Section 5
Stage Procedures and Range Commands
5.1 Shooter Responsibility: When called to the firing line, it is the
shooter’s responsibility to come to the line prepared to shoot, and
familiar with the stage procedures and range commands. If a shooter
is unsure of or unable to comply with stage procedures or range 6
commands they should direct questions to the Range Official before
entering the shooting box.
5.1.1 Leaving the Line: No contestant may leave the firing line
position until the firearm has been unloaded, inspected and
cleared by the Range Official. The fi rearm will then be holstered
or placed in a protective sheath or bag.
5.2 Start Position:
5.2.1 The start position is standing in the box with both feet flat
on the ground. When the competitor is ready they will assume
the required start position to indicate their readiness
to the Range Official. The competitor must remain in the
appropriate position until the start signal.
5.2.2 In center fire competition, hands are to be held in the “surrender
position” with wrists and hands above the shoulders
and fully visible from behind.
5.2.3 In the Rimfire Match, there will be an aiming point (flag or
sign) centered downrange directly in front of each shooters
box approximately 10’ away and 2’ high. One aiming point
will be required for each shooting box used. The competitor
while waiting for the start signal, must be pointing/aiming
their gun at the flag/sign with the finger outside the trigger
guard.
5.2.4 Long gun competitors will start with the firearm muzzle
aimed at an aiming point (flag or sign). There will be an
aiming point for each shooting box used. The competitor
while waiting for the start signal, must be pointing/aiming
their gun at the flag/sign with the fi nger outside the trigger
guard.
5.2.5 A competitor not in the proper start position at the start signal
will incur penalties. See Section 7 for penalty information.
5.3 Range Commands: The Range Official will direct the shooter using
the following commands:
5.3.1 “Make ready” Under the direct supervision of the Range
Offi cial, the competitor must face down range and prepare
their handgun. The competitor must then assume the required
start position. At this point, the Range Offi cial will
proceed.
5.3.1.1 The “make ready” command signifies the start of
the competitor’s attempt at the stage. Once the 7
“make ready” command has been given, the competitor
must not move away from the start location
without the prior approval, and under the direct supervision,
of the Range Official.
5.3.2 “Are you ready?” The lack of any negative response from
the competitor indicates that he/she fully understands the
requirements of the course of fire and is ready to proceed.
If the competitor is not ready at the “Are you ready?” command,
he must state “Not ready”.
5.3.3 “Stand by” This command should be followed by the start
signal within 1 to 4 seconds.
5.3.4 Start signal At the audible start signal the competitor is
to begin their attempt at the course of fire. If a competitor
fails to react to the audible start signal, for any reason, the
Range Official will confirm that the competitor is ready to
attempt the course of fire, and will resume the range commands
from “Are You Ready?”
5.3.5 “Prepare for your next string” After the completion of a
string, if the shooter has not completed the required number
of strings he/she will be instructed to prepare for the next
string. The shooter should reload if necessary and assume
the appropriate start position.
5.3.6 “Stop” Any Range Official assigned to a stage may issue
this command at any time. The competitor must immediately
cease fi ring, stop moving and wait for further instructions
from the Range Offi cial.
5.3.7 “If you are finished, unload and show clear” After the
completion of the final string, the Range Official will issue
this command. If the competitor has finished shooting,
he must lower his handgun, completely unload it and present
it for inspection by the Range Official with the muzzle
pointed down range.
5.3.7.1 Semi-automatic firearms must be presented with
magazine removed; slide locked or held open, and
chamber empty.
5.3.7.2 Revolvers must be presented with the cylinder
swung out and empty.
5.3.8 “If clear, hammer down and holster” After issuance of
this command, the competitor is prohibited from firing.
While continuing to point the handgun safely downrange, 8
the competitor must perform a final safety check of the
handgun as follows:
5.3.8.1 Centerfire self-loaders – release the slide and pull
the trigger (without touching the hammer or decocker,
if any).
5.3.8.2 Rimfire self-loaders, as above.
5.3.8.3 Revolvers: close the empty cylinder (without
touching the hammer, if any).
5.3.8.4 If the gun proves to be clear, the competitor must
holster or bag their handgun.
5.3.8.5 If the gun does not prove to be clear, the Range Official will resume the
commands from Rule “If you are finished” rule 5.7.
5.3.9 “Range is clear” This declaration signifies the end of the
stage. Once the declaration is made, officials and competitors
may move forward to score/paint targets.
5.4 Equipment Malfunctions: Should a competitor’s equipment malfunction,
the string of fire will be scored, the range shall be cleared
per 5.2.8, and the competitor will be allowed to retire for repair or
replacement of the equipment. The Range Official will proceed with
the next competitor.
5.4.1 The Range Official will retain the competitor’s scorecard until such
time as the competitor returns to resume his attempts at the stage.
5.4.2 In the event that a firearm cannot be unloaded due to a broken or
failed mechanism, the shooter will notify the Range Official. Under
no circumstances will a competitor leave the firing line with a
loaded firearm. See Section (8.2.1.3).
5.5 Target Painting: All targets are to be painted white and will be repainted
prior to each contestant’s first run on each course of fire.

Scoring
6.1 General Principles: Steel Challenge scoring is simple: your time is
your score!
Each stage consists of five targets, commonly referred to as plates.
Four are standard plates, and the fifth is designated as the stop plate.
Each of the standard targets must be hit at least once before hitting
the stop plate, and the time stops when the stop plate is hit. Competitors
may fire as many rounds as they deem necessary for each 9
string of fire. The worst string on each stage will be thrown out, and
the total of the remaining times will be competitor’s score for that
stage. See Appendix E for stage descriptions, set-up diagrams and
specified procedures for each stage.
The total of a competitor’s stage scores will be his score for the
match.
Total score for all stages will determine the order of finish for final standings.
6.2 Maximum Time: The maximum time allowed for an individual
string is 30 seconds. Any hits made after the maximum time allowance
will not be counted. The competitor will be stopped and asked
to reload if they reach the 30 second limit.
6.2.1 The maximum score for any string is 30 seconds, no matter
how many misses or penalties may have been accrued during
the string.
6.3 Misses (Standard Plates): Any standard plate which has not been
hit before the stop plate will count as a Miss. Each Miss on a standard
plate will result in a 3 (three) second penalty, added to the shooter’s time for that string.
6.3.1 When a Range Official scores a miss, it is the shooter’s responsibility
to appeal the decision at the end of that particular
string. The Range Official will go downrange to inspect
the target.
6.3.2 If the bullet has left a clear mark on the edge or face of the
plate, it will be scored as a hit. If there is no discernable
mark, it will be scored as a miss. (See 6.4)
6.3.3 If the competitor still feels the call is in error, he may appeal
to the Range Master. The Range Masters call will be
final and no further appeals will be allowed with respect to
the scoring decision. Once the next string of fire has begun,
there will be no further opportunity to appeal the Range Official’s call.
6.4 Misses (Stop Plate): If the stop plate is not hit, the score for that
string is 30 seconds. It is the competitor’s responsibility to stop the
time by hitting the stop plate with a clear hit on the edge or face of
the plate.
6.5 Scoring Methods: Steel Challenge events may be scored by “Impact”
(Electronically wired stop plates) or “Sound” (sound-actuated
shot timers). See Appendix D for details.
6.6 Tie Scores (Stage): Should a tie for first place on any stage occur,
the fastest single run of that particular stage will be used to break the 10 tie.
If still needed, the second-fastest and third-fastest runs will be
used to break the tie.
6.7 Tie Scores (Match): Should a tie for overall placement occur, the
Outer Limits stage score will be used as the tie-breaker.
6.8 Final Scores: Scores will not be considered final until the complete
scores have been posted for inspection by the competitors for one hour.

Section 7
Penalties
7.1 Procedural Penalties:
7.1.1 “False Start”: Competitors whose wrists are below the
shoulders at the start signal incur a 3 (three) second penalty
for each occurrence.
7.1.2 “Foot Faults”: A competitor who fires a shot while touching
the ground outside the appropriate shooting box is considered
to be “faulting” that box. Shots fired while “faulting”
a box will result in a 3 (three) second penalty for each
string that a fault occurs.
7.1.2.1 Placing the foot on top of the raised surface of the
shooting box itself is not a “foot fault”. A “foot
fault” only occurs when the foot touches the
ground outside the box.
7.1.3 “Designated Targets”: Some stages will require that designated
targets must be shot from specific shooting boxes. Failure to hit each
target from the correct shooting box will result in a 3 (three) second
penalty for each occurrence.
7.1.3.1 If the shooter fires and leaves Box A, then realizes
they missed and/or hit the plates out of sequence
and returns to Box A and continues to shoot, there
will be no penalty.
7.1.3.2 Any plates hit from the wrong shooting box will
be scored as Misses unless the shooter subsequently
takes corrective action prior to hitting the stop
plate by shooting the plates from the correct box.
Once the stop plate is hit time stops and all appropriate
penalties apply.
7.1.4 “Procedural Errors”: A competitor whose actions are
in violation of specified stage procedures is considered to
11
have committed a “procedural error”. “Procedural errors”
will result in a 3 (three) second penalty for each occurrence.
7.1.4.1 Improper movement or failure to move on stages
where movement is required would be considered
a procedural and a 3 second penalty applied.

Appendix E1
Stages
The best four out of five strings will be counted as the total score for each
stage, except for Outer Limits, which will be the best three out of four runs.
Appendix E2
Stage Setup
All round targets, except for the Pendulum are 5′ high to the top of the
target and all rectangles are 5′6″ to the top of the target. Pendulum has two
round targets that are 6’ to the top of the target.
Layout of stages- All course designs and measurements are “approximate”
with slight variations possible. All shooting boxes will be 3’ x 3’ except for
Outer Limits, which are 4’ x 4’.
All courses of fire will be fired from a single shooting box with the exceptions
of Outer Limits and Showdown, which will each have more than one
shooting box. Showdown will have two 3’x 3’ shooting boxes and two
runs will be shot from one shooting box and two from the other. The competitor
may choose from either box to shoot their fifth and final run. There
is NO movement between boxes during this course of fire.
The Outer Limits will have three 4’ x 4’ shooting boxes. The shooter will
start on their weak side shooting box and will engage the 20 and 35 yard
plates on the weak side of the center line, move to the middle shooting box
and engage the remaining two plates and stop plate. The distance between
each of the three boxes will be 6’.
Note: Only two of the three boxes will be used by each shooter. Depending
on whether you are right or left handed, you will begin in the appropriate
outside box and finish in the middle box.