Joliet woman wants refund after Bubble Run location is moved 80 miles; organizer has drawn numerous consumer complaints
CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Bubble Run is exactly what it sounds like – participants run across three miles through masses of colorful suds and foam – in what the event website says is all about "bringing back memories of car washes and bathtub bubble beards."
It's supposed to be a blast. But some suburban families told CBS 2's Tara Molina it's a bust.
Race organizers moved the location for a local Bubble Run event 80 miles. Because of this, some families said they can no longer participate – and are getting the runaround for a refund.
Molina found this is not the first time the company behind the Bubble Run has done something like this.
We found reports dating back to 2017 - and lots of current unhappy racers - from across the country. They took to social media with the same concerns we heard.
The Bubble Run website shows people smiling and laughing as they run and trudge their way through bubbles. But Joliet mom and Bubble Runner Shareese Wallace is not laughing at all.
"It's a little disappointing," she said. "I won't be driving to Grayslake."
You read that right. The race on Saturday, July 8, for which Wallace signed up with her 6-year-old daughter and her Girl Scout troop was supposed to be held at the Chicagoland Speedway in Joliet – in Will County, well to the southwest of Chicago. But it was moved to the Lake County Fairgrounds in Grayslake, less than 15 miles from the Wisconsin state line.
"It's far," Wallace said. "It's over an hour away."
Indeed, Grayslake is closer to Milwaukee than it is to Joliet. And driving from Joliet to Grayslake is not a feasible option for Wallace and her family.
She found out the relocation through an email, which said the Chicagoland Speedway had to cancel the Bubble Run "due to scheduling conflicts," but, "Luckily, we have been able to locate a new venue for your upcoming Bubble Run on the same day!"
Wallace is speaking out because she said she is sure there are other racers who missed the single notification about the move - and will be very disappointed on race day.
She is also speaking out because she has asked for a refund - but hasn't heard back.
"I don't know," Wallace said. "I didn't get an answer."
She said she's not the only one – and a look online proves that point.
Dozens of comments on the Bubble Run Facebook page document last-minute venue changes and cancellations in various municipal areas – with some calling the whole thing a scam.
And there is a history. CBS stations WCCO-TV 4 in Minneapolis and WREG-TV 3 in Memphis reported similar concerns in 2017 and 2018, respectively.
In Minneapolis in 2017, WCCO reported the run was moved from June 11 to July 30. Morgan Early and her husband Chris had registered for the run back in January of that year – but 17 days before the race, found out on the event Facebook page that the date was being pushed back.
But Bubble Run's website said back then – and still says now – that there are no refunds. It warns people to "triple check their calendar prior to signing up."
The website also says, "Date and locations are subject to change."
When the 2017 Minneapolis race was rescheduled, organizers sent people links to four other events allowing them to transfer their registration fees. But none of the four suggested events took place in Minnesota.
"We will be reporting this as fraud to our credit card company if we don't get further answers from them," Chris Early told WCCO reporter Jeff Wagner at the time.
Meanwhile, WREG reported a Bubble Run had been scheduled for November 2017 at the Memphis International Raceway in Millington, Tennessee – but registered participants received an email just weeks before that it had been canceled.
Ashley Wylie, who had planned to participate in the Memphis run, told the station the email said everyone's registrations would be transferred to the next date. Wylie told WREG she tried to contact the organizers on their website and social media – but never heard back, instead seeing a new event page on Facebook that said the race would be held in May 2018.
"It sounds kind of like a scam," Wylie told WREG. "If it's a scam, shame on them. If it's not, they definitely need to hire better people who are communicating with these people who are giving them money for the event."
Reports out of multiple municipal areas also noted that the Bubble Run and similar runs put on by the same event provider drew warnings from the Better Business Bureau.
We reached out to the Bubble Run event provider, CoolEvents LLC, with all these concerns.
They first said they would do an interview with us, but ended up sending a written statement -- in which they said they actually do sometimes provide refunds despite what their website says:
"We have hosted successful experiential fun run events across the US for over ten years, including over 20 events in Chicago, but were forced to change the location for next month's Bubble Run due to a last minute, unforeseen cancellation by the venue provider. We therefore acted immediately to find the closest possible location available, to enable us to avoid complete cancelation of the event, and informed those participants registered of the change, providing the offer of an event transfer or credit that may be used to take part in any of our events through the end of 2024.
"We pride ourselves on delivering the best possible end-to-end customer experience, and so while our standard policy clearly states 'no refunds', this is something we have also been happy to provide where participants have reached out to explain that the offer of a transfer or credit is not suitable for them. We sincerely apologize to our customers for any inconvenience caused by the change, and will be continuing to communicate the options available to customers across channels in the lead up to the event, so they are aware."
We asked further questions – including how many customers have received refunds, and asked the company to address the issue of customers who say they have reached out and not received a response – let alone a refund. The company sent this follow-up response:
"We are deeply concerned we have frustrated our customers and want to provide the details to best meet their expectations and put this situation right.
"Our Bubble Run team was notified by our previous venue on May 16th that they could no longer host our event.
"On June 1st we confirmed our new venue, Lake County Fairgrounds, with the need to move our dates around to accommodate our events into the new venue space. We than communicated that to our participants via email starting on June 8th
"Currently we have over 6,300 people registered for the Bubble Run event and have issued 41 refunds (as of this afternoon) since the notice went out on June 8th. We are working in earnest with our customer service team to respond to every email and deliver either a transfer to another event, a credit for another 2023/2024 event or a refund.
"Since 2014 we have hosted 23 events in Chicago and have delivered high quality event experiences to over 175,000 Chicagoans in that time. Like all businesses, we have experienced a few ups and downs in delivering those events and at times have had to postpone due to weather, venue and permitting issues and occasionally due to the lack of participant registration for an event. In all cases, we of course try to first meet the customers desire to participate in one of our events first and foremost, but also have continually provided refunds when requested through our email channel."
Wallace said she is already missing a special experience with her daughter due to major changes. She said the least the company can do is refund money to her and others in the same position.
"They're due their money back," she said.
Wallace was still waiting to hear back from the company about her refund Thursday evening.