Allentown man sued over Mini Mudder for kids

An obstacle course created by an Allentown father for his kids and a few dozen community children has come under fire by Tough Mudder, the nation's biggest organizer and promoter of extreme endurance contests.

On Tuesday, Tough Mudder filed a 75-page suit in federal court in Allentown claiming that Mini Mudder, a race designed by Barry Dobil Jr. for elementary-school children, has infringed on its trademark and is damaging its brand. A spokeswoman for Tough Mudder could not be reached for comment. Dobil said his Mini Mudder event had not been created as a moneymaking enterprise but said he could not comment further.

A production manager for a boutique candy maker, Dobil is a past participant in Tough Mudders. He organized the first Mini Mudder in 2012 after his son begged him to find an obstacle race for children. Dobil reached out to Tough Mudder organizers and asked if there was a contest for kids. The company stated it did not run children's events because of liability issues, said Dobil's attorney, Damon Neagle.

The first year, about 40 children gathered in a neighborhood park to clamber through a collection of 22 obstacles. The attorney said Dobil recorded video of the event to pitch it to Tough Mudder and try to convince the company a children's race was doable. "Tough Mudder made it clear they weren't interested," Neagle said.

After another Mini Mudder in 2013, Dobil received inquiries from people who wanted to organize their own Mini Mudders. Dobil put plans on his website and consulted on about 10 events, Neagle said. Dobil has kept his Mini Mudders "completely nonprofit" and never charged an entrance fee, Neagle said.

"He has actually lost money doing this," Neagle said. "He just wanted to offer something those guys were refusing to offer."

Brooklyn, N.Y.-based Tough Mudder Inc., which was launched in 2010, trademarked a number of names based on the word Mudder - Mudderella, Mudder Legion, and Mudder Nation among them. At some point, Tough Mudder reconsidered its decision about hosting children's events. In late November 2014, the company applied to trademark "Mini Mudder."

On Feb. 1, the company announced it was expanding Tough Mudder Inc.'s offerings to include "a custom event aimed at children aged 7-12." Two weeks later, the company filed its federal trademark suit against Dobil.

The suit asserts that Dobil is trading off of Tough Mudder's success and intellectual property by attempting to replicate Tough Mudder in nearly every way. It seeks damages valued at three times of Mini Mudder's profits.