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James,

First, I did not get a cover call. However, that was because I saw some really good (and really anal about the rules) shooters get calls that they should not have received. Because of that, I got so conservative that I spent way to much time looking at the ground to see if I was ok on cover. Like others, this was not my first major match and I have a very good idea of what cover should look like (I SO as well). I shot one very deep cover target by looking through the mesh wall at the target rather than getting in position to see the sights to keep from getting a cover call. On the stage where the score keeper was on his knee watching cover, I lined up behind him and watched a few shooters. He gave out cover calls that did not look like violations. Then I watched one shooter be out of cover by close to 12 inches and he did not flag him. What gives with that? One thing I did learn is that I need to not worry about cover calls and shoot the match. If I get them, that is the way it goes. I won't have a mesh wall to look through to see a target if I am in a real world event.

I will be writing to headquarters on this. This game is to help us with skills we can use to defend ourselves. If we spend too much time watching our feet for cover calls, we will be developing bad habits for the real world. If I am allowed to have a part of my upper body out of cover so that I can shoot (where my vital organs are located), why should headquartes be so anal about having an inch or two of my toe out of cover. If I have half of my lower body out, then yes, that is an issue. If we lean over so far (to stay in cover) that we end up falling, how does that help us with real world situations? I have watched Bob Vogel's videos on IDPA and he even advoces leaning so much to stay in cover that he is falling as he is taking his last shots and then jumps out of cover to catch his balance. This is very much contrary to the intent of this game. I realize headquarters may not care but they need to hear from all of us on this rule (and the other crazy rules like not reloading on the move).

Editing for something I forgot. If local matches called cover the way it was done at Cresson, there would soon be very few local matches and almost no new shooters. When I am serving as an SO at club matches and I have a new or fairly new shooter that blows cover, I will be saying cover and then talking with them about what cover looks like just as soon as the range is safe. I have to really question anyone that says they call cover as strickly at club matches as they did at Cresson unless their club is made up of nothing but very experienced shooters and they send all new shooters to some other club to shoot, grow and develop. rant off.