SHOOTERS at York Railway Institute Pistol and Rifle Club have trained their sights on success in 2012 following the unveiling of their refurbished range.

The Lord Mayor of York, Coun David Horton, fired the first shot at an official opening after a year-long £8,000 scheme to modernise the club’s York Railway Station base.

The refit is believed to be the first upgrade of the range, housed in a Victorian engine shed, in more than 20 years and now the 80-strong membership can enjoy top quality facilities.

The area behind the targets has been brought up to modern safety standards, while new lighting and shooting booths have been installed.

Club chairman Keith Wood said: “Members are very happy with it and we are very grateful to the Lord Mayor and his Sheriff for coming along to open the range.

“The Lord Mayor got a bull with the first shot and he was presented with the target, which was suitably inscribed.”

The work was completed with money from the York Railway Institute development fund, as well as cash from the pistol and rifle club’s own reserves.

“The whole range was refurbished to the specification laid down by the National Rifle Association, which is the licensing authority,” said Wood.

“They came to see the drawings before we started work and then they examined it afterwards and passed it as being safe for use.”

Wood said the new-style range eliminated the health risk posed by lead dust from spent shells.

“The old style range consisted of ten steel boxes behind the targets and the shells or lead exploded against them and fell to the bottom,” he said.

“That meant traces of lead would escape into the atmosphere, which does pose a health risk.

“Modern ranges use sheets of Linotex at the back of the range and the shots pass through the targets and then get sealed behind, so any lead dust is held within a secure environment.”

He added: “We also put in completely new lighting and constructed new shooting booths, as well as making good the floor.

“It is an old Victorian engine shed and a lot of work has been done to tidy the place up. It looks good and it is a safe environment for people to shoot.

“The lighting is at a higher standard. Whether that makes them hit the bull more often or not is debatable, but they can certainly see the target better.”

Membership of the club – which also has a 100-yard outdoor range at Hessay – comprises men, women and juniors, while their ranks also include disabled shooters.

Wood said: “We always welcome new members. There is a complete programme laid down, with safeguards in place.

“People join on a six-month probation period and if they have done well with the instructors and learned all the safety procedures, they can then become a member.”

Anyone interested in taking up shooting should contact the York Railway Institute secretary on 01904 624383, and their details will be passed on to club officials.