A gross display of false advertisement and failure to deliver the product that was promised.  I just ran a 5K with Rebel Race in NJ on April 15th and what was supposed to be a fun filled, extra muddy weekend, as promised and shown in every single ad/website that they put out, ended up being a dry, dusty, poorly designed course with no clear direction on which way to go in the woods, leaving hundreds of runners going the wrong way.  I finished second overall and I race to compete and maybe if I didn't go the wrong way twice, maybe my time would have been better.  But that's besides the point.

Let's talk about MUD or complete lack of it.  There was and still is an outrage on their FB page with runners killing the Rebel Race for not having mud on the course on Saturday, April 14.  You think they would have resolved the problem the next day but sure enough, I ran the first wave at 9:30am Sunday, more than enough time for course crews to be out there getting the course nice and muddy for the runners who had paid a lot of money to be there with some specific expectations in mind, like mud for example, BUT NO, nothing at all, NO MUD, NO WATER, instead they made the course slippery by using vegetable oil and later on, paint.  That is just outright wrong and nasty.  As the day progressed, you did see some crew trying to bring barrels and buckets of water on the course but it just wasn't enough.  When asked about it, they said they couldn't do anything about it because there were no hose connections the middle of the course.  I scratch my head because I was thinking, "why have the course in that location?"  I am sure I was not the only one thinking that but I am sure I was one of the few who tried to inquire about it on the spot. 

All Rebel Race did was apologize on their FB page ONCE for the mud issue on Saturday but then continued to collect money, make the same exact mistake the next day and and never addressed the issue on their page, in fact they ignored what people were saying.  While this was happening, they continued to lie to people about parking on the side of  the road, where they let some people park, telling them they were going to get towed, which would force them to go back 4 miles down the road and park in their parking lot and pay them $10, meanwhile not 1 single person all weekend got towed.  I believe a few got a ticket on Saturday but that is just insult to injury.  They were already robbing for the race and now they were calling the cops on us who already spent money on registration, tolls, gas and shelter for the night or two.  They are still ignoring what everybody is saying, NO RESPONSE from what i see.  They delete or send to the archives right away, the posts that really expose them in a negative light and show what they did that weekend.  Nobody can a word in edge-wise because they just don't care.  If they did, there are always ways to make it up, offer FREE food, drink, half off the next race offers that don't expire, SOMETHING.  Anything is better than nothing. 

And let's not forget 1 very important fact.  They are greatly overpriced for what you get.  They charge the same as Spartan Race and not nearly as organized or established as them.  The setup was small and cheap, which i don't particularly mind or hate on and will accept if the prices for the race is in the range of  $50.  Small stage, below average band playing and just one band so they were not playing music all day.  There was only 1 food stand with $4 regular hotdogs, and $6 burgers.  There was a small gated section where you were allowed to get and drink your beer but were not permitted to go anywhere else on the ground with your beer accept there.  There were lines just to get your ID checked and get a bracelet to get a beer.  If you ran the 15k, once you passed the finish line, you had to proceed back to the start line but between those 2 points, there were people standing all around mainly because they were done with the race and many were buying tickets to buy merchandise or food.  That line was dead smack in the middle of the starting point and finish line point.  I guess you add that as the mystery obstacle in the 15k.  I think you get the idea. 

BREAKDOWN:

• NO MUD, ALTHOUGH ADVERTISED AS ONE OF THE MUDDIEST RUNS
• USED OIL AND PAINT ON THE COURSE WITH NO PRIOR WARNING
• GREATLY OVERPRICED REGISTRATION FEE
• LIED ABOUT PARKING CLOSER TO THE ENTRANCE JUST TO MAKE MORE MONEY IN THE LOT 4 MILES AWAY
• CALLED THE COPS TO TICKET SOME PEOPLE
• IGNORE ALL COMMENTS ON THEIR FB PAGE
• ARCHIVE ALL THE COMMENTS ABOUT THIS WEEKEND
• THE SAME MESS WENT ON FOR 2 DAYS
• OFFER NOTHING IN RETURN

DEBACLE