On June 23, 2012, I was able to participate in one of my deepest, darkest fantasies. I ran the zombie-infested 5K in Knightstown, IN and it was everything I dreamed it would be. I was able to participate in a role-play of how I hope the world will end with hundreds of other zombie enthusiasts.

Reed Street Productions created Run For Your Lives, an organization that  holds zombie and obstacle course races across the country. Nerds flock to experience a taste of what the highly anticipated zombie apocalypse might be like.

The point of the race is to stay alive. Participants are given three health flags and they must complete the race with at least one of them to be considered alive at the end of the race.

If you decide to participate, I have put together a few tips you can use to stay alive. Consider sharing them with the people you will run with and formulating a general plan before you begin.

Tips

1)  Go with a group of friends or make friends at the start! People are there to have fun so don’t be afraid to approach them. Groups are incredibly important in this 5K. You are not going to make it alone.

2) Sprint, but let the faster sprinters go ahead of you. The zombies target them and it is easier to dodge the undead while they are distracted.

3) Dodge and twist. Keep your health tags on your back so its easier to swing them away from the zombie’s reach. Apparently, zombies don’t care if you put your tags near your no-no zone and will grab them anyway. Save them, and yourself, some awkward pain.

3) Conserve energy between zombie areas. Trust me, you aren’t making your best 5K time in this race. Walk with your group or jog slowly until you reach a spread of zombies, group up and move forward.

4) The less clothing the better. It gets hot.

The one thing I learned from facing groups of zombies through this wooded 5K is this: without weapons and good vehicles, we are all going to die.

Prepare for the zombie apocalypse.