Glossary
Key terms explained in plain language and in the context of practice.
B
D
Draw
Bringing the pistol from the holster into a firing grip and stance. Commonly drilled in three counts: take the grip in the holster, meet both hands at the chest, then press out to the target.
Dry fire
Training with an unloaded firearm: you practise the draw, aiming, the trigger press and reloads without a live round, building the motor skill of shooting at home.
G
H
M
Mag Pouch
A mag pouch is a belt carrier that holds a spare magazine on your weak-hand side for fast reloads. In IPSC it sits under the same 50 mm and hip-line limits as the holster.
Magwell
The opening in the pistol grip that the magazine seats into. Its mouth is what your eyes aim the fresh magazine at during a reload.
P
R
Reload
Changing a spent magazine for a fresh one without stopping the stage. In practical shooting it is a timed move rather than a break: the clock keeps running while you do it.
Reset
The reset is the short click you feel as you let the trigger out after a shot, the point where it re-engages and is ready to fire again. Running each shot from the reset, instead of releasing the trigger fully, keeps a string tight and controlled.
S
Scoring zones
The scoring areas of an IPSC target - Alpha in the center, Charlie around it, and Delta at the edges. The closer to the center you hit, the more points it is worth. The head has its own small Alpha and Charlie.
Sight alignment
The relationship between the front and rear sight as your eye sees it: the front post centered in the rear notch, top edges level, with equal light on both sides - "equal height, equal light".
Sight picture
Proper sight alignment superimposed on the target: aligned sights plus the exact spot where you want the bullet to land.
Splits
The time between two consecutive shots, measured by sound in dry fire. Splits show how well you run the gun once it is up: recovery, transitions from target to target, and how fast you press again.
Stance
The athletic, square shooting position: weight forward on the balls of the feet, knees soft, and both arms extended into an even triangle so the body - not the wrist - absorbs recoil.
Standby
The timer command that comes right before the start signal: you take your ready position on "Standby," then the beep fires at a random moment so you cannot anticipate it.
T
Transition
Moving the gun from one target to the next. In practical shooting it is a skill in its own right: the eyes leave first and lock onto a point on the new target, and the gun arrives behind them.
Trigger Control
Trigger control is pressing the trigger straight back without disturbing the sights. The finger works alone while the hand stays still, so the shot breaks as the result of a smooth press rather than a snatch.