Over a month after the Ultimate Wine Run at Arrowhead Stadium was suddenly canceled, organizers say the race will go on despite participants continuing to demand a refunds.
In early October, organizers canceled the Ultimate Wine Run two days before it was supposed to be held in Kansas City.
The organizers cited "alcoholic permitting and supplier issues" as the reason for the cancellation.
On Thursday, 41 Action News received several emails from runners claiming the organizers now plan to hold the race at a later date.
Many of the runners, who paid $20 to $80 for the event, now say they just want their money back.
"At this point, I feel like I am being scammed," explained Rebecca Carty, who signed up in July for the Ultimate Wine Run. "They canceled it and promised our money back. Now, all of a sudden there's going to be another event."
Carty told 41 Action News that she trained for two months to get ready for the event.
After the run was canceled, she hoped to get her registration fee returned.
However, getting a hold of the organizers has proven to be a challenge.
"They said they would refund our money within 2 weeks," she said. "I'm just truly disappointed and I feel like I've been scammed. I just don't want to support something like that."
Carty has tried contacting the organizers by email, but has yet to receive an apology or a refund over a month after the event cancellation.
Her experience is not unique.
Across the country, runners have complained about the event.
On Facebook, "the Ultimate Wine Run Rage" page has 35 followers and posts comments regarding issues with the event.
Information uncovered by 41 Action News showed that Ultimate Wine Run organizers have faced many issues in the past.
According to the Better Business Bureau, the Wine Run group has an F rating due to almost a dozen complaints filed by participants in the past year.
Five complaints about the Ultimate Wine Run have been reported to the BBB’s scam department.
Issues were also found with the charity the Ultimate Wine Run claimed to support.
According to the event’s website, proceeds from the races would be donated to the Achieving My Dreams Foundation.
The BBB reported that while researching the charity, several problems were discovered.
The phone number listed for the foundation connected callers to White Tax Services in Oxnard, California.
Furthermore, both the foundation’s website and Facebook page haven’t been updated in several months.
On Thursday, 41 Action News also learned that the Ultimate Wine Run scheduled for this weekend in Santa Barbara, California, had been canceled abruptly.
Organizers blamed the cancellation on a lack of registrations for the event.
A woman who signed up for the event sent an email to 41 Action News complaining about the cancellation.
"We had to cancel our hotel plans," she wrote. "Now they won't refund us."
According to the Ultimate Wine Run website, the event is scheduled to return to the metro area on June 17, 2017 at Berkley Riverfront Park.
Carty said she plans to avoid the event, and as a result of her experience, she will do more research before signing up for her next run.
"I may do a little more digging before I sign up next time," she explained.
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Tom Dempsey can be reached at Tom.Dempsey@KSHB.com.
