A Look at a Potential IDPA Disqualification

During the dreaded July USPSA Match at Lower Providence Rod and Gun Club, I met a great group of guys. The group, now known as Angrypig Shooting TeamOpens in a new tab., is made up of two adults and two juniors. The guys focus on IDPA and since I’ve made the switch from USPSA during the offseason, I try to squad up with them as often as possible.

It really is impressive to see how much their shooting has improved over the past 6 months, especially the juniors. The guys are humble, quick to offer words of encouragement, and very safety conscious. Like myself, they take advantage of video cameras so that they can analyze their performances.

A video was recently posted on the Angrypig Shooting Team Facebook PageOpens in a new tab. with a question – Should this be a DQ?Opens in a new tab. In the video, Kerry shoots Stage 3 from the December Lower Providence IDPA Match.

Through the magic of video editing, the speed has been reduced dramatically so that the action in question happens nice and slow. I’ve been bouncing back and forth on an answer to the question and I’m not sure if it would be a disqualification.

I was actually playing camera man in this recording. I was standing behind and off to the side with my body turned to square up the shooter in the shot. Because of my location, I think the shooter’s position may be a little distorted.

IDPA doesn’t have a 180 degree rule like USPSA, they utilize muzzle safe points. On this particular stage, there were no markers setup and I’m not sure what happens in that case. Is there a default muzzle safe point or is it a matter of what the Safety Officer deems as safe?

In any case, I think Kerry was right. He is pretty close to breaking the 180 degree plane when the gun clears the holster. I commend him for sharing the video and making an effort to ensure it does not happen again in the future (Despite no one saying a word about it at the match).

What do you think, should the early draw have resulted in a disqualification?

Walt

Hi There, My name is Walt White and as the name of this blog suggests, I am a Pennsylvania resident. In addition to having numerous hobbies that I discuss on my blog - I’m also the father of three little girls and a pitbull.

3 thoughts on “A Look at a Potential IDPA Disqualification

  1. I just watched it. From the video, he doesn’t appear to break the 180 plane. Since there weren’t any muzzle safe point markers, then the only question to ask is if he swept anyone with his muzzle. From what I could see, his muzzle was pointed at the ground until well after he was facing down range, so I’d say no. No DQ.

  2. As you mentioned there is no 180 in IDPA, the pistol was in a safe direction the whole time, I saw NO ISSUES. Watching the video I though we were going to have to estimate 3′ from the video due to an AD. Had you not mentioned DQ it would have never crossed my mind.

  3. There is some discussion going on over on the Angrypig Shooting Team Page (Linked in the original article). One of which has inspired a blog post (I have some writing to do and some video to dig up).

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