body, it sets the various rules i.t.o. match procedures, equipment and safety for competitions. Accuracy, power, and speed as three equal elements form the basis of the sport, as reflected in the motto of the IPSC - DVC: Diligentia, Vis, Celeritas (Accuracy, Power, Speed).

An IPSC competition is made up of various "stages". Competitors are timed for each stage, and a match typically has an equal number of short/speed (7-12 rouds), medium (15-20 rounds) and long (up to 32 rounds) stages.

SAPSA

The South African Practical Shooting Association is the national affiliate of IPSC.

WPPSA

The Western Province Practical Shooting Asociation is the provincial affiliate of SAPSA, and governs the sport in the Western Cape.

Divisions

Competitors may enter any one of five Divisions depending on the style of firearm they use. The minimum caliber allowed is 9x19mm (9mm parabellum).

• Open: There are not a lot of rules on what is legal and what is not. This is the division for "Race Guns" and you will never see one that isn't compensated, modified, and sporting optical sights.
• Modified: Optical sights and compensators allowed. Firearms (with empty magazine inserted) must fit into a box of 225mm x 150mm x 45mm.
• Standard: Slight modifications allowed, magazine extensions, aftermarket sights etc, but no compensators or optical sights. Firearms (with empty magazine inserted) must fit into a box of 225mm x 150mm x 45mm.
• Revolver-Standard: Maximum of six rounds in the chamber. Modified sights, hammers and cylinder releases allowed. No compensators or optical sights.
• Production: "Out of the box", no modifications allowed. First shot must be double-action. Firearms (with empty magazine inserted) must fit into a box of 225mm x 150mm x 45mm.

Factoring

To calculate the power factor of a round, use the following formula:

bullet weight(grains) x velocity(feet per second)
1000

Competitors using minor factor rounds incur heavier penalties for low-scoring areas on targets, to compensate for the reduced recoil of minor factor rounds. See "Scoring" below.

Scoring

Targets

• Paper targets: these have three scoring zones (A, C & D), and must be shot twice, or the two highest scoring shots count.
• Pepper popper: a steel target, often used to activate other moving targets.
• Plates: round or square steel targets, very popular in speed shoots.
• Swinger: a paper target in a pendulum type frame.
• Flipper: a paper target, in a frame that lies flat, and flips over once the activating steel disc is hit. You need to hit the paper target before it flips over completely.
• Gravity turner: a paper target in a frame that turns through 180 degrees. Normally starts hidden, turns to become visible, and ends up being hidden again.
• Runner: a paper target in a frame that runs along a wire.

Classes

The competitor with the highest "hit-factor" (points divided by time) for a stage, receives 100%. The hit factor for other competitors is then expressed as a percentage of the winner. To allow new shooters to compete at their level, IPSC uses the following class structure:

Prizes are awarded in each class (depending on the number of competitors), giving a wide range of people the opportunity to win a medal, and encouraging new entrants to the sport to improve their class rating.

Competition Structure

Levels

• Level 1 - Club Championship
• Level 2 - Provincial Championship
• Level 3 - National Championship
• Level 4 - Continental Championship
• Level 5 - World Shoot

Categories

• Individual
• Team
• Juniors
• Ladies
• Seniors

Range / Safety Commands

The typical range / safety commands at an IPSC match are:

• "Load and make ready"
• "Are you ready ?"
• "Standby..."
• [Audible start signal]
• "If you are finished, unload and show clear"
• "If clear, hammer down and holster"
• "Range is clear"