Let's Talk About Slings....

 

The Mamba Sling from Spec Ops Brand

I used to think the only sling that was any good for anything was the original GI sling. I used the original GI for many years and I found it served my needs and was the best I could find (I didn't really do a lot of looking) allowing me to make adjustments rapidly and steadying the rifle for longer shots, which require a steady platform and no movement to make an accurate shot. If you are making a shot under 50 meters, then the sling may or may not be of use to you depending on what you are shooting at. If you are shooting at the center of mass on a twenty inch square target at fifty meters, then you might not need a sling. However, if you are trying to shoot  into a one inch square at fifty meters, I would certainly advise using a sling to steady the rifle.

Spec Ops Brand Mamba Sling

In all my years in the military, the two point issued sling seemed to work fine, but that was really only because I never knew of anything else or made any effort to try anything else. And for about 20 years of hunting and self defense carry, I never graduated beyond a two point carry. All of my rifles and shotguns did always have a sling, each and every one of them. I have always thought of a sling as a necessity. But I never gave the sling much thought after getting it set up on a rifle or shotgun and getting it adjusted properly.

 

There are a number of slings and a whole lot of ways to wear and use them, all supplied by Spec Ops Brand.

Spec Ops Brand Mamba Sling

So, why am I writing this underneath a video about the Mamba Sling, from Spec Ops Brand Gear? Because as I  have graduated from different types of shooting over the last few years, I have found that the traditional two point sling for over the shoulder carry on the range, hunting and carrying the rifle in the traditional two point fashion, or in a self defense mode, while still useful to me, did not serve all of the possible situations I might need to address regarding rifle sling functions. As I started taking more firearms courses which required multiple firearms and diverse situations and conditions (which the real world is full of) I started to learn different ways of carrying a rifle that would depend on the circumstances relating to my carry

The Well Dressed Soldier

.I have recently been using the Spec Ops Brand Mamba sling and I am really happy with it. I got my first Spec Ops Brand Mamba sling from a friend who had been using it in Iraq. I was very impressed with this sling and it's ability to be modified for use in many different situations for carry. It can be used in a variety of ways to carry your rifle when actually using the rifle, and it is perfect when you want to do something with both hands, but have the rifle right where you can get your hands on it in a split second when you have to. Like I said, I used to only use the G.I. sling as I usually only had a rifle in my hand when I was using/carrying firearms. Now I can drop the rifle to a hang position to use my pistol or another rifle or shotgun and still have the rifle within reach when needed. I can adjust the Mamba sling for traditional use, or have it rigged for a single drop sling, or any number of combinations within seconds.

The sling is made with a stretch material on one of the bands which allows you to have the rifle at a carry, or hang position on you and will still let you do a muzzle/butt thump/strike in a pinch, it is a very quiet sling without a bunch of metal hardware which means very little rattle and none of the velcro ripping sounds. The sling does not need a lot of prep before a patrol to keep it quiet.

I would easily recommend the Mamba Sling from Spec Ops Brand for anyone who wants a multi purpose sling that is affordable, easy to use, extremely durable and is currently being used, and recommended by thousands of American troops in the field.

And if the Mamba is not the best fit for you, take a look at the rest of the slings offered by Spec Ops Brand, because they make a dozen or so different types of slings in addition to the two versions of the Mamba.

You can find them here http://www.specopsbrand.com/tactical-gear/slings.html

PS- They make some of the best back packs and other related gear in the gear industry. If you have something you think you might need to help round out your rig or gear, take a swing through the Spec Ops Brand online catalog before you head anywhere else. Affordable and tested gear is just a click away on their site.

-Scout  

 

Sponsors...

We are looking for additional sponsors for the event. We have written to a lot of folks and we already have some sponsors on board, but we want to make sure we have as much of an assortment of swag as possible for the attendees, and that we are helping to promote companies who are valuable to the shooting sports. If you have any ideas for sponsors, drop me a note at rwvarangescout at gmail dot com

Big Chest O' Pirates Gold Prize (not really)

We are also looking at donating a percentage of the proceeds from this event to a local charity. BattleRoadUSA is a local company and we want to make sure we are doing our part as community members to help support our local charities.  BattleRoadUSA has already decided to open two slots per a class to full time Texas teachers at no charge. We know that school teachers do not make a lot of money, and we want to make sure that Texas school teachers are able to competently handle a firearm and to defend themselves and their loved ones if they make the decision to do so.

If you know of a local Texas charity, drop us a line so we can maybe start talking to them about ways we can partner with them to help insure our local Texas needs are being met as much as possible by community members, rather than the government.

We also welcome folks who have stores or companies to bring out a truck load of gear and set up a table to sell their wares on the day of the event. T-shirts, knives, ammo, you name it (legal). Or even if you do not have a company, but want to bring stuff for trade or barter, we have no problem with this either.

If you have a service you want to offer at the event, like knife sharpening, gear repair, haircuts/shave or primitive dentistry...., give us a call or drop us a note and we will be glad to talk to you about this. We will be selling sodas and hand type food, hot dogs, chips etc. If you have some kind of food rig you want to bring, we will talk to you also.

-Scout   

Prepping Magazines on the Run

The round count for the Zombie Destruction Run is a high one. It was done on purpose to give folks a chance to shoot more, and to realize that there might be situations where you have to shoot, and hit your target multiple times to insure your target is down and the threat is neutralized.

The crew prepping mags for the run

If you have enough magazines to carry 177 rounds of pistol ammunition and 150 rounds of rifle then you are good to go. If not, you will need to prep magazines on the run. I have done it on a number of occasions and it is not as hard as it seems. I kept a drop bag on my belt with lose ammo for the rifle or pistol I was using and just grabbed a mag, dug out a handful of ammo and started stoking mags as I went. I have done this before when I have run out the door with a shotgun and wanted extra rounds to have available besides the ones in the shotgun tube.

Another shot of the crew prepping mags

 I have practiced doing this with shotgun quite a bit recently as we have run "Fighting Shotgun" courses several times in the last few months. Anytime we have a new course I try to make sure I am running whatever firearm we are teaching on a regular basis in order to stay familiar it and to work out any thing which might occur in the course of using that particular firearm. I will grab the shotgun, grab two handfuls of shells and throw them in my two front pockets and drive quickly down to the range (1/4 mile) hop out and start running targets. Doing combat reloads and shooting and moving until I have expended the rounds in my shotgun and pockets.

I can carry about 25 rounds of 12 gauge in the two front pockets of my jeans without any trouble. I have never liked the carry belts, or the  belt shell holders. The carry belts that hold 25 rounds will get lose and dump your rounds after about six months of storing rounds in them, and if I am not going to store rounds in them, what use are they? The belt carriers have to be threaded on to your belt. There are some lose shell bags made by some manufacturers, or you can rig up one yourself. I have a small black canvas tool bag that I can put over my shoulder and across my body, or, just stuffing them lose in my front pockets.

Having the mag fully inserted

For the run, you might want to consider having a drop bag to hold your empty mags and another bag for carrying lose rounds and just reload the mags right out of the bag. I can put a round in a rifle or pistol mag about every three to five steps, retrieve another round in three steps and put a round in on three to five steps etc. until I have the mag prepped and back into the mag pouch.

You will have about 50 rounds per a rifle station to shoot, with no misses, and about the same for the pistol stations. So having enough mags to run a fifty round course should not be too much of a problem. I keep seven mags for each of my pistols and about 15-30 mags for my rifles. So I have plenty of mags to make the run. If you have buddies who are not coming to the run, ask them to loan you six or seven mags for your rifle or pistol. I am loaning out six of my XD 9 mags to a friend as he is running an XD9 for the event. With my six he has ten mags of sixteen rounds each. 160 rounds, so he will only have to prep two additional mags on the run as long as he stays on target with most of his rounds.

One at a time

And while we are talking about staying on target, I am sure I do not have to tell anyone that hitting what you aim at is the whole point of all this shooting business, right? Much better to have a slower time and all hits, than to have a lot of shooting with a lot of misses and reloads mixed in. In my opinion anyway. I like to see a slower, determined hit much better than a fast machine gun like rattle with hits and misses mixed all up together. It just seems more professional. That being said, having a really fast shooting speed and making all hits is definitely best of all :)

I have carried a bag with both my lose pistol and rifle rounds in the same bag. What I found was that the .45 pistol rounds migrated and stayed on the bottom while the .30 rifle rounds floated on the top. So when I needed to prep a pistol mag, I dug to the bottom and when I needed to prep the rifle, I grabbed off the top. This was my experience, you might have different results. Start working out the way you will prep mags on the run now.

30 New P Mags from Lanbo's Armory

You will have sixty days to work out your method, and since you do not have to carry a rifle, or fire any rounds to figure this out, you can do it while jogging down the street in your neighbor hood if you want. I do not think there are any laws against prepping mags in public yet, though with the recent high profile shootings, you might want to do it as discreetly as possible.

The bottom line is, there might be a day in your future that you will have to prep magazines while on the move, so maybe it is a good idea to learn how to do it while it is a silly Zombie Destruction Run you are attending, and not a real "end of the world" event where failing at it might cost you more than just your undead soul. :)

Cold Steel "Zombie Combat" Machetes

When considering things that might be used to dispatch a zombie in an end of the world "Zombie Apocalypse", there are not a lot of zombie killing tools that would compare to a nice heavy machete. And just thinking about the way a machete would look, sound...and feel..when it got buried in the half rotten head of a zombie, while kind of disconcerting in one way, is actually kind of comforting in another, right? And of all the machetes available, Cold Steel makes some of the best, and most affordable machetes on the market .

Specifications:
Blade Length: 14 5/8"
Overall Length: 20 1/4"
Steel: 1055 Carbon Steel w/ Black Baked on Anti Rust Matte Finish
Weight: 24 oz
Blade Thickness: 2 mm
Handle: 5 5/8" Long Polypropylene
Sheath: Cor-Ex™

  The Cold Steel machetes are extremely well made, have been around for quite a while and have stood the test of time and heavy use with great reviews. There are a good number of different models of Cold Steel machetes available from dealers around the nation.

Of course, you do not need a "Zombie Apocalypse to get good use out of a Cold Steel machete. Folks were getting use from machetes long before the idea of zombies ever came up. I grew up on a ranch and then spent six years in the military and have used machetes for about thirty five years and there is not many tools that can do all the jobs they were meant for (and many they were not) as well as a machete.

    

Specifications:
Blade Length: 13"
Overall Length: 18"
Steel: 1055 Carbon Steel w/ Black Baked on Anti Rust Matte Finish
Weight: 16 oz
Blade Thickness: 2 mm
Handle: 5" Long Polypropylene
Sheath: Cor-Ex™

 Cleaning out brush along fence lines, chopping limbs and branches for building shelters, hewing logs for a log shelter type home, using machetes to clear fields and to harvest stands of  grain for food and a host of other uses make a machete one of the most versatile tools in a preppers tool shed.

I use my machetes, I have five of them, for cleaning out brush along fence lines, cleaning out an area for camping, cutting trails through brush for the cattle, chopping cattails, corn, maize, for cutting sight lines for hunting stands.

And yes. I have a Cold Steel Kukri machete for the end of the world. I have been buying and using Cold steel knives for many years. They have a great reputation and I can personally vouch for all of the knives and other Cold Steel products I have purchased,(quite a few), as can all of the staff at BattleRoadUSA who all have and carry Cold Steel products for personal use. But, while we are actually on a page that discusses Zombie take downs, let us look at some other Cold Steel tools for "Zombie Destruction".

Let's look a tool with dual use first. This is the Cold Steel Special Forces Shovel. It is modeled after the Spetznaz shovel issues to Russian Special Forces Teams. Having a tool that will fill many uses is always a benefit to a self reliant user. Having something that can dig a fighting position, or a latrine trench as well as for for throwing at an enemy with one hand while pulling your pistol with the other, all the way to chopping into the head of an undead attacker, is a very good thing. 

<iframe width="480" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/jIlceAZBRdA" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

There are the two clubs based on actual American Indian weapons that can be used in situations that that requires a zombie to be dispatched without any gunfire noise.

INDIAN WAR CLUB

Specifications:
Weight: 27.6 oz
Length:Ball: 90 mm
Overall Length: 24"
Thickness: 25-30 mm (Tapered)

This Cold Steel Indian War Club is a very hardcore piece of equipment. The Indians would use a naturally occurring knot in the branch, or would sometimes tie a knot in a young branch and let it grow and tighten to a large size before cutting it for use as a club. The folks at Cold Steel did not use the traditional wood, Hornbeam, as it is not in usable supply, and have instead opted for  a black color injection molded polypropylene plastic which is virtually unbreakable. This is actually not a bad idea since the plastic can survive a lot more abuse than a wood handle could. They have also added a steel spike to the striking head to make sure the device will puncture a skull. For semi quiet zombie take downs this is a good choice.

GUNSTOCK WAR CLUB

Specifications:
Weight: 22.1 oz
Length: 3" Spike
Overall Length: 29 1/2"
Thickness: 1 1/2"

                                                                 Another Cold Steel  war club based model is the "Gunstock War Club"  This is apparently a model Cold Steel president, Lynn C. Thompson wanted to develope after he watched "Last of the Mohicans". He decided to work on this idea and approached custom blade maker  Rich McDonald after seeing an example made by the knife maker. This is a pretty awesome device for quietly re-deading the undead. It has a steel spike/blade in the angle of the device that is definitely able to create a huge hole in a zombie skull. The rest of the device is also able to crush a zombie head easily with one blow. 

Sure, at the end of the world, you could use a crowbar, a ball peen hammer, a baseball bat or any number of items that could be used to dispatch an undead. But if you are planning on being ready for that specific event, why not use an item specifically crafted for that purpose.  

And last, but definitely not least, is my favorite. This is the Cold Steel Two Handed Kukri machete. This machete is based on an actual Kukri type tool and is a real monster. It can be used as an axe and can easily cleave off an undead,(or not so undead), head or an arm with one one chop. It can be thrown with great force and can be used to fell a tree or clear a field when not being used as an  accoutrement by an end of the world survivor.

TWO HANDED MACHETE

Specifications:
Blade Length: 11 1/4"
Overall Length: 32"
Steel: 1055 Carbon Steel w/ Black Baked on Anti Rust Matte Finish
Weight: 30.9 oz
Blade Thickness: 2 mm
Handle: 20 3/4" Polypropylene

       I think that any of the Cold Steel machetes offered by that company are suitable for use as tools for everyday usage as well as for an end of the world apocalypse. 
You can fin these products at the Cold Steel website
 http://www.coldsteel.com/Category/5_1/Machetes.aspx         
If you are going to buy a Cold Steel product, make sure you are buying the real thing. There are a lot of knock offs out there and I doubt they are willing to stand behind their products like Cold Steel does.

TRENCH HAWK

Specifications:
Overall Length: 19"
Hawk Length: 8 3/4"
Primary Edge: 3 1/2"
Steel: Drop Forged 1055 Carbon
Weight: 24 oz
Handle: Polypropylene
Sheath: Durable Ploypropylene Sheath

                                                                                           For more info about Cold Steel kncok offs go to http://www.coldsteel.com/Cold-Steel-vs-Counterfeiters.aspx and to http://www.coldsteel.com/Do-Not-Buy-From-These-Websites.aspx

                                                               And one last item. The Cold Steel Trench Hawk. This an absolutely terrifying device that any "Dispatcher of The Undead" would be glad to have on them at the end of the world-due to Zombies- Apocalypse.  It has a hatchet type front blade, and a spike point rear formed of 1055 carbon steel and an indestructable composite handle made from a polypropylene material. It has a polypropylene sheath that can attach to your belt for easy, all the time available, carrying.

Thank you Cold Steel for making a fantastic product and offering it at easy to afford prices.

-Scout

                                                                

BattleRoadUSA February 23, 2013 Zombie Destruction Run Course of Fire

The Zombie Run and Shoot is an event created by Battle Road USA. The race is not sanctioned by any other organization. Therefore, we have made up our own rules. The range officers will be timing each station with any sort of digital stopwatch they have in their possession. Times will not be split by hundredths or thousandths of a second, but rounded off to the highest full number.

Target size will be determined by the amount of scrap metal we have laying around. There will be some torso and head targets which measure about 25 inches wide and 35 inches long. The zombie headshots will be about 10 inches and I’m sure there will be some other stuff thrown in before the shoot.

The target distances will be Mike’s best guess. I’ve never known him to be off more than 100 yards or so. With that said, Rifle targets will range between 50 yards to 400 yards. Pistol targets will range between 7 yards to 30 yards.

There will be between 7 to 12 Zombie targets. These targets will require 1 headshot each. You will know it’s a zombie target because it will have a human shape and it will be clothed.

Almost all other steel targets will require 5 hits per target (pistol and rifle) in order for the shooter to move to the next target or shooting station.

At each shooting station the Range Officer (RO) will explain the course if the shooter needs instruction. On the RO’s command the shooter will began the course of fire. Each shooting station will have a wood frame shape on the ground (squares, triangles, rectangles, etc…) All wood frames on the ground will be painted the same color the intended target. Example, a red wood frame will have a red target, a green frame will have a green target, and so on. If a shooter fires at a different color target than from the color of the wood frame he is standing in, that will result in a 30 second penalty per target for each violation. Example, a shooter is standing in a green wood frame and fires (hit or miss) at a blue target, that is a 30 a 30 second penalty. Shooters and their equipment must be inside the wood frame. No part of the shooter’s body, clothing, or equipment may touch any part of the wood frame they are shooting from. If a shooter is in violation of this rule, the RO will advise the shooter of the violation and a 30 second penalty will be added to the shooter’s score. If a shooter violates this rule twice at the same shooting station, they will receive a score of “0” for that 1 shooting station.

Shooters will be allowed to run with a loaded handgun but all rifles must be unloaded anytime the shooter is not on a designated rifle stage. Shooters will only load their rifle after the RO gives them the command to do so and shooters must unload their rifle and show the RO an unloaded rifle before they leave the shooting station.

All stages which are “Pistol Only” will have a mat on the ground and shooters will be required to leave their unloaded rifle on the mat before beginning the shooting stage.

The round count for this event will be 177 rounds of pistol ammunition and 150 rounds of rifle ammunition (that’s the round count if you shoot the course without a single miss).

The course will be marked with engineer’s tape on PVC pipe. Shooters will have to remain near the marked course because at certain locations at the bottom of some PVC pipes, there will be containers dug into the ground which will not be visible from more than a few feet away. The containers will have integrity items inside them. Each shooter will have to retrieve an integrity item from each container and turn in the right number of integrity items at the end of the run. Any shooter missing just 1 integrity item will be disqualified. Any shooter with 2 or more of the same integrity items will also be disqualified. So only take 1 integrity item per container and stay on the marked course!

Each shooter will be required to have a stopwatch. This will be used to record your wait time in case there is a line at a shooting station. If you have to wait 10 minutes in line, you certainly don’t want that 10 minute wait added to your score.

Shooters may bring all the gear they want. All safe and legal ammunition is allowed for use on this range. However we ask you do not use any steel core/armor piercing ammo if you have an alternative. No trace allowed.

Natural and manmade obstacles will be placed throughout the course and just before some shooting stations. All shooters must successfully negotiate each obstacle. Failure to do so will result in a 15 minute penalty per obstacle.

Stages of the Zombie Run and Shoot

Stage 1 “Zombies in the open”

Shooters will have 5 targets and each target must be hit 5 times to advance to the next target. Shooters will fire from several different shooting positions and from behind and around barricades. The targets will range from 50 yards to 200 yards. The time limit for this stage will be 4 minutes and a minimum of 50 rifle rounds will be needed. This is a rifle only stage.

Stage 2 “In The Trenches”

Shooters will follow a dried (hopefully) creek bed to a shooting station. The shooting station will have 5 wooden frames to shoot from and 5 targets. The shooter will have to hit each target 5 times. This will be a pistol only stage. The maximum time allowed for this stage will be 3 minutes and will require 25 rounds minimum.

Stage 3 “The Wind Sucker”

The actual shooting stage is not very difficult but it’s called, “The Wind Sucker” due to the obstacles the shooter must complete right before the shooting station begins. There will be 5 targets the shooter will engage 5 times each. The time limit for this stage will be 1 minute and a minimum of 25 pistol rounds will be needed.

Stage 4 “Finding Sofia” Walking Dead fans will know what we are talking about.

In this stage, shooters will follow a trail through a densely wooded area. Shooters will be frantically searching for a young girl named “Sofia” who is lost in a Zombie infested forest. Shooters will encounter about 12 Zombies in this stage and 3 five shot targets. As we all know, you can only kill a Zombie with a headshot. Each Zombie target will require at least 1 shot to the head (do not shoot the body on Zombie targets, this will result in unnecessary wear and tear to our targets). There will be a rifle station in this stage as well. There will be several wood frames placed on the ground to shoot from. There will also be some barricades placed approximately 15 feet in front of the wood frames. Shooters must engage each target 5 times by shooting through precut holes in the barricade. For every round that strikes the barricade the shooter will receive a 20 second penalty. Each pistol station in this 1 stage will have a time limit of 25 seconds and the Rifle station will have a time limit of 4 minutes and 30 seconds. The total amount of pistol ammunition needed for the stage will be 27 rounds and the minimum amount of rifle ammunition needed will be 50 rounds.

“Finding Sofia” will be scored by the start time at the beginning of the stage just before the shooters enter the woods and the finish time will be when the shooter exits the woods. There will be a check in station upon the entrance and exit. As mentioned above, there will be several pistol stations and 1 rifle shooting station with time limits. Those time limits are in place to keep the stage moving quick and smoothly, however, should a shooter not complete 1 or more shooting stations within the allotted time, they shall receive a score of “0” for the entire station.

Stage 5 “Claustrophobia”

The shooter will enter a structure resembling narrow hallways. An RO will follow the shooter and guide the shooter through the structure. There will be a total of 5 targets and each target must be hit 5 times. Since an RO will be following each shooter, if a shooter misses a target then realizes he missed the target, the shooter must not fire. Take the penalty and do not turn around to engage any missed targets. Shooters must follow this rule because an RO is behind them. Turning around and pointing a firearm at the RO will result in a disqualification for the entire course and immediate dismissal from the range.

This will be a pistol only stage and a minimum of 25 rounds of ammunition will be needed. This station will have a time limit of 4 minutes.

Stage 6 “Kill or be Killed”

Shooters will arrive at a shooting station with 14 wooden frames and 14 targets. The shooter will have to hit each target 5 times. This will be a pistol only stage. The maximum time allowed for this stage will be 2 minutes. You will have to shoot fast and move fast at this station in order to complete the stage before the time limit. Kill or be Killed! A minimum of 75 rounds will be required to complete this stage.

Stage 7 “Zombies Near and Far”

Shooters will have 10 targets, some will be about 10 yards away and others will be as far as 400 yards away and everything in between. All “Near” targets will be paper and will have to be shot in the head 5 times in order to move to the next target. All “Far” will be steel and will require 5 hits in order to move to the next target. Body and head shots will be counted as hits for “Far” targets. The time limit for this event will be 4 minutes and a minimum of 50 rounds will be needed.

After station 7 the shooters will return to the starting/finish line.

KA-BAR Zombie Killer Knives

KA-BAR Line of Zombie Killer Blades

Apparently KA-BAR has jumped into the "Zombie Killing Frenzy" with both bloody feet. A look at their "Zombie Killer" knives shows a multitude of new blades in every imaginable fashion. From Zombie Machetes, to Zombie small pocket folders. Whatever the possible need, there is a blade to deal with almost any situation brought on by the undead.

 <iframe width="640" height="360" src="http://www.youtube.com/embed/LBhc3oHpgHM?feature=player_embedded" frameborder="0" allowfullscreen></iframe>

KA-BAR is making several blade types for their line of Zombie Killing blades. But, if the killing of zombies ever gets to be a cliche event, they also sell the scales for all of the blades in their regular KA-BAR colors

KA-BAR Zombie Chop Stick

There is a "Zombie Chop Stick" that looks a bit like a meat cleaver on steroids.  The Zombie Chop Stick retails for around $79 From the KA-BAR site.

The Ka-Bar Zombie Killer Chop Stick Machete is a straight edge fixed blade machete, constructed with a non-reflective black powder coated SK5 steel blade measuring a full 9" and has an overall length of 14 5/8". This knife features a textured GFN-PA66 handle.

The Ka-Bar ZK Chop Stick Machete is part of the Ka-Bar Zombie Killer series, which are made from SK-5 High Carbon Steel and will stand up to the harshest conditions. The ZK knives come with high-visability green glass filled nylon handle scales installed, but also include a set of black scales for users who prefer a more low profile appearance. KA-BAR ZK blades are built to excel in apocalyptic situations and can handle everything from camp chores to camp security.

In an ever-changing world, the need for preparedness has never been greater. Without notice the game can change and the rules no longer apply. Questioning your gear at a crucial moment is not an option. Whether setting up camp or securing your perimeter, ZK knives are designed to perform under the most rigorous, unexpected and apocalyptic situations. Are you prepared?

Includes an extra set of black handles and a nylon sheath with front stuff sack and draw cord.

KA-BAR Zombie Pestilence Chopper

 KA-BAR also offers their Zombie Pestilence Chopper. A large machete type blade with a drop point and recurved blade. This blade retails for around $70. From the KA-BAR site

The Ka-Bar Zombie Killer Pestilence Chopper is a straight edge fixed blade machete, constructed with a non-reflective black powder coated SK5 steel blade measuring a full 10 1/4" and has an overall length of 15 3/4". This knife features a textured GFN-PA66 handle.

The Ka-Bar ZK Pestilence Chopper is part of the Ka-Bar Zombie Killer series, which are made from SK-5 High Carbon Steel and will stand up to the harshest conditions. The ZK knives come with high-visability green glass filled nylon handle scales installed, but also include a set of black scales for users who prefer a more low profile appearance. KA-BAR ZK blades are built to excel in apocalyptic situations and can handle everything from camp chores to camp security.

In an ever-changing world, the need for preparedness has never been greater. Without notice the game can change and the rules no longer apply. Questioning your gear at a crucial moment is not an option. Whether setting up camp or securing your perimeter, ZK knives are designed to perform under the most rigorous, unexpected and apocalyptic situations. Are you prepared?

Includes an extra set of black handles and a nylon sheath with front stuff sack and draw cord.

All of the "Zombie Killer Knives" KA-BAR is making come with an extra set of scales for the blade in a regular color. 

-Scout

                   

Course Length

We ran the course today with a GPS device and got a pretty good raw distance for it. The total raw distance was about 3.8 miles. The actual distance will be about .25 miles shorter since we took a few longer routes to keep from walking in solid thorns and brambles. The route has not been cut with the brush hog yet so it  was still too brambley rough to walk in some places, but I have the brush hog tractor coming back from working in Houston this next week and I will clean out the vines and thorn brush along the route so there will be a clean five foot wide trail.

Some of the course is set to run along about a quarter mile of dry creek bed. But, if it is raining in February, which it could well be, I will have a secondary trail cut that follows the creek. Some of the route follows dirt or gravel roads, some is open field and some is woods and brush. The trail has plenty of spear grass along it so as I mentioned earlier, I would wear a good ankle high type boot to keep the spear grass out of my socks.

The rifle stations look like they will all be under 300M. Two of the stations will be 200-150 and one will be 250-300. I was hoping to put in a 400 M shot at one of the stations, but it is too tough to get it in without blocking out a lot of space for the course, so the long shot will be a 300M shot. However, there will be several positions at the 300 meter station where you will have to repeat the shot. 

I will add some photos of the course and the obstacles tomorrow.

-Scout

 

Zombie Run Obstacles...

There will be several obstacles on the course we are running in February. I don't want anyone to get anxious worrying about the obstacles. They should be challenging for folks, without being something that will be unmanageable. There are several small hills in rows in places, like whoop-de-doos that folks will have to go up and down, nothing too big.

Our crew hard at work....

There will be some under and over set ups. Where you have to go under a cable or rope, and then over a stack of tires, then under a wire, then over bricks, under a wire, over a tree trunk, or something else, and repeat it again several times in a row. This will definitely get lower body muscles burning.

There will be a 35 foot pole bridge. Not a problem. It is a 35 foot span with an 18 inch wide plank walkway. No handrails. Your sense of balance will have to carry you over it. Only a few feet off the ground, so no real chance of injury if you fall.

There will be a stack of six foot tall tractor tires standing up on their treads side by side, filled with sand and gravel so the insides are level. You will have to crawl through them from one end to the other. About 15-20 feet.

There will be a low crawl section. You will have to low crawl under a set of crisscrossing wires for about 20 feet. Wires are about two and a half feet above the ground. No machine guns firing over your head.  I brought in a load of nice clean soft sand to cover the rocks and sharp gravel.

There will be logs across the trail at different places, and maybe piles of car tires you will have to climb over, depression in the ground, piles of dirt. Maybe some landmines, punji pits.... just kidding!!. Nothing designed to cause any injury, right? We have been going over everything and making sure there are no sharp edges, or anything that can cause an injury. 

We have not finished with all of the obstacles, so if you have a favorite, non injury causing obstacle, just add it in the comments below. I will post pics of the obstacles in another post. See you there!

-Scout

  

 

Additional Zombie Run Info....

We have put out the course of fire for the shoot, the stations and the round counts. It is on the website at www.battleroadusa.com and you can take a look at it to get an idea of how the course will run. The round count is high.

The round count for this event will be 177 rounds of pistol ammunition and 150 rounds of rifle ammunition (that’s the round count if you shoot the course without a single miss). So make sure you have plenty of ammo and bring all your rifle and pistol mags.

If you run your mags dry you will need to prep them on the run. I know some folks might balk at the high round count, but it is not done just to burn up your ammo. We have been to several different types of these shoots, and one of the things we always wanted from them, was to be able to shoot more.  :)

Some of it is due to the Battle Road philosophy on shooting in survival type situations. If you ever find yourself in the position of having to fire your weapon in yours, or another's defense, you should be shooting until the threat is down and out of play. That might be more than a single round, or even a double tap. It might be three, four or even five rounds. Use this event to do some shooting with that fancy rifle or pistol.

One last thing, the round count and course description is not all set in stone, and may even get tweaked all the way until the day of the shoot. If this is going to freak you out, this might not be the event for you.  :)

 I wanted to list a few more things. There will be several obstacles along the course, at, or between the stations and you will most likely be in contact with the ground, on hands, knees even elbows, in some of the obstacle scenarios. I would strongly advise using gloves and knee pads.

A lot of the ground in different places along the trail is covered with spear grass, and grass burrs right now. If it has not all rotted off by run time, the spears may give you grief if you are wearing low cut shoes. They pile up on your socks at your ankle and it will be like a really good ant bite as the spear digs in your ankle. Grass burrs will give grief too. So I would recommend some over the ankles shoes or boots to keep out the spears and burrs.

As mentioned in the course of fire, there will be integrity items along the trail to keep runners honest. I know that everyone who will be attending will be honest, that is just the way that gun culture folks are. Honest, ethical, moral and friendly. Especially "Run and Gun" type folks. But, as they say in a lot of competitive events, if you are not cheating, your not trying. So this just helps keep folks on the trail. There will be cans along the trail, and some will have some 550 cord in them, and some will not. You will not know until you look in the can.

If it has 550 cord in it, you will need to take one (one only) and attach it to your gear. (We might have a key ring set up by run time for attaching the cord). You will need to have all the items we put out or you will get DQ'd at finish.

There will be porta jons at the start line and a couple of other places maybe. If you are not in the woods area, use the porta cans. No one wants to see/hear/smell your biological functions. If you are in the woods fine, but no paper messes please, make whatever goes on neat and clean. Like it was your own property, or better than, if need be.

Make sure you give us your shirt sizes on the prereg form, if you do not, you get whatever shirt size happens to be in the "no shirt size given" box. We will have extra shirts and maybe some hats and sweat shirts and hoodies available for purchase at the admin area. Please feel free to buy several to make your friends jealous.

That is all for now. I will post more tomorrow. Thanks Guys!

Scout-

Zombie Promo #6

I had to do another video, since the one I posted earlier had some copy written Creedence music in it that I do not have the rights to...so, I did another one with generic music and had to almost completely redo it, just in order to switch out the music. So here is Zombie Run Promo 6 (actually number 11 or so...)

This is only my second attempt at filming and editing so no comments on how much I suck at it ok? And I want to remind everyone that the whole reason for doing an event like this, (for us), is to have fun.

First rule is be safe, second is to have fun and third is to see how our strength, speed and stamina match up with our shooting skills and run planning. And I hope that is how this event turns out. 

                                                                           Fun.

The BattleRoadUSA.com website is set up with an eventbrite link now so you can begin preregistering. We are going to need about 25 or so ROs who will run the event free the day before, Friday February 22, 2013, and then RO for the event day on Saturday the 23rd. You can send an email to mark@battelroadusa.com to let him know if you want to be an RO for the event.

Scout-

Zombie Run Promo Video

We did a bit of filming to kind of preview the upcoming Zombie Destruction Run we have scheduled for February 23, 2013. There are bits of stuff we will be doing for the run. Not everything is carved in stone yet as we are still working out some of the courses of fire and some of the actual course plans, but, I guarantee it will be a great chance to see how your strength, speed and stamina match up with your shooting skills. 

BattleRoadUSA "End of The World as We Know It-Zombie Destruction Run"

Hey Folks! Ever wanted to combine your shooting skills with a physical test of your strength, speed and endurance, in one event, in order to give you an idea of  how you might fare in an actual "End of The World-Zombie Apocalypse" situation? (Without all the blood, gore, mental anguish and unsanitary conditions you might encounter in an actual Zombie Apocalypse)

The BattleRoadUSA "End of The World as We Know It-Zombie Destruction Run" is on!, and scheduled for February 23rd, 2013.

The run will be a three plus mile loop around the BattleRoadUSA range location in Buckholts, Texas. There will be seven shooting stations, for rifle and pistol against Zombie themed targets and seven obstacles that will have to be negotiated during the run.

We will be setting up the registration page in he next couple of days.We will be capping attendance at 100 runners and 30 Range Officers. The Range Officers will run on Friday, February 22nd, the day before the actual event, and then will act as range officers for the event runners on Saturday. The ROs will run the event for free. The cost to Saturday runners will be $100 per a person. The runners will also receive a T-shirt, along with a meal at the event location, on the day of the run.

We want to make this an annual event at BattleRoadUSA and we would like folks to use this occasion to bring trade and barter items to sell or trade at the event. We will be looking for sponsors for the event, so if you have someone in mind that might want to donate money, or goods, and have their company information on the website, a banner at the event, have their company literature handed out or have a tent or truck at the event and sell their gear, you can send me an email at rwvarangescout@(remove) gmail.com, or call at 254-217(remove)1325 and we can discuss possible options.

Most of all, we want to have an exciting and safe event, and bring a great shooting experience to the folks who attend. Hope to see everyone there!


 

Hornady Zombie Max Ammunition

The Hornady Zombie Max Ammunition in action. I think this guy lets these zombies get too close right? That is why he has the Zombie Max Ammo, so that he can dust them in the head when they are beyond slimy hand on your neck, or dripping their zombie juices into your mouth and eyes distance. If you are going to get this type close in action, check out the Battle Hatchets and Tomahawks below.

There are a lot of Tomahawks available out there for folks who need some OTAF, "Other than a Firearm" defensive/offensive options. here are some comparisons on video. Tactical Tomahawks for Zombie disposal, which model can best serve your Zombie destroying needs?

Even the CDC is getting involved in the "Zombie Uprising". They want you to make a plan for anything, including a "Zombie Apocolypse".