Mrs. Dubbatrubba and I were supposed to be winging our way to Minneapolis tomorrow, along with our friends Heather, Shawn, Celene, John, another John, (not from They Might Be Giants*), Jon (not at all confusing), Kelsi, Ashley, and a few more folks who are friends of John or John (but not Jon).
We were going to do a 200-mile 12-person relay race:
“Crisp lakes, quaint towns… shaded bike path trails…” sounds delightful, doesn’t it? (OK, other than the 200 miles of running. And to be clear, I’m using the royal “we” – I was just going to drive one of the two support vans.)
We were all set. John (not John) booked the VRBO, the hotel rooms, and rented the vans. John (other john) mapped out the relay legs and all the other logistics.
We’ve run Ragnar races before – they organize the Bourbon Chase in Kentucky and other round-the-clock team relay runs all over the country.
But apparently NOT in Minnesota.
Ragnar cancelled the race on July 13th. Less than four weeks before it was supposed to happen. For… “reasons”…
Sorry, but that’s pretty lame. (And quite nebulous… my guess is they didn’t get enough entries.)
How about “exhausting every available option” BEFORE you collect every team’s entry fee. And if you have to pull the plug, how about offering a full refund to anyone who wants it, instead of just offering a “transfer package” to another Ragnar race. (Sorry, but once bitten, twice shy.)
And because they cancelled less than 30 days before the event, our fun bunch is on the hook for a 50% cancellation fee from the VRBO cabin we rented for after the race. That’s $1800 down the drain. (Unless someone else rents the cabin – I hear Duluth is lovely in August.)
And of course all of us booked flights too. Most had a cancellation fee. Mrs. Dubbatrubba and I were able to get our fee waived and got a full flight credit, but that’s not the same as cash in our pocket. Not to mention the headache and hassle of trying to contact the airline and plead our case.
That’s just for our baker’s dozen. Every other team that signed up has been dealing with similar challenges.
For a race that was supposed to end on Lake Superior, the Ragnar experience has been decidedly inferior.
I know stuff happens. But there was a better way. Ragnar could’ve taken a page from the Kickstarter book – their campaigns are all-or-nothing, and you don’t get charged unless the goal is reached.
In short, Ragnar needed to get their ducks in a row before advertising their “crisp lakes.” Instead, every member of every team is dealing with the headaches, hassles and doo-doo they created.
If you’re considering doing a Ragnar relay, please reconsider.
*They Might Be Giants is a band featuring John Linnell and John Flansburgh…
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