Indentifier for stop plate

[Ron Ankeny]

Is it legal, or even a good idea, to mark the post of the stop plate a different color than the other plates? I don't mean change the color of the plate, only a dab of paint on the post or support as an aide to new shooters.

My prteference is to leave everything the same color, but I need to act in the best interest of the shooters. What do you think?

[zhunter]

GREAT idea

[racerba]

Don't have to be a little dab. Paint the whole post red or a different color.

[ChuckS]

Is it legal, or even a good idea, to mark the post of the stop plate a different color than the other plates? I don't mean change the color of the plate, only a dab of paint on the post or support as an aide to new shooters.

My prteference is to leave everything the same color, but I need to act in the best interest of the shooters. What do you think?

Ron,

The rules say: "GENERAL MATCH INFORMATION

All targets are painted white and will be re-painted prior to each contestant’s first run on

each course of fire."

That said, helping new shooters is cool but is this really helping? Since you shoot multiple strings in the same COF, you probably should learn what the stop plate is before you finish your very first time through the COF. Why not teach the real game right out of the blocks?

Later,

Chuck

Link to da rules...

[zhunter]

Chuck

While I agree with you about the rules and learning them right outta the box, MAYBE Ron has an idea here that can improve the Steel Challenge game.

Let's not forget, great things are not born, they evolve.

ZH

[Fireant]

I think for local matches it's a great idea. We have had to do that same thing after last month's match where the first squad used the wrong plate as the stop plate. Now we have the whole post painted red. The people that are serious about shooting steel will not even notice and it helps the others out.

[ChuckS]

Chuck

While I agree with you about the rules and learning them right outta the box, MAYBE Ron has an idea here that can improve the Steel Challenge game.

Let's not forget, great things are not born, they evolve.

ZH

Z,

I hear what you are saying! Maybe I am becoming a grumpy old dude (like Tightloop ) but while this could help people learn the game, it would just be making a real Steel Challenge less challenging outside of a training session. <RANT>There seems to be a general trend to make things eaiser rather than person-up and develop the required skills. DirtyPool's no shooter left behind thread covers that subject quite well. </RANT>. To paraphrase from another arena "You game like you train"

Later,

Chuck

PS: I don't do SC very often so I really have no personal stake in the rules or stages. Just an opinion...

[zhunter]

Chuck

Good points.

I am with you, I have shot local SC matches, never had a problem identifying the Stop Plate personally

zh

[BritinUSA]

Good points all round. I think that if you paint the post then some may get used to seeing it and it may throw them off their game as they progress to shooting matches natioanally (in other venues). I think it's better to show them during the briefing and leave the posts a uniform color.

Edited May 21, 2008 by BritinUSA

[WillM]

Understand first that I'm speaking from the experience of having shot exactly ONE Steel Challenge Match. I had a ball. The posts on the stop plates were painted red. I never noticed the red paint after the beep, ie., while I was shooting. Where the red seems to have mattered/helped is for everyone [there were about 60 people shooting, most of them new SC shooters] to set up for their runs and for the scorers/observers to know which one is the stop plate. I would be hard-pressed to say any advantage was gained by having the post painted red, other than to avoid extra time/confusion for everyone setting themselves up for their runs.

I just read the rules and the only thing it says about paint is that they "will be painted white prior to each contestants run". Nowhere does it prohibit the painting of posts or even mention it. White paint before each contestant is mandatory, red paint seems to be optional or at the least, not prohibited.

Also from reading the rules, [in the section titled Power Factor] each stop plate must have a timer attached to it so the plate is stopped by bullet impact with a minimum 120 PF. It also says there "will be a backup timer on each stage which will be used when there is not an impact stoppage." Must and will are mandatory words, so unless the clubs set up impact stop plates backed up by timers they won't be following the rules either and I believe from previous discussions, very few clubs are prepared to hard-wire impact stop sensors at each stage.

The Washington Steel Challenge match was very well run, went very smoothly and no one ever questioned the red posts in my hearing and I never heard anyone say boy I would have shot the wrong plate without the red post. Also, my son won the Junior title which was very cool! Thanks to Patrick and all who put on a great shoot. The targets by MGM were fabulous, check them out, they rang like bells!

[tgibson]

I agree with you 100% Will. To my way of thinking, it is very similar to a normal USPSA match in that you know what sequence you are going to shoot the steel before you even get to the line. When I am shooting a match, I don't need a steel activator plate to be painted red to know that it activates a target. However, I am told that during the walk through and I plan on it from then on. Much like the stop plate being painted red. I don't need to be told before each string that the target with the red post is the stop plate. After I am told the first time, I plan on it from then on.

It is still pretty early for me and I have no idea if this will even make sence to anyone, but it does to me so I am going to post it!!

Adios,

TG

[bgary]

Also, my son won the Junior title which was very cool!

Yeah, and those footsteps you hear behind you? Better get out of the way before you get trampled. As near as I can tell, you *barely* managed to finish ahead of that Junior....

B

[Flexmoney]

We paint the post on our stop plate red. The target, per the rules (and consistency) stays the same color as the other targets.

We don't just shoot the same old SC stages match after match. So, we always get...

Q: Which one is the stop plate??

A: The one with the red post.

Easy.

And, last match, we had a stage that didn't have a designated stop plate (Flyin W, IIRC). So...no red post.

Painting the post red has zero effect on the shooting, from what I have seen over the years. The shooters aren't looking around, while on the clock, to see what color the post is.

[ChuckS]

The target, per the rules (and consistency) stays the same color as the other targets.

Flex,

Which rule? I saw white on the SC website. Did the rules get merged with USPSA?

Later,

Chuck

[EricW]

Ron,

I think virtually all of the newer shooters at my matches preferred the stop plate painted red. If I painted it white, they would find a can of red paint and make it red. I think it should be painted white per the rules, but putting some type of clear marker in front of the stand would be a great compromise. Our stands were rebar, so painting the stand red wouldn't work so well.

FWIW,

E

[Flexmoney]

The target, per the rules (and consistency) stays the same color as the other targets.

Flex,

Which rule? I saw white on the SC website. Did the rules get merged with USPSA?

Later,

Chuck

Chuck,

I am just going off what you quoted.

We run all of our plates white.

Our posts are metal (angle iron). We paint them a good foot or so down below the plate...since they get hit too. (we need/like a witness mark there for scoring clarity)

The post isn't the target.

[Flexmoney]

At one point (as Match Director), I tried to paint the actual stop plate red. It was pointed out to me that some shooters couldn't see it as well...due to being color blind. OK...back to white for the plate.

Marking it in some way just makes sense to me. It doesn't change the shooting one bit. It just makes communication easier.

[ChuckS]

The target, per the rules (and consistency) stays the same color as the other targets.

Flex,

Which rule? I saw white on the SC website. Did the rules get merged with USPSA?

Later,

Chuck

Chuck,

I am just going off what you quoted.

We run all of our plates white.

Our posts are metal (angle iron). We paint them a good foot or so down below the plate...since they get hit too. (we need/like a witness mark there for scoring clarity)

The post isn't the target.

Thanks. Some day I will learn to read all the words..

[Ron Ankeny]

Thanks guys. Our state SC match is only four days away. Looking at registration, I would say this will be the first SC match for about 3/4 of the shooters. I was just wondering if a red post would make the match run more efficiently.

[Jaxshooter]

I run the SC shoot at our club. The post we use are made of rebar and we paint only the post on the stop plate. All of the targets are painted white between each shooter.

[AlamoShooter]

One of the other local clubs paints the post red for the stop plate. & I have made the trip to shoot the world shoot for the past 8 years two guns at + rim fire . I have managed to scratch out a decent finish a few times.

The Red Post in the practice matches has zero effect on my shooting.

I am a traditionalist and if the post was red at the big shoot I would not like it but it would not throw off my game.

Alamo

[warpspeed]

I think the red post idea is fantastic.

When I started shooting SC, I always asked " Now, again, which one is the stop plate? "

On some of them it's easy but on a couple of them I can see a new shooter getting sideways.

I say paint on !

[Catfish]

For ease of communication, I'm all for painting the post red on the stop plate. The local steel club does that here on the steel matches that actually use stop plates and I imagine it would add a bit of time for each squad to ask "which one's the stop plate on this stage?"

[shred]

Local plate matches often paint the stick red, especially going with made-up stages. The plates are always white.

At the "World Championships", even though everybody ought to know which is the stop plate, each has a larger post than the other plates (probably merely to hide the impact switch better, but there it is)

[John Dunn]

Ron, I think the red post is a good idea. Also you should be clear that the match is Sunday and not Saturday, for the dim amongst us.

(I recruited a friend to shoot the match, I told him it was Sat. he told me it was Sun. Registering in advance as one ages becomes a risky proposition!)