By Perla Arellano
News Editor
Amarillo College students and employees soon will have the opportunity to have fun while staying fit. The Zombie Challenge event will take place on the Washington Street Campus at 6:30 p.m. Oct. 18.
J.R. Norman, an intramural specialist, said he wanted to add a twist to the normal 5K course.
Because this is the first year for the Zombie Challenge, Norman said the event is intended mainly for students.
“We haven’t branched out to the community,” he said. “We wanted to give our AC students the first opportunity to participate in something like this.”
The purpose of the event, Norman said, is to get people active on various obstacle courses.
“It’s to work on team building, team chemistry, communication, working together and fitness and at the same time having fun,” Norman said.
The competition will have obstacles unknown to the participants until the day of the event.
There will be groups of at least five people, depending on how many participants sign up, Norman said.
Norman said official AC organizations are allowed to get a group together and that people who don’t have a group will be assigned to one.
The groups will be given maps to tell them where the zombies and safe points are located, he said. Each team will have to complete different tasks from start to finish before changing stations, Norman said.
If a zombie gets one of the participants’ flags, Norman said, the participant will be injured and therefore cannot run or jog and must limp.
If a participant gets two flags taken away, then he/she is dead and teammates must carry or drag him or her and make sure they get the “dead” teammate to a safe point.
The difficulty of the task in order to get a flag back depends on how many flags need to be recovered.
“It may be 25 jumping jacks, it may be burpees, it may be something that the wellness committee will put on in order for you to retrieve your flag back,” Norman said.
He said the event may lead to people meeting friends or breaking out of their comfort zone and getting involved with various campus societies and organizations.
“If you can evade, escape and stay fit, come do it,” Norman said.
“You get to meet people, especially freshmen, you get to interact with people you don’t know, and you build that chemistry.”
Bethany Zalman, a graphic design major, said she agrees it is a good idea that an obstacle course should be involved to get students active.
“It makes it a little more interesting than just a regular 5K,” Zalman said.
“It helps people meet people if they don’t already know others participating.”
Robert Ocon, a mass communication major, said it is a good idea to assign people to groups who aren’t part of one.
“That’s cool for people who don’t know anybody else that want to do it but want to do it themselves,” Ocon said.
The registration deadline to get shirts is Friday.
The late registration deadline is Oct. 15.
Registration forms may be mailed or dropped off at Carter Fitness Center.
Students, employees, family and friends can participate in the challenge.
The cost for AC students enrolled in classes for the fall 2013 semester is $5. The cost for AC employees is $10, and the cost per person for AC family or friends is $15.
For more information, call 371-5382 or 371-5467.
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