JOHN DAY – The circus came to town Saturday night.

Or at least, circus performers. With a dark side – who seemed to have maybe escaped their circus train just so they could wreak havoc and terror on runners in John Day.

In the “Zombie Circus” fun run held Oct. 24, runners made their way through an untimed 5K event while running, leaping and jumping to make their way through several obstacles and numerous zombies determined to thwart their efforts and grab their flags.

The route began at Seventh Street Complex and wound its way through several locations throughout the Grant County Fairgrounds.

The circus-style zombies included a zombie elephant, several clowns, “freak show” marionettes with a marionette master, a hula hoop performer and a bearded lady – with a monkey.

A considerable amount of preparation goes into the event, including planning out the course, the obstacles and the zombies.

And of course, lots of costumes and make up – heavy on the latter.

Zombies gathered in the Sale Barn about an hour prior to the run to get gussied up under wigs, layers of colorful and bizarre clothing, and makeup that was frighteningly realistic.

All the participants enjoyed an after-party in the Sale Barn.

According to Lisa Weigum with Safe Communities, there were 56 runners and 30 zombies this year.

The event was organized by Grant County Safe Communities Coalition and the John Day-Canyon City Parks and Rec. The event raised about $600 to be split, Weigum said, between the Coalition and Parks and Rec.

She said the event is never very profitable, but it’s a good time for all involved.

“We got a lot of great reviews from the participants, both the zombies and runners,” Weigum said.

Participants came from as far away as Bend and Burns.

“We are pretty happy that the word is getting out about the run,” she said, adding they are already gearing up for next year’s run.

“We’ve got some great ideas, and it’s only going to get bigger and better,” Weigum said.