On Saturday, May 5th 2012, also known as Cinco de Mayo, I ran an outdoor obstacle race, the “run for your lives” zombie 5K.

It was a blast.  I don’t actually like running that much, since I find it mentally boring, and I don’t like the odds of injuring one’s joints.  Yes, I do other equally (or more) dangerous sports, but I’ve never liked running that much.

But this race was unusual, with obstacles, mud, and zombies chasing you around.  You had a belt with three flags on it, and if they got all three, you were “dead.”  You could still finish the race, but your time wouldn’t be recorded.

I ran with a fun team I organized, consisting of six people total.  Only one of us finished “alive,” and he had one flag.  But we all had a great time.  I’d definitely do this race again.

It’s not a particularly challenging event in terms of fitness, but avoiding zombies adds an element of interval training and agility that you don’t find in the standard 5K race.  And, again, it’s a lot more fun 🙂

The event company posted pictures on their Facebook page, too, if you’re curious.  I don’t have any good pictures myself, since I didn’t carry my iPhone, afraid it’d get destroyed like the rest of my race outfit.