On the Run

Outsprinting zombies in Raleigh

By Leah Etling on Oct 4, 2012 in People

Some folks go to the gym or take an extra walk around the block when they are trying to stay fit and healthy. David Hull and Alex Lewis, employees in Yardi’s Raleigh office, decided they’d rather try to outrun some zombies.

On a quest for improved physical fitness, the friends – who started their Yardi careers together back in January 2012, David as an associate applications specialist and Alex as a commercial account manager – decided to try a unique fun run trend that’s been sweeping the nation. Why just run when you can run with a zombie trying to chase you? Other obstacle-style events include even more dangerous challenges – the Spartan Beast, for example, features a fire pit jump, barbed wire crawl and electric fence. Participants must sign a waiver releasing liability in case of death to be able to race.

Motivated in part by the popularity of the TV series The Walking Dead, zombie-themed events have sprung up all over the south, especially in and around Atlanta, where the dynamic drama is set and filmed. Involving obstacle courses, mud, and live zombies/volunteers, flag belt-wearing participants attempt to make it through the course, typically a journey of several miles, without getting “killed.” Make it back with at least one of your flags (out of three) and you’ve survived.

Alex and David decided to take on the Raleigh Zombie Escape at Panic Point without doing much running at all. They’d been training for several months on the Insanity workout, a rigorous high-intensity interval training plan that stresses the whole body. It involved intense cardio but not much distance running. Nevertheless, David and Alex decided to go for it and recruited a few other Yardi Atlanta employees to join them. They also agreed to volunteer as zombies after participating in the run, giving them a unique perspective on both sides of the experience.

On the day of the race, they were surprised to find that the other volunteer zombies weren’t messing around.

“These people, they really take it seriously. I didn’t really realize they would take it to that level. They wanted to get you,” said Alex, who volunteers as a Raleigh firefighter in his free time.  Approaching the packs of zombies, the Yardi team quickly learned it was better to run with a large group of other civilians in order to distract the walking dead and hopefully get away quickly, flags intact.

Being on the offensive side of things turned out to be a good time, too. Splattered in fake blood and wearing tattered clothes to get in character, Zombie David and Zombie Alex quickly developed tactics to try to capture the flags of other runners.  David’s technique was to wait until runners hit the mud near his territory, started sliding and trying to keep their balance then grab a flag. Alex’s strategy was to act distracted and zoned out – zombie-like, if you will – and then leap into action when a careless runner got too close.

They had such a good time on the course that they’ve already made plans for another obstacle event, the Filthy Fun Mud Run in Raleigh on Nov. 3. Proceeds from the event, which features an obstacle course designed by U.S. Navy Seals, are donated to Cradles to Crayons, a national children’s charity. But the friends aren’t participating just for their own good – they want to motivate others, too. This time, they’ve expanded their preparation to include regular running. Alex takes along his baby son in a jogging stroller on his runs.

“We really want to put it out there for our office to try to get more people involved in being active, making activity and being healthy a way of life,” Alex said. “Working in corporate environment tends to be sedentary, so it’s easy to fall into that loop of not being active. This is a fun and exciting way of preparing for something – to give yourself a goal and go for it.”

David, a competitive baseball athlete in high school who now belongs to multiple softball teams, agreed. “We’re really hope to run as a bigger team and get other people involved. The entry fees and donations go to a good cause. It’s a very good feeling to be happy, and healthy and productive at Yardi.”