'Shark Tank' contestants convince Mark Cuban to invest $1.75 million even after he shook his head

The entrepreneurs got him in to invest two of his buisnesses rather than one.

PUBLISHED AUG 6, 2025

Screenshot showing Mark Cuban and the entrepreneurs on "Shark Tank" (Cover image source: YouTube | Sony Pictures Television)

One of the things that "Shark Tank" viewers know is that Mark Cuban never invests in a product if he shakes his head during the pitch. But he made an exception for entrepreneurs who wanted a million dollars for 10% of the company. This was already a big ask, and when Cuban heard the entrepreneurs were pitching a festival-type event for adventure sports, he could not help but shake his head at it, before he ended up giving them $1.75 million.

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The company was called Rugged Races, and the entrepreneurs were Bradford Scudder and Rob Dickens. It turns out the two have done well for themselves over the years. Rugged Races organizes events like Rugged Maniac around the country all year. The main attraction of this event is a short obstacle course with several elements, like a tower of shipping containers, muddy conditions, a giant water slide, and many more.

The festival, meant for adrenaline junkies, also has a ton of other activities and alcohol for sale. The sharks liked the idea but asked about its competitors. There aren’t many businesses in this industry, but the ones that exist make it big. But the entrepreneurs believed that they had figured out how to make a more entertaining event.

Screenshot showing the entrepreneurs. (Image credit: YouTube | Sony Pictures Television)

“Basically, Tough Mudder is a 12-mile course with about 20 obstacles. We have 25 obstacles over 3 miles. So, it’s more about the obstacles and less about the running. And being a 3-mile course, it’s much more accessible to the general public,” Dickens said. He then revealed that they had made $4.2 million in sales the year prior, with a million in profit. They projected to make $6.5 million in sales the year of the taping, with more than $2 million in profit.

When asked how they use that profit, the entrepreneurs said that they invest it in another one of their companies. This one was a similar adventure sports festival. The only difference was that this was like a rodeo with bulls, horses, and cowboys. The sharks loved the idea and wanted to piece of it. However, the entrepreneurs said that they wanted $3 million for 10% of each.

But the second company had only just started and did not have much in sales. Dickens and Scudder had overvalued the second company by a lot. The sharks believed that the two were more invested in that one, and some of them said no. However, Robert Herjavec offered $1.5 million for 25% of the two companies combined. He then went in with Kevin O’Leary for a third of the company for the same money.

Screenshot showing Robert Herjavec. (Image credit: YouTube | Sony Pictures Television)

Mark Cuban then offered the same offer as Herjavec did at first. The entrepreneurs negotiated and both agreed on $1.75 million. They did take some time to discuss the offers, which led some to believe that they might not accept an offer.