The Raymond Area Rotary Club’s 4th annual Thunder Run is a 5K obstacle race to be held in Epping, NH, on May 20 this year. But, just a few weeks from race day, the Rotary Club seems to have run into an obstacle of its own.
According to the New Hampshire Union Leader, an attorney for Tough Mudder, an endurance event series, has recently notified the Rotary Club that Tough Mudder is the owner of a trademark registration for the color orange “in connection with obstacle course mud runs” and has requested that the Rotary Club cease significant usage of such color on the Thunder Run website (http://thunderrunnh.com/). It’s unclear how long the club has been using the color orange for the Thunder Run.
Rotary Club member Joe Pratt was not at a loss for words in his response, painting any potential litigation between the two sides as a scene of David and Goliath proportions. Pratt further stated that the club might change the colors for next year’s race “if we have to.” The full story may be read here: http://www.unionleader.com/courts/raymond-rotary-pushes-back-after-tough-mudder-lays-claim-to-the-color-orange-20170511.
U.S. trademark registrations (whether for color or otherwise) are always tied to particular goods and services. Over the years, many companies have successfully obtained federal trademark/service mark registrations for their valued brand colors, such as Tiffany & Co.’s famous shade of blue and Owens Corning’s pink, the color of the company’s ubiquitous fiberglass insulation. Colors are often an important aspect of a company’s brand identity, so it really comes as no surprise that a trademark registrant/owner would be protective of such intellectual property.
With the race only days away, we’ll be interested to see if and how the attorneys for Tough Mudder respond!
Intellectual Property Resource 