The Zombie Run (Guest Post)

I just completed my first fun run in great style: the Zombie Run! Well, maybe not THE Zombie Run as I believe there are others even just in Windsor. Zombies have become all the rage, it seems! The organizers reported that 4000 people signed up. And it was great fun even though I was in a cranky mood beforehand.

I was on my own, grabbed a lift with a friend who was part of a team of four, but I told them not to wait for me as I didn’t intend to run the whole thing.  Apparently there were 50 zombies on the course, and that seemed accurate.  I’d guess that the “runners” — since many were mostly walking as I did — appeared to be mostly (two-thirds) women, and ages up to 60; same for the zombies.  Most runners were in teams and dressed in imaginative costumes: torn and bloody shirts, various clever names, superheroes, bees, hallowe’en orange & black, and various sorts of tutus. (I would never have imagined wearing a tutu in public, but now I want one!)

I ended up walking with someone who’s team had pulled ahead of her, Kathy. We were both down to one flag from among our original three “health” flags.  We gained a replacement flag at at a water stop in exchange for eating a small amount of pig’s tongue (minced and spiced, much like paté). No fake brains here, real organ meat. I’m not sure what they do about vegetarians! Windsor is a bit backward that way.

The zombies earlier in the route were the most aggressive, and it was a killer having to run uphill through the first group. I fell twice and lost two flags in the first five minutes. There were bottlenecks and muddy spots. But perhaps the worst for me was the burrs! Vicious plants! Evil flora! Burdocks all over my running pants and poking into my skin.

In the end Kathy and I both lost all our health flags as we’d both expected. My favourite part may have been toward the end having the luxury of a close-up view of the zombies performing, trying to grab flags from those who still had them.  However, I loved the final (zombie-free) water slide at the end.

I will enjoy my next run more, and hopefully have a team. Let me know if you want to join me!