For those of you in the area of Lenexa, Kansas, Westlake Ace Hardware has a special section of their website just for you.  Turns out this location has also been awarded a Zombie Friendly Business Certification as well.  It is a shame that more hardware stores are not doing the same thing.  Many of us have questions, need ideas, and will eventually require supplies to mount a proper defense.  Westlake Ace Hardware has a comprehensive FAQ section that can help you prepare for a proper home defense.  Great advice for fortifying your position for the day that the dead walk the earth!

Stay safe.  Stay informed.  Stay alive.

“CDC has a fun new way of teaching the importance of emergency preparedness. Our new graphic novel, “Preparedness 101: Zombie Pandemic” demonstrates the importance of being prepared in an entertaining way that people of all ages will enjoy. Readers follow Todd, Julie, and their dog Max as a strange new disease begins spreading, turning ordinary people into zombies. Stick around to the end for a surprising twist that will drive home the importance of being prepared for any emergency. Included in the novel is a Preparedness Checklist so that readers can get their family, workplace, or school ready before disaster strikes. ”

View the entire document here.  Found via Laughing Squid.

Run For Your Lives is a zombie-themed 5k/obstacle course starting in Baltimore on October 22nd that will allow participants to pit themselves against a zombie horde as they try to complete the course without “dying”, which sounds exactly like the beginning of a zombie movie where the fake zombies somehow turn into real zombies and actually try to eat the unknowing participants.

If you are anywhere near the Baltimore area and want a great training opportunity before the day the dead walk the earth, this event is for you.

The Zombie Survival Guide daily calendar, while usually a great resource, dropped the ball the other day.  They offered some advice for home defense which involved making a stand on the roof.

The tip for June 10 offered this tidbit: “If you find yourself in a one-story home with no attic, grab whatever supplies you can, take hold of a weapon, and climb onto the roof.” It goes further to say “Remain on the roof for as long as you can, until supplies are exhausted or a rescue patrol arrives.  It may be uncomfortable, but it is your best chance for survival.”

This is flawed thinking.  Not sure about you but getting on the roof of my house is not the easiest thing to do.  The ladder we have is on the lower level, and if that is compromised already by the undead, not sure how you would even get onto the roof.

Additionally, this says “grab whatever supplies you can” when we all know that we should already have a zombie plan and some supplies setup.  As many here would tell you, they already have a roof filled with fully automatic weapons, tanks, and helicopters.  For the average person, know where some type of weapon is and make sure you can easily take it with you.

Lastly, just sitting on the roof waiting is no plan at all.  This does not even account for any of the elements.  What if it is 95 degrees outside?  You really want to sit and bake on the roof of the house?  Since there is no guarantee that a roving rescue patrol will arrive, just sitting on a roof waiting is one of the last things you need to do.

Think about your plan, folks, so something like this doesn’t end up being your only solution.

Stay safe.  Stay informed.  Stay alive.

At some point during the zombie apocalypse, you will be running.  It is just a given fact that it will happen.  Hopefully when you are preparing for the day the undead walk the earth, you are doing so with comfort in mind.  With that said, you need to think about what shoes are best to run in.  Thankfully, RunningShoes.com has put together a great list of shoes that are worth consideration.

Check it out here: “Best Running Shoes for Zombie Apocalypse Survival”.

Stay safe. Stay informed. Stay alive.

What kind of training will most closely resemble the kind of shooting you will have to do after the fall of man? What shooting skills will you need to learn? Short of military training, the next best thing is professional training at facilities like Blackwater, or Frontsight, but what if you barely have enough money in your budget for bullets? What should you do? ZAC suggests that you get involved in a practical shooting organization or take an NRA sponsored civilian marksmanship program.

There are many practical shooting organizations, but two of the most wide spread and best known are IDPA and IPSC. ZAC further suggests you get involved in 3 Gun shooting.

3 gun is a type of shooting that involves a military style rifle, shotgun, and pistol. You transition between all three weapons during the stages, shooting for the most accuracy in the best time. It hones your skills with all 3 weapons simultaneously. However, both of these groups have independent shotgun, pistol, and rifle matches. Learning to shoot against people with a better skill set is the best way to hone your speed and ability. It may be frustrating at first, but you will get better as you train and compete.

Other training organizations can be found through the NRA. One of the best is the Appleseed Project. It teaches you marksmanship at ranges beyond 100 yards.

ZAC encourages you to do your own research, find clubs, and organizations that you like and practice the shooting skills that could save your own life, as well as others.

If most people are to be believed then the zombie apocalypse will occur in the matter of hours, or at most days, swiftly covering the world in a rotting, moaning, ever hungry blitzkrieg. However, is this how I will occur? Where and how will the infection spread?

While often times those who are preparing for the rise of the undead are prepared for massive onslaughts and waves of the undead is this really what will happen? If one is inclined to step back from the fear of the undead and look at the reality of our world, one will come to realize that the spread of the undead will take time and not be a quick conquest of us. Here are the reasons why.

1.       A wide spread species: Mankind is not a tight knit species, we are spread all over the world with really three major land masses as our home. While the infection can spread with unprecedented speed compared to other eras, there is still time and space required for it to get from one place to the other. Even an infected man who has yet to turn and who is one able to fly, and two capable of obtaining a plane may die and turn before he reaches an uninfected area. Also, even if the infection does reach a population center, those in the rural areas are not likely to be in immediate danger from the infected.

2.       Technology: News travels fast, and even if those spinning the news do not know what the zombies really are they are likely to spread the news to untold numbers giving those of us who have prepared an opportunity to get ready for the fight, get to our safe areas, and to block the infection from reaching us.

3.       Resourcefulness: We are nothing if not resourceful and inventive. Under extreme circumstance men of action have forever found way to overcome and thrive. Those willing to fight and who are strong willed and minded can often times find ways out of situation where the average man would just give up. A man with a will may find a way to escape and fight back.

4.       The undead: Even as dangerous the undead are, they are not gods. They are slow, stupid and predictable. They do not plan, they do not organize but in the most basic of the concept of organize. They can be beaten, they can be defeated.

5.       Mankind itself: Man is inventive, and those in rural areas that are not infected during the opening outbreaks, they will be able to prepare and through trial and error, as well as communication between other surviving groups they may be able be to find ways of combating the undead while at the same time prospering.

In the end the infection will not spread as quickly as some believe. It will take time and those who stay alert and watch from the first signs may be able to get away from population center before they are infected, before the cities fall. The likely outcome of a major outbreak, a worldwide outbreak, not a mankind killer, but one where tens of millions are killed, is that man will flee population centers and a more agrarian society may likely form.

After Z-Day, blades of all sorts will be a major part of everyone’s life. Every day you will have to use a blade for work, protection, and lots of other things. What kinds of blades and blade shapes will serve you best? In this article we’ll look at different types, sizes, and shapes of blades and their uses.

EDC Blades: (Every Day Carry)
These are blades that you carry at all times, even when carrying other blades. They can be used for many things, like: cutting food, whittling, processing game, even self defense when the need arises. They’re usually smaller folding blades, but can be smaller fixed blades. ZAC suggests one folding plain edge knife and one fully serrated folding knife.

Work Blades:
Usually a mid sized blade, usually between 9 and 15 inches, but this category can include machetes for felling trees, chopping, and polling firewood. The uses are only limited by the imagination of the user. Generally the best overall and best multi-purpose knife.

Fighting Blades:
From 10 to 48 inches, this category covers anything from boot knives to swords. Best to carry at least one blade from this category.

Single or Double edged?
This all depends on the user. For a fighting blade, double edged is preferred, but not necessary. For EDC or a work blade, a single edge is best to keep from injuring yourself during use when even a small cut can lead to infection or death if left untreated.
You will need to care for and sharpen your blades, as they can often mean the difference between life and death in a survival situation. ZAC recommends the Smith’s Tri-Hone system for sharpening. The honing oil provided with the system is OK, but spit or water works just as well and costs less.

ZAC recommends that you learn to sharpen a knife for its purpose. A general use knife doesn’t need to be razor sharp and this can lead to extended life for the blade, while over sharpening can lead to the blade failing or dulling extremely fast. Fighting knives need to be extremely sharp to serve their purpose unless they are swords. Swords need to be sharp, but not razor sharp. The weight of the sword causes a cleaving effect. Lighter swords do need to be sharper. EDC knives vary. If you use them on hard surfaces, or for prying, then a 25 degree rough edge will do fine. If you want it razor sharp for finer use, then you want an 18 degree edge. This video is a good guide to beginning sharpening.

While there are without doubt a times when the chips are down the rounds are coming back at you where you want if not need body armor. But, the question is when fighting the undead, do you really need body armor? Or are you better off using the weight for other equipment.

Modern body armor is designed to stop a wide range of projectiles, from the low end Level II vest and general pistol rounds too Level IV vest with hard ballistic plates and even vests designed to hinder the lowly Taser. However, modern body armor is not designed to fight the undead, at least not in original design. It is also, and most importantly heavy.

The weight of modern body armor, is substantial. Low level vests can weigh as little as ten pounds while the top of the line military issue OVTs can weigh thirty pounds or more. With the ZAC standard rifle being the AR-15 each pound of weight that you carry means one less magazine you could be carrying instead, or extra food, commo equipment, or any number of other gear.

While those who are dealing with pocket of human resistance or positions where they may be taking fire from others may have a need for a ballistic vest, those fighting solely the undead do not have to, in most circumstances, worry about the undead shooting back. If the undead are not shooting back would that weight not be used better in carrying more ammo, gear, or just plainly lightening the load on the lowly grunt who is pulling the trigger against the undead.

Another consideration is that those wearing body armor who have turned may also pose a risk against the living, since if they turned in full body armor, helmet and all, it would mean that there would be the need to place a kill shot in a tight area as well as making it harder to kill them with non-firearm weapons. On the plus side though a zombie in full body would also be slower. Then again so would you in full kit.

The general seed that I am attempting to put forth is that you will need to be cognizant for the situation that you will be entering and preparing accordingly. However, when fighting the undead, toe to toe, gun to flesh, and machete to skull, full body armor is not a required. If the situation is uncertain perhaps a compromise would best serve you, perhaps a plate carrying Level IV standalone plates.