Zombies in Hayden Park

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If you venture to Hayden Park tomorrow evening, you will catch a glimpse of bleeding corpses walking upright, terrifying monsters hiding in the trees, and runners trying to escape the madness.

Planned and designed by the   Hillsdale Campus Rec Board headed by Kevin Foeman, the Zombie Run debuts tomorrow at 5:30 p.m. for Hillsdale students and area residents.

“We’ve never done this before, but we’re really excited for it,” said Foeman, assistant director of recreational sports.

The run is three kilometers, which is slightly under two miles. Each runner will have a set of flags, which indicate whether or not they’ve been ‘bitten’ by a zombie. If the runners finish with flags still on, they survived the run. After runners complete the race, they can return to the course as a zombie and try to ‘infect’ runners still wearing flags.

The run is free of charge for all, but only college students and staff can win prizes.

The board encourages runners to dress in Halloween costumes.

The award for best costume for runners and zombies is a $20 gift card to the Premiere Movie Theatre in Hillsdale, and the first 100 finishers still wearing flags win t-shirts.

“I’m most excited to see the costumes,” said Isaac Dell,  a board member.

After the Zombie Run, pictures of the best costumes will be posted on the rec board’s bulletin board among news about intramural games.

“Honestly, if you have a great costume, we will recognize you,” said Eleanor Fina, another board member.

The staff has decorated the runners’ route in Hayden Park with Halloween-themed decorations, with hopes to scare the runners as they try to escape from the zombies.

“We’re trying to make this as realistic as possible, but we also want to make sure it’s safe,” Fina said.

The board is excited to see the race. Being the first run, they’ve worked hard this week to ensure that the event will be a success.

“We probably have about 40 fake bodies, fake blood, spider webs, things like that,” Foeman said about the decorations.

Throughout the week, the board is juggling flag football games and setting up for the race.

Finishers can enjoy water and candy provided by the staff, who encourage runners to come work out before eating Halloween candy later that night.

“We’re giving people a chance to be healthy before Halloween,” Fina said.