Schedule change well in advance: What are my options/what would you do?
I recently found out that my SAN-ORD-MSN flights for Thanksgiving have undergone a sever schedule change. Something moved by a few minutes, so my connection to the last ORD-MSN of the night went illegal by 5min. I was rebooked on an much earlier flight. The problem is I'm driving down from LA (F is much cheaper ex-SAN) and can't make an earlier flight. I was given the following options:
Later flight out of SAN but connecting via DFW (unacceptable, won't pay for F for 800mi on RJ)
Overnight in Chicago (really, really don't want to fly on Thanksgiving and don't like to walk away from a segment unless I absolutely have to)
Refund (doesn't help now that other airlines' prices are higher than when I booked months ago)
What I proposed:
Fly me out of LAX
Have my travel terminate in ORD (per their rules no reroutes allowed on schedule changes w/o additional fare collection)
Force book the illegal connection with the understanding I might miss (which they said can't even be forced)
I think I've given reasonable options given the changes they've imposed, but what haven't I thought of? What can I expect regarding someone bending rules on reroutes, or am I SOL? If I accept the change, is there anything I should be offered in compensation, or is this just a "take it or leave it (refund)" situation?