A strange thing happened to me while I was on the way to class last week.

I was parking my cheap bike in front of Hayes, when I saw a guy come running past me screaming.

I thought nothing of it; this town is thriving with crazy lunatics. But, then I saw why he was running: four heavily-Nerfed dudes were chasing him. As most would be, I was confused.

Why were these dudes chasing that guy? Why did they have fake weapons? Did the College Republicans start “Hunt an Immigrant Day”? Well, at the time, I didn’t know.

Now, of course, I realize these guys were actively involved in the Zombie live-action role playing game (known to other huge nerds as a LARP).

Apparently, kids all around campus are actively engaging in random acts of foam dart violence, all in the name of a game.

In the game, zombies hunt down humans, until only one human remains, who is then declared the winner.

Trying to wrap my mind around this crazy concept, I decided the best way to get some info on this game is to talk to one of the brave souls protecting us from a zombie attack. So, I decided to interview one of the human players.

Since I don’t want to give away his identity, I’ll just call him “Scott.” He told me that he sees the game as just pure intensity, mixed with adrenaline, and a dash of complete ridiculousness. But, the good thing is, this whole activity provides us with some real, hands-on zombie apocalypse training.

He also told me about one of the requirements to be a higher-level player in the game: camo gear and terrible facial hair. I had a look at some of the weaponry he was using, and it seemed to be upper-class foam goodness.

Apparently, the humans can’t use real guns, what with there being a campus policy against things like “murder.” But, by using these Nerf guns, are they actually helping out the population? You bet.

Sure, zombies may not be affected by foam darts (God help us if they truly aren’t), but it’s still important for these people to perform these tactical operations.

Unfortunately, sometimes all this training is for nothing. Right after I spent time with “Scott,” he was savagely killed by a bunch of zombies.

Apparently, some of the players get into the game more than others. So, that’s the real scoop.

Now, when you see a group of people with orange bandanas running around the campus, you can be sure the gang crime rate has not increased. It’s just a bunch of dudes protecting us from a real threat to society: people acting like the undead.

Jon Ruggiero ([email protected]) is being chased by orange-bandana-clad-nerf-gun-toating angry students.