Except for the relay format, the biathlete is allowed only five rounds to hit the five targets at each shooting station. The course is laid out so all of the shooting takes place at a central location. The targets themselves are rows of black metal flaps that are 4.5 cm in diameter for the prone shots, and 11.5 cm in diameter for standing shots. Hitting a flap knocks it down, and causes a white cover to flip up, indicating a hit. These vary according to the class.
Many clubs also offer air rifles for beginner or junior biathletes.
Summer Biathlon Formats In Summer Biathlon, skiing is replaced by running. Biathletes still use bolt action .22 rifles with non-optical sights,but the rifles are left in the range rather than carried. There are two formats currently in common use for summer biathlon - Sport and Match. You start off by running a loop, taking five shots prone, running a second loop and then taking five shots standing, and then running a final loop. You will usually have to do a penalty loop of between 50 to 100 m. for every shot missed.