Rockcastle Zombie 10k Run & Gun
The Zombie 10k Run & Gun Patch. The best symbol of accomplishment they could have given us.
Mere hours after completing my first 5k Run and Gun event at the River Bend Gun club this September, I was so hyped up on adrenaline that evening that I decided to register for the 10k Zombie Run and Gun. This event would take place at the Rockcastle Shooting Center in Park City, KY on November 2nd. Had I waited until the next morning, after the soreness had set in from the RBGC R&G, that probably would have never happened. Had I actually looked at my work schedule first, it definitely wouldn’t have happened. I was set for a ton of travel, and more specifically, airline travel for the next 7-8 weeks and that was going to make it difficult just to stay in shape, let alone go from a 5k to a 10k event and expect to actually perform. Plus, this would leave little time, if any, for shooting practice. While my rifle skills might not suffer too bad, pistol for me is very perishable, so I was a bit concerned about that.
Over the next couple of months, I did what I could, running while on the road, sometimes in my 20lb vest and working out in the mornings, or evenings or whenever time would allow. Truth be told, I regretted signing up for the event as it had just become a huge hassle to try to stay in shape even though this time I had most all of my equipment needs already worked out from the RBGC event. That R&G was detailed here:
https://www.twobluescrews.com/blog/my-very-first-run-and-gun
This time around, I reflected pretty thoroughly on what worked and what didn’t work at my first R&G event. I felt like my gun setup was well sorted. I still ran my trusty Sig P365 with XL frame and my 13.7” carbine dubbed “Joseph”. Details of the carbine were highlighted previously here:
There was nothing that needed changing other than maybe my sling as I just still couldn’t get it tight enough to run as comfortable as I would like. I ordered up an Armageddon Gear Heavy Carbine sling that has the bungee design as I felt that would be a better option. Unfortunately, it didn’t arrive in time, but having used it after the event, I definitely think it is going to be a better choice for me. I like what I am seeing so far.
As for my belt/pouch set up, I only made two real changes. I bought a dedicated Esstac GP pouch to run at the small of my back to only hold my two silicone soft water bottles and moved my Spritius systems GP pouch up front to the 10:30ish position. I knew I would likely need the extra water bottle going from 5k to 10k and my Spiritus pouch being up front would give me easier access to my spare mags and also hopefully prevent them from falling out. At the last event I couldn’t tell if I had it zipped all the way when at my small of back position and I lost mags a couple times. The stage descriptions for this event also outlined you would need a flashlight of some sort, so I put a headlamp in this pouch so I could shoot hands free if need be.
I am pretty sure nothing else is going to fit on this belt.
For ammo/magazines this time, after looking at the stages, I decided on 90 pistol and 100 rifle rounds. That is six 15 round pistol mags, two 30 rd rifle mags, and two 20 round mags. I wanted to have the 20s for the longer range stuff where I may go prone and it also helps me keep my 73 grain long range ammo separated from my run-of-the-mill 55 grain stuff. It hurts to shoot those 73 grainers at 10 yard targets knowing there is no reason to have spent the extra money.
View from the top, or how it would be worn around my waist.
My clothing and shoes stayed the same as well, as they worked perfectly. I did want to add in the addition of gators for this event as there was expected mud and water crossings and considering temps were supposed to be as low as in the high 20’s, I wanted to add the addition of wool sock liners and a wool baselayer shirt. The gators I found were from Altra Running, and the socks were the wool Injinji toe socks liners.
Altra Gaiters
My plan for the event was to stay offsite in a hotel using points, but a buddy on theoutdoorstrader.com forum that ran the event in the past advised against it as I would be driving home covered in mud. I changed my reservation to stay at the lodge at the Rockcastle shooting center. While that decision didn’t prove to matter as it pertained to mud, I am very glad I did as I got to spend time with other ODT’ers as well as chit-chat with others running the event. It is a common area for all participants to eat, sleep, swap stories and also swap equipment if you like, so the experience was well worth the minuscule overnight rate of like $75.
Completely different from the RBGC Run and Gun in which you know a week or two ahead of time what your “launch” time is, at the Zombie 10k, you have to wake up and be downstairs at 6am on race day to get your run time. It might be 7:30am, or it might be 4pm, but everyone finds out at the same time, on the morning of the event. After spending some good times with a couple of buddies from the ODT and getting a good night’s rest, I woke up at 5:30 am to head downstairs to find out my launch time. I got extremely lucky, in my eyes, as I drew a 1:20pm launch time which meant I could not only get in a full breakfast but also meant I didn’t have to run in freezing weather. My phone told me the weather would be 51 degrees when I took off to run, and that was perfect for me as I could run without the wool baselayer top and be comfortable. Not too hot, not too cold. There was to be 104 total participants at this event, which I thought was awesome. The more, the merrier.
The worst part about a late run time is that the anticipation kills you. I ate breakfast and just tried to stay hydrated throughout the day and eat light snacks. I didn’t want a full lunch but I wanted to make sure I had enough in me for energy. My wife made me some peanut butter protein balls and those along with Honey Stinger waffles and Liquid IV drink mix are perfect for this scenario. About 45 minutes before launch time I got all my gear together and headed downstairs to wait for my launch time. The other beautiful thing about staying at the lodge hotel is that the start and finish of the race is 5 ft outside the lobby door. Definitely convenient.
Thirty seconds from launch time you are standing there, fully equipped awaiting your fate and whatever the course and course designer has decided to throw your way. It is one of my favorite moments. A moment of uncertainty, but also a moment where, for a guy like me that lives inside his head nearly 24-7, everything else fades away. It’s hard for me to live in the moment, but a shot timer knows how to make every other unfinished task fade away. Three. Two. One…Go!
I started off running downhill and just working on controlling my run pace so that I was fast enough but still be able to shoot when I actually got to the stages. Most of this event was run in the woods, which at this time of year in Kentucky was beautiful. After roughly 3/4 of a mile, I arrived at stage 1. All stage descriptions, written by the race coordinator below will be in bold.
The very first stage. I always try to get this one under my belt, cleanly. Didn’t exactly work out that way this time. Photo by Lisa Stennett.
Stage 1 - Well Crap
So the apocalypse has happened. You're a ways from home and all you have is your pistol. You need a rifle, and you know just the gangbangers house where to get it. But you never can tell what kind of rifle they're gonna have.
Stage your rifle to the side. On the buzzer, engage only one of the three Mini Mo targets from 10 yards. This target will require you to hit the "bullseye" chest plate, which will raise the head target. You will then shoot the head target, knocking it down and resetting. Reholster your pistol. Run into the barn and to the board matching the target you shot with your pistol. Pick up the rifle behind that board. It is loaded with an unknown amount of ammo. Engage 5 rifle targets. If you run out of rifle ammo, you may draw your pistol and finish the targets. Rifle targets require 1 hit to neutralize with the rifle, 2 hits to neutralize with the pistol.
Required pistol hits - 2
Required rifle hits - 5 from a stage gun
If there is one thing I didn’t learn from my last Run and Gun, it was to familiarize yourself with various weapon systems. Upon the buzzer, I drew my pistol and completed hitting the chest plate and head target in 3 total rounds. I ran into the barn and grabbed the weapon corresponding with the center target that I hit with my pistol. It was an AK-47.
Probably not a big deal to most, but for me, when it comes to weapons, I am an inch deep and a mile wide. What I do know, I know a fair amount. What I don’t know, I know nothing. Well, I know nothing about an AK-47. I messed around trying to get the magazine in, not knowing you had to insert it at an angle and then leverage it rearward to get it to lock. Once I finally got that figured out, I then tried to charge the gun but it wouldn’t charge. I had no idea you had to take the safety off first, charge the gun and then put the safety back on. I fumbled around with this gun for quite some time before I finally got it ready to roll.
The gun was equipped with a TA44 ACOG, which I have owned in the past and once I got on the trigger, I went to work clearing all 5 rifle targets rather quickly with no misses. I was pleased with my shooting on this stage, but I knew the 30-45 seconds or so fumbling with the AK was going to hurt my overall shoot time on the stage. Still, what I really want to do on Stage 1 of these events is to complete it and not time out. I think timing out on Stage 1 would really set a bad tone for the rest of the run, so I felt ok with the result.
Hindsight is 20/20: Know various weapon systems both foreign and domestic. While this has cost me valuable time now in two different run and guns, I think it is highly applicable for them to include these. An end of times scenario will likely present these problems, and you need to have the solutions. I wish I knew how long I fumbled with the AK, but I am going to guess 30-45 seconds. It cost me dearly. I was 65th on Stage 1. A subtraction of just 30 seconds would have put me in the low 20’s. No one is to blame but myself and I am determined to not let a stage weapon ever get me again.
The RO being amused by my lack of AK-47 knowledge. Photo by Lisa Stennett.
I started running through the woods towards Stage Two and followed the ribbons leading down the path you are supposed to take. Stage two was one of the coolest shooting experiences I have ever had. The trail leads you directly to a hole in the ground, in the middle of the woods with a ladder. You are to climb down that ladder and enter into a cave. A real cave. Once you get down inside the narrow halls of the cave and navigate yourself in total darkness using your light, you come upon the start of the shooting stage:
Stage 2 - Toddler Rescue
Zombies are attacking and you've gotta save the little kid. Even if he is ugly. Don't shoot the other people trying to escape though. Murder is still bad.
On the buzzer pick up the simulated toddler and move forward through the cave. You will engage 5 zombie targets one handed. Each target can be neutralized with a single headshot. Hits anywhere else on the target won't do any good. A hit anywhere on a no shoot will cost you 30 seconds to your shoot time. After you have completed the course of fire, return the simulated toddler to his starting position and exit the cave.
Required pistol hits - 5
Upon the buzzer I found myself with the fake, probably 12 lb “toddler” in my left hand, my P365 in my right hand and my headlamp on my head navigating the way through the very narrow cave passageways. Targets would present themselves, either standard cardboard for shoot, or white for no shoot. Attempting to make sure I didnt fall or run into anything due to the darkness and now, smoke from all the shooters before me, I navigated fairly slowly and took my time getting headshots on all the threats. I fired one shot each on all targets until the last one, which was far enough away I couldn’t see my hits in the dark, so I fired 3 there for good measure. Good thing because I only hit that last one once although I don’t know which shot was the good one. After scoring, I made all 5 head shots and got back out of the cave as quickly as possible.
Hindsight is 20/20: I should have advanced through the cave much quicker. I ended up 58th on this stage. I think having the RO behind me following me made me feel like I shouldn’t push the pace for fear of outpacing him and the timer in the darkness. That’s not my problem to worry about, that’s his. If I had to re-shoot it, I would be moving very quickly to the targets and save a fair amount of shoot time with likely the same accuracy result.
If I remember correctly, the run from stage 2 to stage 3 was quite far and I remember arriving to stage 3 pretty winded after going up some steep woody terrain, so I wasn’t upset to see some participants had bottlenecked there and that I would get a wait time of a few minutes. This was the stage I was most worried about after studying the stage descriptions and I wanted to be sharp for it. After a wait time and a chat with one of the RO’s and participants, it was my time to shoot stage 3:
Stage 3 - The Walking(and crawling) Dead
The Walking Dead are bad enough. Did you know that small animals who eat zombie flesh get the virus too? Destroy the human zombie hoard, then take out the zombie rats.
Start in shoot box 1, find and engage all targets with a single hit from your rifle. Move to shoot for 2, repeat. There are 20 hits between the two shoot boxes, the RO will not point out targets and you will decide when you have hit them all. Then, move to shoot box 3, and transition to your pistol. Clear the 10 targets hanging from the stand.
Each rifle.target left not neutralized is a 30 second penalty. Each pistol target left is a 10 second penalty.
This is the only steel target stage with penalties instead of a DNF since you aren't being told how many targets can be engaged from each shoot box. Rifle targets will be 6-10 inch plates ranging from 50-75 yards. Pistol targets will be 2-4 inches at a range of about 7 yards.
Edit: Required rifle hits - 20
Required pistol hits - 10
You are turned 180 degrees at the start of this stage and upon the buzzer you will turn around and see your stage for the first time. I ran down to the first barrel, frantically searching to find as many targets as possible scattered out in the woods. They were hanging, they were standing, they were small to medium sized and different colors. As the stage description states, the RO’s will NOT help you find or locate any targets. Its up to you to find and shoot as many as possible before moving to the 2nd barrel and then on to the pistol stage. Again, you have 3 minutes to complete everything. I shot 7 targets at the first barrel and I could see 2 more turned at a sharp angle, but my thoughts were that I could shoot them more easily from the second barrel.
I ran to the second barrel and engaged 10 targets there and turned back to shoot the two targets I had located at the first barrel. My understanding was that I could not go back to the original barrel, but I didn’t know I couldn’t shoot back at targets in that direction, so I ended up only engaging 17 out of 20 targets. I had found 19 targets total and just did not want to waste any more time looking for the final target. When you are searching for targets under the timer, you lose track of time easily. I am not sure if it stands still or moves at a rapid pace, but time just seems to move in weird ways. I moved to the pistol rack and engaged what amounted to a makeshift plate rack as quickly as possible. I rushed a good bit because I was afraid I had wasted too much time searching for the rifle targets in the woods. I did not shoot my pistol well at all but did complete the stage with time remaining.
Hindsight is 20/20: Not much I could do on this stage other than pay attention to the stage detail a little bit better and likely, next year I will be running with glasses/contacts. I had more problems finding the targets in the woods than I expected. With that being said, only 10 participants found all the targets so I don’t think it was an easy task for anyone. I was 37th on this stage.
There was quick a run to Stage 4.
Stage 4 - Defending Area 51
Just cuz the apocalypse has happened doesn't mean you get to blow off duty. Defend the aliens against the swarm of hipsters, geeks, and other aliennappers.
Start by moving up to the VTAC board. There are 5 pistol targets(Kyle's) ranging from 7-12 yards and 5 rifle targets(Naruto Runners) from 50-75 yards. You must hit one target from each port of the VTAC board, including the barricade on the outside. You can choose which targets to engage first, rifle or pistol, and which ports to shoot that weapon out of. You can only use each port to hit a single target, then must transition to a different port.
Required rifle hits - 5
Required pistol hits - 5
I set my rifle against the VTAC barricade and went to work with my pistol first on the small steel targets, moving from port to port after each hit. For my standards, I shot the pistol portion of this stage very poorly. I don’t think it was adrenaline or fatigue, I have no excuses other than the fact that somewhere my fundamentals broke down, likely when I tried to rush, and it took me much longer to complete than it should have. I shook it off after finally knocking down the last steel and grabbed my rifle.
I had decided when I was listening to the stage description from the RO that when I grabbed my rifle, all of the smallest targets I would engage through the most upright and highest ports, that way by the time I got down to the lower, angled and more difficult ports to shoot through, I would be shooting at the larger steel.
This strategy worked very well as I had zero misses with the rifle and ran through the steel very quickly. Contrary to my terrible pistol run, this might have been my best rifle run, maybe ever. As I grabbed my rifle to run off the RO said “If you wouldn’t have let that baby pistol whip your ass, you might have been the quickest on this stage.” As much as I wanted to tell him it wasn’t the baby pistols fault and it was all mine, there was no time for talking, I rushed off to the stage I had been waiting weeks for, stage 5.
Hindsight is 20/20: Just shoot my pistol better. I ended up 17th on this stage despite having a meltdown with my pistol. If I could have cleaned that up, I definitely feel like a single-digit placement or maybe a top 5 stage placement would have been attainable.
Stage 5 - Golems
A mad wizard has created a bunch of golems! Kill them all before they can terrorize the country side.
On the buzzer, engage the targets from nearest to farthest. The closest target will be a 4 inch plate at 60 yards. The furthest will be a very large plate at 500. The 8 in the middle are of various sizes at unknown distances.
Required Rifle Hits - 10
There was a short run from stage 4 and as I could see the start of the stage in sight, I removed the legs of my Heathen Bipod system from underneath my Burn Proof Rail Wrap and inserted them into the barricade stop. If possible, I wanted to use the bipod on this stage and I wanted to be ready to roll before the shot timer went off.
Unknown distances and unknown target sizes from 60 yards to 500 yards. I thought this would be a tough one, but I love the mid to long-range stuff so I was really excited to test myself on this one as I never shoot unknown distance. As the RO was reading the stage description I was gauging the direction and strength of the wind the best I could. I had guessed it was a near full value wind at about 5 MPH. And I knew exactly where I would need to be at 500 yards if that was the case, nearly a 1 MIL hold into the wind. Because I already knew exactly how far the furthest target was, and felt confident on the wind value, I decided I would shoot that first and work my way in.
Upon the buzzer I dropped to the ground utilizing my bipod, held 1 MIL into the wind and fired. Miss. I remembered at 500 yards that on my elevation I actually had to hold at the bottom of the target so I made that adjustment and fired again. I saw the light flash on the target and the RO yell “Hit!”. Whatever confidence I had hitting the 500-yard target on the 2nd shot went right out the window as I attempted to engage the next farthest target.
Because of the roll in the landscape, I could not determine how far that target was and I missed probably 10 or more times. Additionally, with the targets being out in a field, with no dirt bacstop, I could not see where I was missing in order to make the correction. Finally, I decided to stop wasting time and started back at the 60 yard target and worked my way back out.
I went up close to the 60 yard target, hit and then continued to hit the other 7 targets all the way back out to that 2nd farthest target that had given me so much trouble. Once I got to that target again, I slowed down and methodically shot it, holding at all the ranges I thought it could be. I was relieved when the RO finally yelled “Hit!” instead of “Time’s up.” I completed the stage, but probably really could have placed high if that 400-ish yarder didn’t give me so much trouble.
Hindsight is 20/20: I think just slowing down once I started getting the misses, check my dope and shoot again. Once I started missing, I panicked a bit and started sending them. The smooth is fast mantra is very true on these stages, and I need to work on that. Regardless of my troubles with that one dang target, I was 18th on this stage.
My proper 500 yard hold in a 5 MPH wind.
I had no idea how rough things would get after leaving Stage 5. After running out of the pasture, across the road and around a golf course, the ribbons indicated that you were to enter back into the woods. In the woods, just a short way, was a power line that continued what seemed like straight up for 500 yards or more. I have no idea how steep, or how long this trek through the woods actually was, but I can tell you in this stage of the event, it whupped me. It was all I could do to walk it, and even so, I had to stop 4 or 5 times along the way just so my legs could recover enough to continue. From a running, walking, hiking standpoint, I can honestly say that hill at that stage in the event, was the hardest thing I have ever done. I was moving so slow, I decided I might as well drink some fluids and consume a Honey Stinger Waffle on my way up. It wasn’t costing me any more time since I could barely move anyway.
Top of that monster hill, Honey Stinger Waffle and silicone water bottle in hand. Photo by Lisa Stennett.
I finally hobbled my way to the top of the hill and saw Stage 6 in sight. I was relieved but exhausted, and it was here I made a mental mistake that definitely cost me.
Stage 6 - Quick Draw Mcgraw
You come upon a rogue flying monkey in the woods. Take him out before he can eat your face!
On the buzzer you will have 5 seconds to draw and make a single hit on a target at 7-10 yards.
Required pistol hits - 1
This stage was as simple as it gets. One target, one hit, with your pistol. 5 second par time. “That’s it?” I asked. “Yup” said the RO. Now in my exhausted mind, I was thinking to myself that 1 or 2 seconds in your overall shooting time means absolutely nothing, and all I wanted to do was to make sure I didn’t do something stupid to hit the 5 second time out. When the buzzer went off, I drew slowly and methodically, pressed out and slowly squeezed. Hit. 2.87 seconds. Then I holstered. What I failed to think about until somewhere around 2 hours later on my way back home was how stupid that was.
I was thinking of the time as an overall shoot time like an IDPA scoring system, and not each stage on its own, which is how these R&G’s are scored. I didn’t cost myself 1 or 2 seconds by shooting this stage slow, I cost myself valuable placement in the stage rankings which would ultimately affect my overall shoot score. I can draw, from concealment and fire in under 1 second consistently, and I absolutely should have attempted that on this stage and then just fired again if I missed. That would have been how this stage should have been shot, but after probably 4.5 miles and over an hour on my feet, my foggy brain let me down.
Hindsight is 20/20: Know the game you are playing, know the scoring system and shoot accordingly. I am most upset about this stage because I know how much different my stage ranking could have been if I was just thinking clearly. 64th place on this stage. Ugh.
2.87 Seconds. What was I thinking? Photo by Lisa Stennett.
Stage 7 - Awww crap, these guys STILL heal?
Hit all 6 heads of the hydra in a row otherwise, they'll just grow back! If you miss, you gotta move so you don't get bit!
On the buzzer, engage the plate rack at 15 yards. You must make a clean run to finish the stage. If you miss any plate, you will run around the barrel roughly 5 yards to your left(keeping your muzzle pointed down range)
while the RO resets the plate rack.
Required pistol hits - 6
Once I got to stage 7, I knew all along what my strategy would be. Slow down, run the plate rack clean on the first try and not have to run around and reset costing valuable time. This pistol stage, I actually shot correctly, and clean. I made all 6 hits on the first try with no misses and I was off to the final stage.
Hindsight is 20/20: About as good as I can expect here. 18th place for this stage.
Stage 8 - Planet of the Apes
The apes have taken advantage of the chaos to show that they have evolved. They're making a play for ownership of planet earth. Kill the underlings, while simultaneously punching through Ceasar's armor to take him out!
Start in shootbox 1, hit all 6 pistol targets. Safely transition to your rifle as you move to shootbox 2. Hit one of the 5 smaller gongs, then the large silhouette. Repeat until you have hit all 5 gongs, and have hit the large silhouette 5 times.
Required pistol hits - 6
Required rifle hits - 10
The start of stage 8 required you to crawl through a pipe on a steep angle utilizing a rope. My legs were so gone from the powerline hill at this point that I got halfway up the pipe and my leg cramped and locked up. My body was done. I pulled myself up with mostly just my arms and limped up to the stage start. This stage is the mostly foggy to me, because at this point, I really was smoked. I do vividly remember the RO being dressed in a Ghostbusters uniform, which is a perfect example of why I love these events. Such a relaxed and enjoyable atmosphere and a place for anyone to compete that loves to shoot.
I remember not shooting it terribly fast or terribly slow, but just staying consistent and completing the task at hand. I already knew where the finish line was located and I had my eyes set on the goal line.
Hindsight is 20/20: Get in better shape! I was 34th on this stage, and at this point, I was so exhausted that any issues on this stage was absolutely related to fatigue.
This was seriously the RO of the final stage. Awesome costume, awesome photo. Photo by Lisa Stennett
I made my last run up the hill and to the finish line. I was happy for a number of reasons. Number one, that I had participated and decided despite a hectic schedule to stick with it and just show up. Number two, that I completed the event and number three that I completed all stages. There are so many things that can go wrong at these event stages with weapons or equipments or penalties that I feel fortunate to have completed all stages at R&G’s events I have shot so far. I don’t expect that to continue, so I will enjoy it while I can.
Ultimately, my running and cardio, despite being pretty smoked made up for my bonehead stage issues and poor pistol shooting. I was 8th place in run time and 32nd in shooting for a combined total of 16th place out of 104 registered participants. While I am happy with my overall placement, I can’t help but be a bit disheartened that maybe a top 10 finish was in the cards with just a few stage tweaks. I also don’t let that type of thinking be a crutch as I know there are plenty of participants that had stages where they could have seen improvements as well. “Ifs” and “buts” aren’t going to get me anywhere but more practice will.
I had an absolute blast at this event. I think the Match Director did an outstanding job. The variety in the stages was nothing short of perfect if you trying to script an end-of-times scenario. You had a stage with foreign weapons. You had a stage where you shot one-handed while attending to a “child”. You had a stage where the only thing that mattered was how fast and accurate your first shot from the holster was. You had a stage where you needed to locate targets in the woods in order to engage, a stage shooting around barricades and obstacles and finally a stage of unknown distances and sizes. There was a little bit of everything including tough terrain and some obstacles thrown in along the way. The course did it’s job in letting you know just how good and in shape you really are, or aren’t.
Given the timing of this event, as much as I loved it, I will likely skip it next year and instead attempt to compete in the 9/11 Memorial event at this same place in September. I hear it is even more hardcore with even more participants, and I can’t wait to find out what they throw at us.
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