If you choose to run a POSA Street Action Match, the rules and scoring procedures follow. You can add additional rules depending on your club rules and match procedures. Your usual safety rules must also be followed in addition to the POSA Street Action Match rules listed below.

The following rules pertain to the POSA Street Action Shooting format. They may be modified as necessary for your club or range.  Other safety rules and club rules should be added as necessary.

1)The primary rule is NO WHINING.  You are at the match to have fun, learn, and raise money for pediatric cancer research.  Scores are secondary.

2) All stages are shot "blind" -- that is, you will not see the stage prior to shooting it.  There will be a waiting area will be outside each stage.  You will be escorted one at a time into the stage area, and given any additional directions if necessary. If a cold match, you will then load your gun just before the stage begins as directed by the Range Officer.  After shooting, you will stay in the stage area and to help tape and re-set the stage as directed by the range officers. 

Since this is a "blind" match, in order to maintain the spirit and integrity of the match, you must not reveal the content of the stage to any other shooter who has not yet shot it.  Doing so will result in expulsion of both participants (the tattle-tale and the one who listened) without refund of shooting fees and contributions.

3) Clothing/Uniforms 
NON-SWORN CITIZENS - Wear the clothing you would normally wear when you carry. Concealment is mandatory. Any form of concealment garment is fine (overshirt, vest, jacket, etc.) so long as it is something you would wear in public.

POLICE OFFICERS - The match is a soft-clothes match.  That is, it will be shot in ordinary street clothes.  Assume you are going on duty in plain clothes, and have all the normal equipment you should have with you on-duty. A concealment garment is required to be worn if shooting in plain clothes.

NOTE – this rule may be modified to allow uniforms and duty gear for police officers.

4) Equipment
NON-SWORN CITIZENS - Any firearm may be used if it will fit into a "normal" concealed holster. "Normal" means a safe carry holster -- no competition speed holsters.

POLICE OFFICERS - Same as non-sworn citizens for a soft-clothes match.  If wearing a uniform and duty gear, you must use your normal duty equipment.

ALL PARTICIPANTS -- All safeties and de-cockers must be used as per standard safe gun handling.  If so equipped, all retention devices on holsters must be used.  You may have only two spare magazines in addition to the one in your pistol.  If a revolver is your primary firearm, you can carry three speedloaders in addition to the rounds in the revolver. Lasers, so long as they conform to “normal” holsters, may be allowed.

NOTE: you may allow or dis-allow the use of second (back-up) guns, as is your preference. 

You should have with you all of the tactical equipment that constitutes “good practice.” That is, all of the normal equipment that you would (or should) leave your house with if you were armed, or go on duty with. A equipment list is not provided as it may tip you off as to the match scenarios. On the other hand, no exotic equipment — equipment that is unlikely to be part of a normal concealed carry or duty carry kit — will be allowed if it is deemed inappropriate or excessive by the Match Director.  No stage will require the use of any non-normal piece of kit, nor require any excessive amount of equipment.

OPTIONAL: If non-law enforcement personnel will be shooting this match, handcuffs will not be required in any stage.  Other than that concession, there is generally no significant difference between a properly outfitted concealed-carrying private citizen and an on-duty police officer.

5) Safety is a priority! You will be ejected from the match without recourse for safety violations, errant shots, accidental discharges, and for breaking 180 degrees of the starting line.  Penalties for other unsafe gun handling will be at the discretion of the Stage Director or Match Director. If ejected from the match, shooting fees and contributions will not be refunded.

The scoring for the POSA Street Action Match is unlike the scoring an IDPA or IPSC match.  Most stages contain two elements: a shooting element and a tactical lesson element. 

Targets are photo-realistic human figure paper targets with threat/no-threat hand overlays, on which a tactically correct critical hit area is faintly outlined (POSA recommends "Split-Second Decision" targets by "Law Enforcement Targets" – www.letargets.com).  You purposely will not be able to see the outline of the critical hit zone from the shooting position.  To get a score for each target and to consider the target "cleaned", you must place at least three rounds on each threat target, with at least two rounds into the outlined critical hit zone and one shot anywhere on the threat (not the paper target, but the representation of the person threatening you with deadly force.) Shots breaking the line count.

There is no limit on the number of shots you may fire at any target (but you should keep in mind the regulations above for the number of magazines and speedloaders you may carry.)  In general, you may load your magazines or speedloaders as you wish and shoot as many rounds as you like, unless directed otherwise by the stage directions.

You may shoot through concealment to hit a target if, and only if, that would be appropriate for real in the stage situation.  Stage scores are counted in whole targets, and will be the number of threat targets “cleaned” in that stage – that is, threat targets with at least 3 rounds total on the target with at least 2 of those rounds in the outlined critical hit area. If that criteria is not met, the target is scored as a "zero."  The maximum numerical score for each stage is the number of threat targets in that stage, plus the score from the stage tactical lesson, if included (see below.)

Threat targets are indicated by the presence of a weapon affixed to them.  Judgment is highly emphasized in this match.  Every non-threat target shot (the number of shots does not matter) will result in the subtraction of one “cleaned” threat target from your stage score. However, no shooter will receive less than a zero score on any stage.

If a tactical lesson is included in the stage, correctly identifying and performing the tactical lesson portion of a stage is scored as a bonus "cleaned" target. Not performing the tactical lesson correctly will not affect the score. If there is a tactical lesson included, the maximum numerical score for each stage becomes the number of threat targets in that stage plus one for the tactical lesson.

Score sheets should be generic, without the number of possible targets listed so the shooter will not be tipped off ahead of time on how many targets to expect. The score sheet should simply include a name, stage number, a place to write in the number of "cleaned" targets which would include the bonus target for the lesson if included.

To avoid giving shooters visual clues as to whether a target is a threat or non-threat, all non-threat targets should be taped just as if they were threat targets that were hit. Since every non-threat and threat target will have the same number of tapes, the shooter will not be able to determine if a target is a threat or not based on how much tape is on it. If the threat or non-threat overlay of the target is hit repeatedly, replace overlay as needed so it remains clearly visible.

The tactical lesson element of the stage, which often will not involve shooting, may or may not add time to the run.  The time for a any stage is the time it takes to complete the last shot. 

Since missing a threat target may get you killed and hitting an innocent bystander is severely discouraged by the law, judgment, not time, is the prevailing factor in determining the winner. The winner is the shooter who cleaned all threat targets and performed all tactical lessons in the shortest time.

The start timer goes off and as the shooter draws, then, without warning, the lights go out. Lesson: a flashlight is vital and should be carried at all times. If a shooter did not have a light (any many learned a valuable lesson that day) a light was given to them and the stage started again. The bonus point for the lesson was NOT added to the score. If the shooter had a flashlight and used it, a bonus target was added to the score.

On another stage, once the shooter completed the shooting portion of the stage, a spouse/partner (represented by a dummy) had to be removed from a burning car. Shooters were previously told that they must get the person (dummy) out of the car at all costs in order for them to survive. When they got to the car, shooters found that the seatbelt would not unbuckle and that the dummy could not be pulled from the car. The stage ended when the shooter took out a knife to cut the seatbelt and a bonus point was added to the score. If the shooter did not have a knife, the stage ended and the bonus target for the lesson was NOT added to the score. Lesson: like a flashlight, carrying a knife is essential.

Other examples include: Shooters having to drag a heavy bag through part of the stage (simulating dragging a wounded companion to safety), perform empty-hand maneuvers on a martial arts dummy, re-functioning their gun one-handed and weak-handed.  We have caused participants to use guns not their own, to perform first-aid on a dummy, and to have a cell phone (or radio) and actually use it to call for help after the shooting has stopped.

In general, any tactical lesson can be incorporated if it can be done safely, and simulates some reasonable real-life problem related to shooting or a critical event.