Ultramarathoner who set Appalachian Trail record fined $500 for celebration
Scott Jurek finished his trip along the Appalachian Trail in a record 46 days and eight hours in July and celebrated the achievement, as well as his retirement from ultramarathon competitions, by uncorking a bottle of champagne.
That moment of revelry after traveling the 2,189-mile path from Georgia to Maine is going to cost the 41-year-old $500, as he broke Baxter State Park’s rules about drinking in public and littering by popping the cork, in addition to violating the ordinance on hiking with an oversized group, according to Reuters.
Jurek’s run featured ads for corporate sponsors as well as a support vehicle trailing the winner of seven consecutive Western States 100-mile Endurance Runs, leading the park officials to post their dislike for the event to Facebook.
"These corporate events have no place in the park and are incongruous with the park's mission of resource protection, the appreciation of nature and the respect of the experience of others in the park."
Jurek’s lawyer told Reuters he believed the park was trying to make an example of his client with the fine.
