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David Petta from Bennet, Neb., competed in the "Zombies in the Heartland" competition Friday at the Heartland Shooting Park. The event was hosted by Hornady Manufacturing. (Independent/Josh Salmon)
This zombie didn't stand a chance Friday afternoon at the Heartland Shooting Park. "Zombies in the Heartland" shooting competition ran through the weekend with hundreds of zombie hunters showcasing their skills. The event was hosted by Hornady Manufacturing. (Independent/Josh Salmon)
This zombie didn't stand a chance Friday afternoon at the Heartland Shooting Park. "Zombies in the Heartland" shooting competition ran through the weekend, with hundreds of zombie hunters showcasing their skills. The event was hosted by Hornady Manufacturing. (Independent/Josh Salmon)
Once again, shooters and representatives of the firearms industry have come to Grand Island to keep the world safe from zombies.
About 265 people are taking part in the Zombies in the Heartland party at Heartland Shooting Park.
One of the people keeping zombies at bay is a man dressed in a camouflage kilt and a bright orange shirt. Kevin Kolenda, who is West Coast sales representative for the Athlon optics company, is a familiar figure at the Island zombie massacre. He is one of five people representing Athlon, which is based in Olathe, Kan.
You don’t actually see revived corpses running around Heartland Shooting Park. Participants use weapons to engage with “zombie-themed stages and targets,” said Jeremy Millard of Hornady Manufacturing. The targets are made of steel and paper.
By taking aim at those targets, people can live out fantasies derived “from watching ‘The Walking Dead’ or ‘Shaun of the Dead’ or ‘World War Z,’” Millard said.
Some of the steel targets collapse when hit by ammunition. Another target, in the shape of a head, is built around a green clay target, so shooters get the feeling of shooting out a zombie’s brains.
Zombies in the Heartland began in 2012.
Hornady, the primary sponsor, runs the match on behalf of Heartland Shooting Park.
The park came to Hornady about a decade ago “with the idea of doing a zombie-themed, three-gun match,” Millard said.
The “park staff isn’t big enough to really handle the logistics, and Steve Hornady really loved the idea of a zombie-themed match. He’s a zombie enthusiast,” he said.
Hornady liked the thought of bringing people to the shooting park and having fun, Millard said. It’s a good opportunity to “support our industry and our city.”
Participants this year come from 23 or 24 states, he said. They come from as far away as Connecticut and Texas.
Shooting enthusiasts don’t have a lot of chances to keep zombies from taking over the world. There are only one or two other zombie-themed shooting matches in the country, Millard said.
Participants use three different guns. One is a shotgun. Another is a semi-automatic rifle, typically an AR-15. The third is a pistol, which is either a semi-automatic handgun or a revolver.
Vendors provide products that are given out as awards “for shooting well or as an incentive to come out and have a good time,” Millard said.
Zombies in the Heartland runs through Sunday. The vendors had their own shoot Thursday.
About 3,500 to 4,000 volunteer hours are put into organizing and carrying out the event, Millard said. That figure does not include the time Hornady employees devote to the match while on the clock.
Millard, who is match director, has worked at Hornady for 18 years. The Kansas native is an engineer at the company.
One of the vendors represented is Tuff Products, a manufacturer based in Chula Vista, Calif. The company makes a number of products that are sold under the Hornady name. They include rifle and pistol cases, cheek pads, ammo pouches and binocular cases. Tuff Products also has its own line of soft fabric items.
Tuff Products travels to Grand Island to support the event, said Vice President Nat Stevens. The company is one of the event’s sponsors and a regular participant.
Like the other vendors, Tuff Products donates products that are used as prizes.
Tuff Products brought a three-person shooting team to Grand Island. One of the shooters, Anil “Izzy” Lalani, lives in Las Vegas. His shooting interest began when his dad took him hunting in his native Texas. Like many people, he has great memories of bringing home his first buck.
Athlon, another sponsor of the match, boasts that it makes “ridiculously good optics.” The company specializes in affordable long-range rifle scopes, said marketing manager Dustin Harding.
With a $400 Athlon scope and a $450 rifle, a hunter can “shoot 1,000 yards for less than $1,000,” Harding said.
Athlon also makes binoculars, spotting scopes and other optical products. Although the company was founded only six years ago, its products are sold at more than 600 dealers and are available worldwide.
Athlon offers a “gold-medal warranty.” If you run over an Athlon scope with your truck, “as long as you send us the pieces, we’ll take care of it,” Harding promised.
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David Petta from Bennet, Neb., competed in the "Zombies in the Heartland" competition Friday at the Heartland Shooting Park. The event was hosted by Hornady Manufacturing. (Independent/Josh Salmon)
This zombie didn't stand a chance Friday afternoon at the Heartland Shooting Park. "Zombies in the Heartland" shooting competition ran through the weekend with hundreds of zombie hunters showcasing their skills. The event was hosted by Hornady Manufacturing. (Independent/Josh Salmon)
This zombie didn't stand a chance Friday afternoon at the Heartland Shooting Park. "Zombies in the Heartland" shooting competition ran through the weekend, with hundreds of zombie hunters showcasing their skills. The event was hosted by Hornady Manufacturing. (Independent/Josh Salmon)
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