That is my number one Movie Rule of Thumb. (See the sidebar for a link to all of them.)

We make movies about it. We write books about it. We make TV shows about it. Even the CDC gets involved in it.

But it turns out there is a group of action shooting competitors in North Carolina and Virginia who have been practicing for it. Check out the Zombie Shooters Association of America at http://zombieshootersassociation.com/.

This group runs pistol matches and multi-gun matches against three types of targets: Zombies, Infected (bitten but not undead), and Meals (uninfected). The concept is so perfect that when I described the targets to my 14 year old son, he was able to tell me, pretty close, the rules of the game, never having seen the web site or the videos.

From the website:

1) Zombies are standard targets and need 1 head shot to kill.

2) Infected targets are also standard and need minimum of 3 body hits, at least 2 must be “Good” (“C” or better, or “Down 1″ or better) to score a kill.

3) STILL WALKIN’ (SW) is a failure on Zombie and incurs 5 second penalty.

4) CREATED A WALKER (CAW) is failure on an Infected and incurs 10 second penalty.

5) WRECKED A MEAL (WAM) is hit on living target (white) and incurs a 10 second penalty no matter how many times it is hit, each WAM target can earn penalty if hit.

There are also innovative procedural penalties such as sticking any part of your body through a port (after all, you could get bitten and become Infected yourself).

Check out the website and follow them on Twitter and Facebook. And, if you’re in the northern NC / Southern VA area, take a look. Personally, I would love it if other clubs closer to home would take up the cause.

In any case, as with a real zombie outbreak, it’s probably only a matter of time before it spreads everywhere!

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention is always looking for ways to get people to think about worst case scenarios, and take plans for their family’s safety. Yesterday, in a much publicized campaign, they issued a post describing how to prepare for the coming Zombie Apocalypse.

Their contention, which I share, is if you’re ready for zombies, you’re ready for anything. I thought the post was well done, and it drives home the need for a personal and family emergency plan. They even explore the various kinds of zombies – undead, infected, rage virus, and so on. Of course, they end with the conclusion that you need to have a plan and provisions.

My only beef is that the post totally ignores the obvious advice of what weapons would be best to combat the undead horde. So, where do we turn for that kind of practical advice?

Fortunately, there is another group who has had the same goal for a lot longer – the Zombie Squad. They started in 2008 as a zombie fan site, and found that they kinds of things their members talked about in the forums to fend off the zeds, worked just as well for emergencies that were less civilization-ending, such as hurricanes, floods, and tornadoes.

The Zombie Squad Forum makes for very interesting and thorough reading on the topic of surviving just about any level of emergency. The sections on survival equipment – including weapons – is especially useful. I recommend you take a look, spend some time there, and heed the advice that fits your situation.

Then, make your plans and get your provisions ready. No matter what your motivation, none of it works without action.

Photo by Julie Golob, courtesy of USPSA

As long as they had been having them, Rob Leatham had won the US Single Stack Nationals. Founded in 1994 as a way to keep the spirit of the classic, single stack 1911 pistol alive in competition, Leatham won the first 16 matches they held.

Then came last Saturday, as Dave Sevigny bested Rob and over 350 other top shooters, in Barry, Iliinois. You can read a complete report of the match here.

One of the nice things about pistol competition is that the sport is very accessible. I have had a chance to meet and talk with a lot of the major champions in the sport, including Dave. He is a regular at GSSF’s Annual Shoot at the South River Gun Club in Conyers, Georgia, every September, and I’ve spoken with him quite a few times, and shot quite a lot of video of him, Randi Rogers, and former team member Jessie Abbate, as they demonstrated their skills. (Should I scan and post my autographed photos?)

When I first read about it on Twitter, my first thought was “Wow, Dave won.” Then “A Glock won.” Then “Wait. Glock doesn’t make a 1911 . . .”

In fact, Sevigny has won almost all of his national championships using a Glock. But this time his gun was different. As he says on his Facebook page,

The pistol is a custom Springfield 1911-A1, .45 ACP. Square trigger guard w light-rail dustcover, short/flat trigger, ambi-safety, Schuemann barrel, TGO Tech Well, Mil-Tac G10 diamond grips, Warren Tactical Series-Sevigny Competition sight, over size mag release and Ion Bond DLC finish.

Nice rig.

I haven’t gotten to meet Rob Leatham, but I want to. After all, he may have lost this one, but he’s far from done. If anything, this just proves he’s human.

Today I was talking with a colleague at work, and he mentioned he was planning to buy his wife a gun for self defense. I waited for him to ask my opinion, but he didn’t, so I asked what kind of gun he was planning to buy.

“Oh, a .22, of course.” He then went on the explain that it was perfect for his wife – lightweight, low recoil, inexpensive to buy and to practice, and deadly.

“After all, there was that woman in Duluth last week who used one to kill that home invader.”

He was referring to this story, which I wrote about last week. It’s probably been the most talked about shooting topic for me with non-shooters, in the past week.

What I wanted to say was, “Okay, that worked for her, because it was the one she had at the time, but it’s not the one I would pick, if I could pick ahead of time, which is what we’re doing.” But I didn’t.

Instead, we talked about the best way to make a .22 a viable self defense weapon. Whoever uses it has to be able to deliver a lot of shots to vulnerable areas of the attacker’s body. We’re probably talking about 8 or 10 shots to center of mass. Or being willing to make head shots.

I left him with the task of finding out if his wife was willing to do what it took to make a .22 work. Could she make head shots, or would she be able to hold her ground and make multiple shots to other areas, like the pelvic area?

Thanks to a woman who did what she had to do, I’ve changed the way I see self defense handguns. Would I pick a .22 for myself as a self defense gun? Probably not. But, if I’m ever in a situation where my Buck Mark is the only gun I have to use, at least I know what to do. And, more importantly, I know it can be done.