Outbreak Manila lets you put your zombie survival skills to the test

By AMANDA LAGO, GMA NEWS

Published March 14, 2012 3:32pm

Entire chapters from Max Brook’s “The Zombie Survival Guide” have been highlighted and dog-eared. Episodes of “The Walking Dead” have been viewed over and over again. Endless games of “Left 4 Dead” have been played. Ordinary household items like irons or umbrellas have been re-envisioned as weapons of zombie destruction.

Evidently, people love to fantasize about the zombie apocalypse, and now, they can actually live out the fantasy/nightmare courtesy of Outbreak Manila, an impending 5k run whose promotional video has already gone viral on the Internet.

Angelo Cruz, one of the organizers of Outbreak Manila, said that they chose zombies precisely because as far as monsters and paranormal creatures go, they are probably the most popular.

“We chose zombies because... why not? Let's face it, everyone at one point in their lives has thought of what they would do in case the dead started coming back to life. So it's like a dream come true for most,” Cruz said.

According to Cruz, they want to use the popularity of zombies to promote running in the Philippines.

“We found that despite the success of fun runs here in the country, there are still more non-runners than runners. We wanted to come up with an event that will help address that issue, and what resulted was Outbreak Manila, an idea that was inspired by a US event entitled ‘Run for Your Lives,’" he shared.

The run is set to happen on April 14 in Nuvali, Sta. Rosa, Laguna, and according to Cruz, the response has been incredible. Just two weeks after opening registration, they’ve already reached more than half of their expected number of participants.

New as it is, the idea of the run is pretty simple: participants will try to outrun a horde of zombies who, like any natural zombies, are out for “brains,” which are symbolized by one of three flags worn by the racer on a belt.

Once the three flags have been grabbed (zombies can only grab one flaglet at a time), the runner will be considered “dead,” though not zombified. But if the runner reaches the finish line with at least one flag intact, then he or she has survived the outbreak, and can claim to have a shot at surviving a real zombie invasion.

Despite being a relatively short run at only 5k, the zombie element promises to make it as challenging as a 5k course can be.

“It's 5km because it is enough of a workout for runners and non-runners alike. Besides, why would you want to run 10km through a zombie-infested course? That's suicide,” Cruz quipped.

That said, the organizers guarantee the safety of both runners AND zombies, saying that they will be scattering medics and marshals across the course, as in any run. They've also strictly prohibited any physical interaction between zombies and runners save for the grabbing of the flag. No kicking, punching, spitting, and absolutely no wielding battle-axes.

In fact, no weapon of any kind is allowed—not even a water gun, just in case people get carried away and forget for a second that those aren’t actual zombies that are running after them. Costumes, however, are more than welcome, and are even encouraged.

According to Outbreak Manila’s Facebook Page, slots are already filling up fast, and they’ve already had to close registration in several branches.

Those who still want to sign up better do it fast. Registration booths at Toby’s Sports at The Block at SM North EDSA and SM Megamall, and Runnr in Bonifacio High Street and Alabang Town Center are still open.

Meanwhile, those who want to join the legion of the undead are welcome to audition by posting a video of their best zombie impersonation on Outbreak Manila's Facebook page before March 25.

But those who can’t make it to this one, whether as zombie or runner, can still look forward to more outbreaks throughout the year. “Beware,” said Cruz, “the Outbreak is spreading on a major scale this 2012.” –KG, GMA News

Tags: zombie, outbreak, funrun