The CBC is reporting that Curtis Hargrove, an Edmontonian running across the country to raise money for the Stollery Children’s Hospital Foundation, had his trip delayed by the SQ yesterday when he was arrested and charged with obstructing police after refusing to get off the road.  He then spent five hours in an interrogation room, giving him a much-needed cool down after a morning of pounding the pavement.

Although Hargrove had already been warned not to run on the highway, he dismissed those warnings as Quebecker craziness.  ”You’ve got people driving past me on their cell phones. You’ve got people eating burgers. Nothing against anyone else, but I mean, I’m the least you should be worried about,” he said.

And it seems the issue wasn’t so much that he was running along the Trans-Canada, but rather that he hadn’t given advance notice that he’d be doing so—and received approval from Transport Quebec.  (Hmm, why does that sound familiar?)  Makes me wonder whether they’d arrest Terry Fox too, or if he had to take the back roads…

Alas, Hargrove was eventually released, and vows to continue his charity run along a “different route” before being summoned to court in September.  I wonder which one carries a heavier fine in Quebec: running along a highway or protesting without permission?  Seems to me they both fall under the provincial Code de la sécurité routière—just ask Amir Khadir!