Rules

1.1.0 An ARA match event consists of a minimum of two competitors, shooting from two to six targets per day, at ARA affiliated and Sanctioned Clubs throughout the United States and Canada.

1.2.0 All match events are either part of various Club activities or of Tournaments staged at many of those same Clubs. All events scheduled and the results of those events are listed on the ARA website http://ara.benchrest.net.

2.0.0 ARA Competitive Season

2.1.0 The Official Competitive Outdoor Season will be each calendar year, January 1^st through November 30^th.

2.2.0 The Official Competitive Indoor Season will be for 4 months beginning December 1^st and ending March 31^st.

3.0.0 Sanctioned Clubs

3.1.0 Each affiliated club shall pay an annual fee of $20 to ARA, Inc., as a Club Sanctioning Fee, in order to hold Officially Sanctioned ARA match events.

3.2.0 The Match Director shall make application to the ARA Business Office before any sanctioned events are held at the Club.

3.2.1 Each Club must have at least five benches, of similar, sturdy construction, to be eligible to hold Officially Sanctioned ARA match events.

3.2.2 Each Sanctioned Club must host events during each season consisting of a minimum of eight targets. There is no maximum limit as to how many targets a Club can schedule.

3.2.3 Each Sanctioned Club may host only one event per class per day, and the events may not run concurrently.

3.3.0 Each new competitive season, at least 30 days prior to the first match of the season, the Match Director for each Sanctioned Club shall send in a match schedule to the ARA Business Office. This will include the dates and starting times for matches held at their club, along with the number of individual targets to be shot on each date.

3.3.1 This match schedule may be amended from time to time, including the addition or deletion of match events and/or targets to be shot at each, so long as at least 30 days notice is given to the ARA Business Office.

3.4.0 However, there may arise situations where a 30-day advance notice is not possible. When potentially dangerous weather conditions arise, or are predicted by the National Weather Service within 24 hours of any planned event that any prudent person would consider unsafe, and that could pose a possible danger to participants, it is the Match Director’s duty to contact the ARA Business Office as soon as possible with a request for re-scheduling. Then, ARA would post a notice on the Official ARA website to that effect so as to notify any expected competitors. The Match Director should also make every effort to notify anyone he knows that might be planning to attend.

3.5.0 All scheduling information may be viewed on the ARA website (http://ara.benchrest.net).

3.6.0 A single range location may function as two separate ARA Sanctioned Clubs. The separate Club must be Sanctioned, and have a different Match Director and Club name.

3.6.1 A range shall be defined as a physical location with at least five benches, of similar,

3.7.0 Matches may be held on any day of the week, during either day or night.

3.7.1 Matches may consist of up to six targets per day. The term "match" shall be defined as a single event of from two to six targets, scheduled at a Sanctioned Club.

3.7.2 If more competitor/participants enter a match event than there are benches available, additional relays should be formed to accommodate those competitors. An attempt should be made to equalize the number of competitors on each relay.

3.7.3 The need for, and use of additional relays is at the discretion of the host clubs Match Director.

3.8.0 Covered or enclosed shooting areas are acceptable, and these structures will be classified as “outdoor’ or “indoor”.

3.8.1 "Outdoor" as defined for ARA purposes is: the entire flight of the bullet must be outdoors, from muzzle to target, and entirely subject to the prevailing weather conditions.

3.8.2 “Indoor” as defined for ARA purposes is: the entire flight of the bullet must be indoors, from muzzle to target.

3.9.0 All Match Directors are required to have a copy of these official ARA Rules available at all ARA sanctioned events.

3.10.0 All Mach Directors are required to have an official ARA scoring plug that has a diameter of .224 as well as a magnifier of at least 8X power.

3.11.0 All Sporter sanctioned clubs are required to have a set of scales readily available to the competitors along with a verified check weight to verify the scales are accurate. The sporter clubs are also required to have an official ‘Sporter Template’ to determine stock width and convexity.

4.0.0 Match Fees

4.1.0 The Match Director shall send a fee of $1.00 per target per competitor to the ARA Business Office within 10 days of the conclusion of the event along with a legible copy of the Match Report. It is also permissible to e-mail the match report to the ARA Business Office.

4.1.1 Allowance of an additional 5 days will be added for the report to travel through the mail, but the actual postmark must be within the 10 day period following the match for it to be considered an officially sanctioned event.

4.1.2 Any report that is not RECEIVED at the Business Office within the 15 day time period may be disqualified. If so, all scores, aggregates and potential Record Targets from the event will NOT be allowed UNLESS proof of extenuating circumstances are presented OR if either a phone call or email is sent to the Business Office within the 15 day period, adequately explaining the reason for the delay.

4.1.3 The Match Director bears the full responsibility to verify that all reports are sent to the Business Office in order to be received within the allowed timeframe.

5.0.0 Junior Competitors

5.1.0 Any youth age 7 to 17 years of age as of January 1 of a current competitive season is considered a Junior Competitor for that season.

5.2.0 It is the responsibility of the Match Director to verify and provide the date of birth of Juniors, and to indicate on the Match Report if a Junior is participating. Juniors are to be identified on the Match Report with an asterisk (*)after the end of their name.

5.3.0 Juniors must be capable of loading, unloading, aiming and safely manipulating their own rifles and equipment without assistance. They may, however, receive assistance in setting up the equipment on the bench, and when they have an equipment malfunction, but during sanctioned events, they must aim, load and fire their own rifles without assistance or coaching.

5.4.0 All target fees normally sent to the ARA Business Office are waived for Junior competitors.

5.4.1 While not mandatory, Match Directors are encouraged to waive or reduce the entry fees for all Junior competitors.

5.5.0 A Tournament will be held each year for Junior competitors. Registration forms will be printed in the ARA News, beginning in May of each competitive season. Upon receiving a completed registration form from interested competitors, an official Junior Recognition Tournament Score Sheet will be mailed to the Match Director identified on the Registration Form.

5.5.2 Juniors must shoot three consecutive targets at a regularly scheduled ARA event. These scores will count for the Club Match or the Tournament at which they are shot, in addition to the Junior Recognition Tournament.

5.5.3 The Match Director is responsible for completing the Junior Recognition Tournament Score Sheet and mailing it to the ARA Business Office along with the Club Match Report.

5.5.4 All targets must be shot and Score Sheets mailed to the ARA Business Office by August 1^st. ARA will sponsor awards for the top finishers as well as individual participant awards.

6.0.0 Ammunition

6.0.0 Any brand of factory loaded .22 caliber Long Rifle ammunition may be used. It must be available for sale over-the-counter to any individual and consist of the original, unaltered factory cartridge case, powder and projectile.

6.1.0 No hand loads are allowed and there shall be no removal, replacement or addition to factory lubrication whether accomplished by dipping into various liquids, removing existing lubes or adding new lubes. Simply stated, the alteration, in ANY MANNER, of factory ammunition used in ARA competition is NOT allowed.

7.0.0 Targets and Target Distance

7.0.0 An ARA target consists of 25 record bulls, upon which one shot per bull is shot for score. The top row of the target, above the record portion, provides three sighter bulls that are the only Official Sighters. Other sighters are available on the bottom portion of the target, if needed.

7.0.1 Only official ARA targets shall be used in an ARA sanctioned match.

7.0.2 No reproduction of the official ARA target is permitted without Written consent from the ARA Business Office. 7.0.3 All targets used in any sanctioned match must be provided by the Match Director. A competitor may not supply the targets for

8.0.0 Classes

8.1.0 ARA shall be divided into 4 Classes: ARA (Unlimited) Outdoor, Sporter Outdoor, ARA

8.2.0 All records,Hall of Fame, Club Championships, A-Line and Aggregate Championships will be kept separate for each Class.

9.0.0 ARA (Unlimited) Class

9.1.2 There are no weight limits, no classes, and no dimensional restrictions to barrels,

9.2.0 Rests

9.2.1 Any rest may be used to shoot from the bench, so long as any such rest prevents

10.0.0-- Sporter Class

10.2.8 Sporter Template: Convexity and stock width will be determined by placing the stock into the Sporter Template. The stock shall be placed into the template in a manner that the bottom of the stock will touch the bottom of the template. The bottom of the stock shall not come into full contact with the bottom of the cut out in the template. If the stock does come into full contact with the template, the stock is not convex and therefore illegal. If the stock will not fit into the template, the stock width is greater than 2.25” and therefore illegal. ‘Sporter Templates’ are available from ARA.

11.0.0 Match Sign-In, Drawing for Benches, Rifle Certification

11.1.0 Each Match Director shall hold a mandatory drawing for each competitor’s bench placement.

11.1.1 Each club shall have 2 bags with numbered chips placed in them. One bag will be blue and contain chips with corresponding bench number. One bag will be red and contain chips with the corresponding relay number. Blue for Bench and Red for Relay. The bags and chips are available from the ARA business office.

11.1.2 Each competitor shall draw 1 chip from the blue bag and 1 chip from the red bag (if more than 1 relay) to determine bench placement.

11.2.0 No competitor is allowed to compete in the same event by entering two or more times, regardless of the number of relays available.

11.3.0 Each competitor needs to accurately complete the Sign-In Sheet, including the last four digits of his/her Social Security Number, plus the initials of his/her name. (Example: 1234MGL). This number becomes his/her official ARA statistical number, which is needed for maintenance of all statistical computer database records.

11.3.1 It is imperative that competitors sign-in consistently with the same numbers and initials each time or face the possibility that their scores may be improperly entered into the ARA database. If a competitor is new to a range, please check the competitors ARA ID card to ensure the proper name and ARA number is used.

11.3.2 If a competitor has never competed in an ARA event, the match director shall have the new competitor fill out the ‘New Competitor’ form and the match director will return that to the ARA business office.

11.4.0 Sporter Class Certification: The match director and/or scoring team are to judge the competitors equipment to determine if they meet the ARA rule requirements described in rule 10. Scales and an ARA Sporter Template are to be readily available to any competitor to check his/her equipment.

11.4.1 At a minimum, the top overall finisher and each target winner of a Club Sporter Match must be certified. This may be done prior to the match, but on the same day as the match or immediately following the conclusion of the match. At the discretion of the Match Director, the Match Director may require that all equipment be certified at a Club Match. All equipment must be certified at any Club, State, or National Tournament.

11.4.2 Upon certification of a rifle, an ARA Certified sticker that has been dated and initialed by the judge is to be placed on the scope of said rifle in an area that is easily viewable.

12.0.0 Bench Rotation

12.1.0 The object of bench rotation is to rotate an equal number of benches between each target so that each competitor will end up on or very near his beginning bench. This allows competitors to experience all possible shooting conditions from one side of the range to the other and to provide that no obvious advantage or disadvantage shall be given any competitor by shooting from the same bench the entire event.

12.2.0 Polled at Club Matches and Tournaments: The Host Club’s Match Director will poll all competitors at Sign-In to determine if they prefer to rotate benches following each individual target.

12.2.1 If a majority of the competitors request bench rotation, then bench rotation shall be observed for each target fired at that event.

12.2.2 In case of a tie vote, the Match Director will decide by the flip of a coin to determine if rotation is to be observed or not.

12.2.3 Bench rotation will consist of rotating benches to the right after each target, and the Match Director will determine how many benches to rotate.

12.3.2 If there are competitors with obvious physical limitations for which bench rotation would cause undue hardship, the Match Director may offer them the option of remaining at their first bench for the entire event, with the rest of the field rotating around them.

12.4.0 Mandatory At the National Championship Tournament: Bench rotation is mandatory, and the Host Club’s Match Director will notify each competitor at Sign-In how many benches to rotate following each individual target.

13.0.0 Firing Period

13.1.0 A maximum of 20 minutes shall be allowed to complete each 25 shot target for any class.

13.2.0 The command to begin shooting shall be: "You have 20 minutes to complete your firing - You may insert your bolts - You may begin NOW!" at which point the Match Director starts the official timer.

13.2.1 Time-remaining warnings should be given at five minutes, two minutes and one minute remaining.

13.2.2 Upon completion of the firing period, the command shall be, "CEASE FIRE! CEASE FIRE! All competitors remove the bolts from your rifles. Step back from your bench and make the range safe."

13.2.3 At the discretion of the Match Director, any competitor who flagrantly fires after the "Cease Fire" order, shall have a penalty of 100 points deducted from his/her score on that particular target.

13.3.0 Once the Match Director has determined that the range is safe, he may then direct the designated target retriever(s) downrange.

14.0.0 Crossfires/Mechanical Failure DNF

14.1.0 Before firing any shots into the Record portion of the target, each competitor shall fire at least one shot into any of the three Official Sighter Target squares in the heading portion of the target. If each competitor begins in this manner, it can quickly be determined whether or not he is sighted in on his designated target. The competitor will either see other shots already on the target that he did not place there and know that he is lined up on the wrong target, or if he is the first to fire a shot on someone else’s target, the person upon whose target is being cross-fired will notify him that he is on the wrong target before any shots are fired onto the record portion of any targets.

14.1.1 If a crossfire should still occur, immediately report the shot or shots to the Match Director.

14.1.2 He will note the placement of the shot and the scoring box number. Crossfire shots will not count for or against the offended party. Scoring of the offended competitor’s target will be done by ignoring the bullet hole or holes not shot by him. The competitor will shoot that target box as if the bullet hole(s) were not there.

14.1.3 Immediately upon the conclusion of that relay, the Match Director should notify the scoring team which shots to score and which to ignore.

14.2.0 No penalty shall be assessed the offender unless it can be determined that the crossfire shot was intentional. In that event, and at the Match Director’s discretion, the offender may be disqualified for the remainder of that match event and a zero score shall be calculated into the aggregate for the remaining targets of that event.

14.3.0 If, during the routine examination of any target by the scoring team, a competitor’s target is discovered that has no sighter shot placed into the Sighter portion of the target, as stated above, a friendly and private notice of the Sighter Rule shall be made to the competitor by the Match Director.

14.3.1 No penalty or punitive action need be taken against the competitor unless he continues to ignore the rule.

14.4.0 Mechanical Failure/DNF

14.4.0 In the event of a mechanical failure of a competitor’s rifle or equipment which prevents the competitor from placing a scoring shot into each of the 25 record scoring squares, the partial target shall be scored by the scoring team.

14.4.1 Whatever partial or incomplete score is the result shall be entered as part of his/her aggregate on that particular target.

14.4.0 Rifle Change: Nothing shall prevent the competitor from using another rifle, either his own or a borrowed one, to complete any unfinished target, so long as enough time remains, and the replacement process does not disturb the adjoining competitors who may still be in the process of completing their own targets. All due respect shall be paid these adjoining competitors so as to prevent jeopardizing their efforts to complete their targets without distraction.

15.0.0 Target for Record

15.1.0 Any target that a competitor places upon the target frame shall be scored and calculated into his/her aggregate, regardless of whether or not the competitor shoots any shots into it. Once it is attached to the frame, it becomes a record target for which each competitor is responsible and which counts into his/her aggregate and overall Standings.

15.2.0 Any target that blows down before its completion by the competitor shall be scored based upon the values of all shots placed on that target before it blew down. In the event a target is blown away and is lost, it must be scored as a zero. In either case, as with scoring in a mechanical failure, these scores must also be counted in the competitor’s match and seasonal aggregate.

15.2.1 It is the responsibility of each competitor to properly and securely affix his or her own target on the target backer.

15.2.2 It is the responsibility of the Match Director to provide suitable, stable target backers upon which competitors may securely attach their targets. If the competitor is having difficulty securely attaching his target to the backer, he should ask the Match Director to replace it with a new one.

15.2.3 In the event a target frame or backer is blown down, please refer to rule 27.0.0

15.3.0 If an event is stated to be a four-target event, then each competitor is expected to complete all four targets. Should a competitor, for any reason, fail to complete all targets on the schedule, a zero must be included in his or her score for each unshot target and the total of all those scores divided by the total number of targets in the event, or in this example, four.

15.3.1 If a competitor completes targets one through three, but fails to complete target four, calculations to determine his or her Aggregate score might look like this, with aggregates always carried out to four decimal places:

16.0.0 Scoring of Targets

16.0.0 Scoring rings with various values are included within each scoring box, and the values of shots in those boxes are 100 points, 50 points, 25 points, 10 points and 0 points.

16.0.1 Scoring is based on the worst edge scoring method. A bullet hole that breaks a line is given the lower value. If in doubt, review the Scoring Example on the upper left corner of the target.

16.0.2 A scoring plug shall be used to determine the value of any shots that are not obvious in value. The scoring plug MUST measure .224 in diameter. For purposes of standardization, ARA requires use of the official ARA plug along with a separate Waltex (or similar) magnifier of 8X or more. The plug and magnifier are available from the ARA Business Office.

16.0.3 It is the responsibility of every Match Director to provide each of these devices to his Scoring Team.

16.1.0 Scoring Team: The Match Director shall appoint a Scoring Team. It shall consist of at least one person to plug the target and at least two others to do preliminary scoring. These two shall also assist the plugger in deciding any close shots. In large matches, more than one Scoring Team may be formed. An electronic scoring device may be used, but only those that are approved by the ARA. Those approved electronic scoring devices will be listed on the ARA website.

16.1.1 The names of the members of the scoring team or teams must be submitted along with the Match Report and Match Fees that are sent to the Business Office following the conclusion of each event.

16.1.2 If competitors are members of the scoring team, the competitor is not allowed to score his/her own target. If a situation arises that would require a competitor to make a ruling on his/her own target, the match director should appoint an alternate to make the ruling in the competitors place.

16.2.0 Target Retrieval: The Match Director shall appoint one person or a team of persons to retrieve the targets after completion of each firing period. Only the designated target retriever(s) shall handle fired, unscored targets, placing them in a secure location until the scoring team is ready to begin.

16.3.0 Preliminary scoring of targets should be done to determine values in each separate scoring box. Values for all obvious shots shall be written in each box, while all close shots must be marked with a colored marker or a large “P” to alert the "plugger" which shots to examine and plug.

16.3.1 The definition of a "close shot" is any bullet hole that TOUCHES or APPEARS TO TOUCH the adjacent scoring ring.

16.3.2 The plugger shall then plug and score those shots with the required ARA plug and magnifier, marking the value of the shot in the scoring box and adding a "P" adjacent to the score along with his/her initials, indicating that it was plugged, and by whom.

16.3.3 If after close examination, the shot is too close to call alone, the plugger shall call upon the scoring team members to review the bullet hole. All three scoring team members shall be offered the opportunity to vote on its value. A majority vote shall determine the value of the plugged shot. Each member shall look at the plugged shot, but do not reveal their decision until the voting time. After each member has viewed the plugged shot, the three members of the scoring team should simultaneously reveal their decision. Their vote is cast with an ‘In’ or ‘Out’ chip. If this chip is not available, a coin can be used with ‘Heads’ meaning the shot is ‘In’ or ‘Tails’ the shot is ‘Out’.

16.3.4 Each member of the scoring team that reviews a plugged bullet hole shall place his/her initials in the scoring box adjacent to the agreed upon score.

16.4.0 Any shot outside the largest scoring ring, but within the scoring box, is scored zero, the same as any unshot scoring box.

16.5.1 If a malfunction should occur during a match and a shot enters any of the empty official scoring boxes, DO NOT fire another shot into that scoring box. You must accept the score for that misplaced shot.

16.5.2 A malfunctioning shot that falls into a scoring box that has already been shot will be scored as a zero for that scoring box.

16.6.0 Any shot, which falls between scoring boxes will be considered a sighter and will not count against the competitor.

16.6.1 Shots that break the target box line will be counted as a zero for that target box.

16.7.0 It is the job of the person who totals the scores to scan each target to determine that correct values have been attributed to each shot.

16.7.1 If the reviewer should find any incorrect values, whether done by inadvertently writing an improper value in that box, or by an obvious error, it shall be brought to the attention of the person who made the error and it shall then be corrected.

16.8.0 Only those on the scoring team shall be allowed in the immediate area where scoring is taking place.

16.8.1 Otherwise, the targets shall not be viewed or handled by anyone other than the target handler or scoring team, for any reason, until after the Official Scoring Team completes the entire scoring procedure for all targets in the event.

16.9.0 The targets, after the Scoring Team has completed their scoring, may be posted on a secure wall or other place for viewing by all competitors.

16.9.1 However, under no circumstances shall anyone, other than a member of the official Scoring Team, remove a target from its place of viewing before being officially given the targets for review, or place a scoring plug into or a magnifier over any bullet hole, or manipulate or attempt to alter any bullet hole on the target in any way at any time.

16.9.2 Anyone, other than a member of the official Scoring Team, who places a plug into a displayed target, or manipulates or attempts to alter any bullet hole on the target in any way at any time shall be DISQUALIFIED from that event and a score of ZERO entered as his total score for the event.

16.9.3 Questions regarding the validity of scoring values placed on a competitor’s OWN TARGET may be referred to the Match Director by the competitor, who may chose to reassess the value of the shot in question.

16.9.4 However, OBVIOUS errors on ANY target may be brought to the attention of the Match Director for review.

17.0.0 Protesting Target Scores

17.0.0 After all targets have been scored, and upon the conclusion of the final match, all targets shall be made available for inspection by the competitors.

17.0.1 The competitor shall have two minutes per target to determine that scoring and mathematical calculations were completed in an accurate manner.

17.0.2 Any errors discovered after the two minute per target review period has expired shall stand as marked, right or wrong.

17.1.0 There shall be no challenges allowed except on the target of the competitor BY the competitor.

17.2.0 Any scored value given to a plugged shot marked with a "P" and initialed by only one member of the scoring team, indicating it was not reviewed by 2 or more members of the three-person scoring team, may be challenged by the competitor, on HIS target only.

17.2.1 The Match Director shall direct the scoring team to review that shot for possible revision.

17.3.0 All plugged holes that have passed the review of the scoring team that are marked with a "P" and the initials of 2 or 3 of the scoring team members shall stand as marked and are not subject to change or challenge.

17.4.0 Any 2500 target qualifies as a National Record Target and the guidelines for sending a Record Target to the ARA Business Office are explained in Rule 19, and should be carefully followed.

18.0.0. Tie Scores

18.0.0 In the event of a tie score on an individual target, the winner shall be determined by comparing the targets of the tied competitors and, beginning with Scoring Box 1, the competitor with the highest score for that box shall be the winner.

18.0.1 If still tied, continue comparing shots from box to box in numerical order, until the tie is broken.

18.0.2 It is the Match Director’s responsibility to indicate which competitor won the tie, and so indicate on his Match Report form.

18.1.0 Aggregate ties are to be broken by determining the highest scores shot by the tied competitors on an individual target comprising the aggregate. If still tied, proceed to the next highest target and so on until resolved.

18.1.1 If all targets are tied, use the method above, on each competitor’s highest scoring target, by reviewing each Scoring Box, until resolved.

19.0.0 National and State Record High Score Targets

19.0.0 Potential National record targets (2500) must be sent to the ARA Business Office by the Match Director of the Club at which the target was shot and must be postmarked no later than 10 days from the date of the event. He MUST use either the US Postal Service, UPS, FedEx or similar conveyance which provides a tracking number, allowing the package to be verifiably tracked from point of origin to point of destination.

19.0.1 Do NOT fold targets. Ship in either a box of appropriate size or rolled up in a tube.

19.1.0 Once received, the ARA Target Certification Committee will verify scoring, plugging and mathematical computations.

19.2.0 All potential National record targets must be signed and witnessed on the non-record front portion of the target by the competitor, the Match Director and the scoring committee, and on the reverse side of the target with the Club name, competitor name, and date the target was shot.

19.3.0 Immediately following the conclusion of the event, any competitor who wishes to have his target sent in for review as a potential record target must immediately give the target to the Match Director to forward to the ARA Business Office in the manner described above.

19.3.1 A potential record target that leaves the range in the possession of anyone other than the Match Director will not be eligible for consideration as a record target.

20.0.0 Match Points and Awarding of Points

20.0.0 Match Points are “value added” points based on the number of targets fired in a match. Each target is valued at one point

20.0.1 A six target match would have a total target value of six points, a four target match a value of 4, etc.

20.0.2 Total match points are based upon the number of competitors. If eleven competitors are entered in a four- target match the number of match points are multiplied by entries or 11 x 4 = 44 match points.

20.1.0 Match Points are awarded to each competitor based upon his or her place of finish, determined by averaging his or her scores from ALL targets on the schedule of the host Club for that particular event.

20.1.1 If, for instance, a Club schedules a four-target event, scores for each individual competitor are added together, divided by the number of targets scheduled for the Club on that date, and an average or aggregate established. The highest aggregate score is the winner for the event.

20.1.2 If there are eleven competitors that enter a four-target event, the maximum number of Match Points that the winner will earn amount to 44. Second place finisher would earn 40, third place 36 and on down to eleventh place which would earn four.

20.2.1 If there are 10 competitors in a six-target match the match points would total 60, but tournaments are double points so this value would be 120. They are awarded the same as a regular match.

21.0.0 Club Championship

21.0.0 Each Sanctioned Club must host events during each annual season consisting of a minimum of eight targets in each class that a championship is to be offered.

21.1.0 The Club Champion for each class must have competed in at least 1/2, or 50% of the number of Officially Sanctioned match events in said class recognized by ARA at that particular club before the Club Championship title for said class can be confirmed and awarded to the winning competitor.

21.2.0 In the event of a tie, the competitor with the highest score shot on any individual target fired

during the season at that particular club shall be declared the winner. If still tied, then proceed to the 2^nd highest target and so on until the tie is broken.

21.3.1 Club Champion is determined by ranking the club competitors based solely on

21.4.1 – Sporter Club Champion is determined by ranking the club competitors based solely on AGG+POINTS earned from the Sporter Class competition at that club.

22.0.0 Tournament Competition

22.0.0 ARA Clubs may host one Unlimited and one Sporter tournament event during a regulation season.

22.2.0 Each competitor is expected to complete ALL scheduled targets. A six-target event would contain score totals for six targets, divided by six to determine the aggregate.

22.2.1 Should a competitor, for any reason, fail to complete ALL targets on the schedule, a zero must be included in his or her score for each unshot target and the total of all those scores divided by the total number of targets in the event to determine his or her Aggregate.

22.2.2 In this example of a six-target Tournament, if a competitor completes targets one through five, but fails to complete target six, calculations for his or her Aggregate score might look like this:

1850 + 1925 + 2125 + 1775 + 1660 + 0 = 9335 points
divided by 6 targets = 1555.8333 Aggregate

22.3.0 Sanctioned tournaments will earn double Match Points, and are included in the National A/Line and State calculations as well as the Club Championship for their respective Class.

23.0.0 State Championship Tournaments

23.0.0 Sanctioned ARA Clubs within any given state may host a State Championship Tournament in the Unlimited Class and/or the Sporter Class. Application must be made with the ARA Business Office for approval to host a State Tournament.

23.1.0 Only one State Tournament is allowed per state per class during a competitive season. This tournament may be held in addition to a Club’s regularly scheduled tournament, but each must be a separate event.

23.2.0 State Tournaments shall consist of six targets and be a one-day event.

23.3.0 Sanctioned state tournaments will earn double Match Points, and are included in the National A/Line and State calculations as well as the Club Championship for their respective class.

24.0.0 The National Championship Tournament

24.0.0 One Officially Sanctioned National Championship per class (Unlimited Outdoor, Unlimited Indoor, Sporter Outdoor, Sporter Indoor) match will be held each year and is referred to as the "ARA Nationals."

23.0.1 The traditional date for the ARA Nationals for the Outdoor Unlimited Class is Labor Day weekend.

24.1.0 The ARA Nationals for any class shall be a "stand alone" competition and the scores will not be counted towards the Club Championship, State Championship, A-Line, or Aggregate Championship. The National Tournament Champion will be the winner whose aggregate score is higher than any other competitor.

24.2.0 The format will consist of eight targets over a two-day period for Outdoor Competition and 6-8 targets over 1-2 days for an Indoor competition.

24.3.0 The first relay on the first day shall become the last relay on the second day and vice-versa.

24.4.0 Bids for the locations of these matches shall be made through the ARA Business Office at the beginning of each shooting season.

23.4.1 Any club wishing to host the ARA Nationals at their range must be capable of handling a significant number of competitors comfortably.

24.5.0 No Club or Tournament events for the respected division shall be allowed to be scheduled or held on the same weekend as that division’s annual ARA Nationals.

25.0.0 A/Line Calculations

25.1.0 The A/Line is the ARA method of ranking each competitor on a National basis for the

Unlimited and Sporter Classes. Each class will be kept independent from the other.

26.0.0 National A/Line, Aggregate, and State Championships

26.1.0 At the conclusion of each competitive season, the ARA National A/Line, ARA National Aggregate, and ARA State Champions will be recognized for each respective Class. The ARA National A/Line and State Champions for each class will have demonstrated their abilities to put together the highest total Agg/Points during an entire season of competition in their respective class.

26.1.1 To qualify for the Outdoor ARA National A/Line Championship and Aggregate Championship, a competitor must have completed at least 40 targets during the season in that particular class. This total may be comprised of any combination of Club events and Tournament events but must include at least two Tournaments.

26.1.2 To qualify for the Indoor ARA National A/Line Championship and Aggregate Championship, a competitor must have completed at least 20 targets during the season in that particular class. This total may be comprised of any combination of Club events and Tournament events but must include at least two Tournaments.

26.1.3 The annual National Championship Tournament scores will NOT be calculated in the National A/Line Rankings nor the National Aggregate rankings.

26.1.4 The Unlimited Class and Sporter Class championships will be kept separate. Only scores earned from each respective class will be calculated toward any championship in said class. Unlimited class scores will not be calculated towards Sporter class championships, and Sporter class scores will not be calculated towards Unlimited class championships.

26.2.0 A State Champion must have completed at least 20 targets in the state and in the class in which he or she seeks a championship title. If a state has less than 20 targets available at clubs within that state, the Champion must have completed at least 50% of the total scheduled targets available within that state in that class.

26.3.1 Unlimited State Champion is determined by ranking the state competitors based solely on AGG+POINTS earned from the Unlimited Class competition in that state.

26.4.1 Sporter State Champion is determined by ranking the state competitors based solely on AGG+POINTS earned from the Sporter Class competition in that state.

27.0.0 Statistical Records

27.1.0 ALL scores from sanctioned Club and Tournament events are maintained by ARA. The following records are recognized by ARA for each class:

· National A/Line Ranking - includes ALL competitors nationwide. Ranked by A/Line Formula. Outdoor and Indoor.

· National Aggregate Ranking - includes ALL competitors nationwide. Ranked by Aggregate only. Outdoor and Indoor.

· Junior Ranking - includes ALL Junior competitors nationwide. Ranked by AGG+POINTS.

· State Ranking - includes ALL competitors participating at ALL Clubs within each State. Ranked by AGG+POINTS for each state.

· Club Ranking - includes ALL competitors participating at each Club. Ranked by AGG+POINTS for each club.

28.0.0 ARA Hall of Fame

28.1.0 Hall of Fame Points will be kept for each class of ARA, and each class of ARA will be separate.

28.2.0 Entry into the ARA Hall of Fame for each class can be accomplished by earning points, based on the following set to requirements. Earning points is retroactive to the initial ARA 1998 season.

Medal of Honor	100 points
Gold	80 points
Silver	60 points
Bronze	40 points
Honorary	Upon death (Active competitors)
Point System:
A/Line Championship	1st thru 10th place 10 points down to 1 point
Aggregate Championship	1st thru 10th place 10 points down to 1 point
National Championship Tournament	1st thru 10th place 10 points down to 1 point
State Championship Tournament	1^st Place receives 1 point from 2011 forward
Club Championship Tournament	1^st Place receives 1 point from 2011 forward
State Championship	1st thru 3rd place 3 points down to 1 point
Club Championship	1st place = 1 point
Record National Target, including ties	5 points
Record Annual National Raw Aggregate	5 points
Target score of 2400 or higher (non-record targets)	1 point
Annual service as Club Match Director	1 point per year
Attendance at National Championship	1 point per year
Juniors (eligible and active participation)	1 point per year

29.0.0. Emergency Situations

29.1.0 In the event of an emergency, the Match Director shall call an Emergency Cease Fire by loudly announcing for all to hear, "EMERGENCY CEASE FIRE! All competitors remove the bolts from your rifles and step back from the bench."

29.1.1 If an emergency occurs which requires a cease-fire before the completion of the target or the allotted 20-minute firing period, the Match Director shall immediately stop the official timer.

29.1.2 Upon resolution of the Emergency, all participants may then complete any incomplete portion of their target, after the Match Director again declares the "Resume firing" command, and starts the official timer, allowing it to run the remainder of the allotted twenty-minute regulation time, plus an additional two minutes.

29.2.0 Any target frame that is blown down by extraordinary weather or wind conditions, as might be experienced during severe thunderstorm winds, shall be considered an Emergency Situation.

29.2.1 In such a case, it might be considered good judgment by the Match Director to temporarily halt the event. He may use his emergency powers by stopping the official timer and waiting, either for safer conditions to return, under which the event might be resumed, and/or to repair the fallen frame or frames.

29.2.2 No penalty shall be assessed any competitor under these circumstances.

29.3.0 If an extremely dangerous weather situation occurs during an ARA Club event or Tournament, being of sufficient severity or duration that it may possibly endanger any participants at the event, yet prior to completion of the officially published number of targets, it may be necessary for the Match Director to suspend the event for reasons of safety.

29.3.1 If the severe weather situation is of a temporary nature, and sufficient time remains to complete the event following an improvement in the weather, the Match Director should make every attempt to do so. However, if the severe weather conditions persist, and the event must be cancelled prior to completion of the event in its entirety, then the following guidelines should be followed in order to calculate final standings of the Club event or Tournament.

29.3.2 Count only those targets that have been completed. Calculate all aggregates, as in any other event, but based solely on the number of targets completed, not the published number. However, if an event has two or more relays and Relay 1 has completed a complete set of targets more than Relay 2, the Match Director must omit the scores from Relay 1 and score the same number of targets for everyone.

29.3.3 Under these circumstances, no penalty shall be assessed any competitor for an event which is cancelled prior to its completion.

30.0.0 Safety

30.1.0 All safety rules of the club shall be followed at all times by all competitors

30.2.0 Any competitor creating a safety hazard may be asked to leave the range at the Match Directors discretion.

30.3.0 Only rifles on the firing line shall have the bolt installed and only during the designated firing period. Any rifle not on the firing line must have the bolt removed. If the bolt of the rifle is not easily removed, an Open Bolt Indicator must be inserted into the chamber of the rifle to indicate the rifle is Safe.

30.4.0 No person under the influence of alcohol shall be allowed on the firing line either as a competitor or as a visitor during the period that a match is in progress. No consumption of alcoholic beverages shall be allowed by any competitor until all shooting events have been completed for the day and until all rifles have been removed from the benches and placed in a secure area.

31.0.0 General

31.0.0 These Rules supersede all other previously issued Rules and shall be the governing Rules by which all Sanctioned ARA events are conducted.

31.1.0 Anyone who disrupts the proceedings of an orderly match in progress shall not be allowed to continue shooting in any other matches on that day, and if deemed necessary by the Match Director, that person may be asked to leave the range.

31.1.1 In the opinion of the Match Director, and if considered serious enough in nature, the offender may be barred from further competitive events at that range for the remainder of the season.

31.1.2 If the offense is serious enough in nature, the match director may submit a complaint in writing to the ARA business office within 10 days of the incident requesting the offender be barred from competing in any ARA sanctioned events. The complaint will be investigated and considered by the President of the ARA, and a ruling will be made in a reasonable amount of time.

31.2.0 Any individual or Sanctioned Club, which flagrantly breaks any of these published rules, will be subject to disqualification or the loss of their Club Sanction. Any person may submit a complaint in writing to the ARA business office within 10 days of the incident requesting an investigation into said incident. The complaint will be investigated and considered by the President of the ARA, and a ruling will be made in a reasonable amount of time.

31.3.0 Match Directors, or any other interested competitor may contribute suggestions for revisions to the ARA Rules at any time, but all such suggestions must be submitted to the ARA Business Office at least 30 days prior to the beginning of the annual ARA National Championship event.

31.4.1 This will allow the suggestions to be compiled into a logical format for review by the Rules Committee, followed by a vote at an official meeting of all Match Directors present at the annual ARA National Championship event.

1.0.0 What is an ARA Event?