Hi @sixfootjames
To respond to your original question, to query a value which is saved as an array, you will need to perform a LIKE compare. You can read about this here:
http://www.advancedcustomfields.com/resources/field-types/checkbox/
For a good understanding of how to create a front end search engine, try this:
http://www.advancedcustomfields.com/resources/tutorials/creating-wp-archive-custom-field-filter/
Thanks
E