I spent Sunday and Monday nights trying to feel guilty about not posting, and it didn't take until tonight.
Okay, I feel guilty. I guess my vacation from pseudo-life is past, lost in the Real World. Now I'm "Stuck In Lodi Again", if Corvallis can be considered Lodi North (and I think it is).
In the meantime, I've built up that ol' mental pressure to an acceptable pseudo-life operating level, and I've Got Something To Say.
I've had some time to rethink my interpretation of the IPSC/USPSA competition rule 10.4.9 concerning Accidental Discharge, so if you're not interested in Practical Pistol competition you can skip this one.
Earlier, I had some tentative interpretations of this rule which led me to wonder why, if a competitor has a broken gun and is unable to continue, he should be penalized all the points he might have accumulated on a stage before his gun broke. It seemed to me that it conflicted with all the 5.7.* rules, which said that a competitor who was unable to continue due to an equipment malfunction should have all hits scored, penalties deducted, and his stage hit factor calculate in the usual way. (See Rule 5.7.3)
However, rule 10.4.9 deals with the specific situation when an Accidental Discharge occurs. In every other case, that would be ipso facto grounds for a Match Disqualification (DQ). In this case, the rule book recognizes that the competitor has not violated a safety rule so there are no grounds for a DQ.
My guess is that the authors of the current rule book are looking at the rules in the last rule book version (USPSA Rule Book, 14th Edition 2001, US rule 10.3.2.4). This rule is part of the general subsetion 10.3 dealing with Unsafe Gun Handling, and perhaps is inappropriately placed here because the specific rule stipulates that the Accidental Discharge is NOT due to unsafe gun handling.
Maybe that's why they stipulate zeroing the scores for that stage, and allowing the competitor to continue after having repaired his firearm. After all, they COULD have kicked you out of the match on the grounds that you've experienced an Accidental Discharge. Instead, they only kick you off the stage. You can always come back and compete in the rest of the match.
I've drawn some conclusions from all of this introspection:
(1) If a rule exists in the 'old' version, it is justifiable to include it in the 'new' version of the rule book ...
(2) ... even if it may have applied excessive and unjustifiable penalties in the first place.
(3) Therefore, the rule 10.4.9, while it appears to be inappropriatly in variance with the 5.7.* rules, is acceptable because HEY! Nobody complained about it last year, we had our chance, screw us.
(4) Maybe it's time to revisit this rule and decide whether, if the competitor didn't do anything worthy of a DQ, the Range Officer (RO) should screw him anyway by zeroing the stage.
(5) No, it's not the RO's fault. He's gotta live with the existing rules, as the competitor is required to compete in accordance with them.
(6) While those guys were busily inventing new rules that don't always make sense, they might have found time to revisit some of the old rules and correct the ones that already didn't make sense.
(7) No way they're gonna do that, unless IPSC members scream to high heaven every time they run up against this kind of competitive roadblock
If you're dinged under 10.4.9, write your Area Director. Write your Regional Director. While you're at it, write your Section Coordinator, the Match Director, the Regional Director, and every IPSC member whose email address you have. Maximum exposure is a Good Thing.
But do NOT, under any circumstances, scream at the RO who dinged you. He's just doing his job, and he has absolutely no choice here. Don't arbitrate, because you'll lose and it will cost you the arbitration fee which you can't afford anyway.
Just ... figure you're not going to win the match, go get your gun fixed, and do good on the rest of the stages of the match.
Oh, and talk to your gunsmith.
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