There is a glass door into a drab building opposite the Hamilton. You almost certainly trudged passed it if you were queuing for Polar Express tickets a few weeks back. A quick glance through the panes and it’s obvious the place has seen better days. No one will be rushing to buy naming rights here anytime soon.
A buzzer by the door marked “DURC” is the only sign that this obscenely empty building in the heart of campus still serves a purpose. An abandoned concrete monolith from the 70s, it has a fully equipped rifle range on what feels like the ground floor, a range for Dublin University Rifle Club (DURC) to call home. “Feels like”, because it’s actually quite hard to get your bearings once you’re inside. The range opens from 6.30pm, so by now it’s as dark outside as it will get all night, adding to the disorientation.
DURC Competition Secretary, Gerry Hughes, opened the door for myself and our photographer, and we wound our way into the centre of the building. It is an atmospheric venue. Floorboards creak. Paint flakes off the walls. We pass through an old laboratory, where test tubes and beakers are still set up as if part of a ghostly chemistry experiment. I’m reminded of documentary footage from inside apartment blocks in Chernobyl. This part of the college and the accommodation in Chernobyl were built around the same time, so I suppose that makes sense.
Shortly, we emerged in a well-lit reception area, where the club handle their paperwork and sign up new members. Honestly, the brief walk between the door and the reception area was exhilarating. There is something absurdly exciting about walking out of a lecture theatre at night and into an abandoned building where people are firing rifles. I now know how Edward Norton’s character in Fight Club must have felt all the time.
I’m reminded of documentary footage from inside apartment blocks in Chernobyl. This part of the college and the accommodation in Chernobyl were built around the same time, so I suppose that makes sense
Unlike Fight Club, I signed up for my slot on the DURC website. It’s an incredibly efficient system. The whole process only took three minutes, from creating an account to booking a station, and Lorcan Byrne, one of the range officers on duty, is waiting for us when we arrive. Considering the number of fire safety talks that students in college accommodation are subjected to, I was expecting quite a lengthy spiel before I was allowed anywhere near a rifle. Thankfully (but quite possibly prematurely) I was treated like an adult and within minutes Byrne was showing me how to operate an airsoft rifle.
It’s worth mentioning at this stage that the club used to fire .22 calibre rifles. If it’s your unlucky day, a .22 bullet could kill you. In their old home, the round was stopped by a steel plate downrange, or failing that, the foundations of Pearse Street Station. This close to the Hamilton, without steel plates or train stations to stop the bullets, the club have had to shelve the .22’s, at least until they move into their proposed new range in the Oisín House development.
In the meantime, I asked Byrne, how are they allowed to stay here, with a whole derelict building to themselves?
“I think the college are afraid of us,” he offered with a wry smile.
Much like the website and the club members, in stark contrast to the rest of the building, the firing range itself is bright and accessible. Targets are positioned 10 metres away from the shooting stations. All of the equipment a competitive shooter could ask for is onsite. Members are fitted for shooting jackets, trousers and gloves for support. There are electronic readouts next to the rifle stations so that you can see exactly where your shots are hitting.
There were two other first timers there when I dropped by, and both Hughes and Byrne were incredibly helpful in setting us up, showing us how to load the weapon, and how we should squeeze the trigger, instead of pulling it. Sitting down to start off, I spent the first few shots trying to hold my breath like I used to in Call of Duty, but if there’s one thing worse than missing the target completely, it’s missing completely while wheezing like an asthmatic.
Behind me I heard Byrne exclaim, “You’re a natural!”. He was talking to someone else, but in that moment I could dream
Byrne saw my struggle and offered me a few pointers. My next three shots went straight through the centre of the target and the adrenaline rush, coupled with the sense of achievement, produced a serious high. Behind me I heard Byrne exclaim, “You’re a natural!”. He was talking to someone else, but in that moment I could dream.
Hughes then showed me the basic stance for shooting standing up, a real test of marksmanship. Suddenly the rifle was impossibly heavy, and with every breath my sights were swaying wildly about the room. I fired three shots in the general direction of the far wall and then called it a night. My target slip came with me as a memento, and after I ran out of opportunities to bring it up in conversation, I stuck it up on my fridge.
I enjoyed myself immensely, and from the cloak-and-dagger entrance to the welcoming, professional range officers, it’s easy to see why DURC have over 500 members. As a way to unwind after a day in the library, I can’t think of anything better. Even if you haven’t been in the library, shoot something – a target please – and I promise you’ll feel better afterwards. If you do turn out to be a natural, there are competitions every month in University College Dublin (UCD). Hughes explained that while there won’t be another competition before Christmas, the colours shoot against UCD is on during reading week next semester and the club’s crackshots are working towards a victory there.
Finally, I’d encourage anyone thinking of trying something different in college to give DURC a shot. Not only will it open up a whole new realm of puns for you to exploit, it’s also incredibly enjoyable for the amount of effort you have to expend. Excellent bang for your buck, you might say. Try to get down to the range before the impending move to Oisín House, scheduled for some time in the next three years. Although the new facility will be state of the art and incorporate .22 shooting, there is something cinematic about the club’s current home. It’s like The Good, the Bad and the Ugly meets Terminator. And I’ll be back.
