Trail Hog Is Latest Installment In Will County Forest Preserve's 'Don't Be A Jerk' Series On Preserve Etiquette

CHICAGO (CBS) -- The Will County Forest Preserve District this summer has launched a series of YouTube videos asking visitors to live by basic rules of etiquette – using a man whom an unseen voiceover announcer proclaims to be a "jerk."

The latest installment in the "Don't Be a Jerk" series, released on Thursday, has the "jerk" flaunting his bad manners on a trail, often with his whole "jerk" family accompanying him.

Clad in cargo shorts, a tight black T-shirt, a baseball cap, and wraparound sunglasses, the jerk gets out of his car as the voiceover announcer accuses him of acting "like he's the only one in the preserves." While the jerk at least wears a headset, the announcer says the jerk still listens to his music so loud that he's oblivious to others while sauntering right down the middle of a trail as a bicyclist tries to get by.

The jerk is next seen with his wife and two children. As the jerk marches along in the middle of the trial, his wife appears to be taking selfies while walking, and neither is paying attention to their two young daughters – one on a bicycle, the other on a scooter.

"People should travel on the right and let others pass on the left," the voiceover announcer intones. "But that's not how this family of jerks rolls."

The jerk goes on to have his wife and daughters pose lying on their bellies in the middle of the trial, once again oblivious to the fact that a bicyclist is trying to get by.

"Acting like you own the trail is rude, and could have disastrous consequences," the voiceover announcer says.

The jerk family is also seen zigzagging down the trail on their own bicycles, and the two little girls are seen just dropping their bicycle and scooter in the middle of the trail for anyone to trip over as they leave the trail to check out wildlife.

In an earlier video, the "jerk" comes to the forest preserve with his dog, and "treats all of the preserves and trails like his personal off-leash playground for his dog."

The man lets the dog climb through the window of his sport-utility vehicle without a leash on, only bothering to hold the dog's leash when no one is watching, grooming his dog on a picnic table, and of course, failing to pick up after the dog.

In another clip, the "jerk" is an unrepentant litterbug – leaving soda cans on the ground and then on top of the garbage can, dropping various pieces of garbage out onto the road from his car, and even throwing an old tire, and old bicycle, and other heavy-duty litter on the ground.

Light in tone though the clips may be, the Will County Forest Preserve emphasized that they highlight a real problem that visitors have been complaining about. Members of the public have complained about people hogging paths or letting their dogs run wild, and dropping cigarette butts, fishing line, and other trash.

"For the majority of our preserve users who are doing the right thing, these messages should serve as more of a pat on the back to acknowledge that they are mindful of the rules, and that they care about the health and beauty of the preserves and the creatures who live there," Laura Kiran, the Forest Preserve's director of Marketing and Communications, said in a news release. "They can read the signs and social media posts and watch the videos, and know that they are doing their part. For those who aren't behaving as they should, we hope this will serve as a bold reminder. Everyone needs to pitch in to ensure the preserves remain places where wildlife can thrive and where people will want to continue to visit."

A future edition in the "Don't Be a Jerk" series will feature the "jerk" going fishing. The forest preserve noted that fishing line and hooks must be disposed of properly, and people need to exercise etiquette by not taking over beaches with their boats, overfishing, or being inconsiderate to other anglers.

In addition to the YouTube videos, the Will County Forest Preserve has mounted some eye-catching signs featuring a variety of animals with messages. A raccoon says, "Don't be a litter bug. This is my home," a bird with a cigarette butt in its mouth advises that cigarettes kill wildlife, a pig reminds people, "Don't be a trail hog," a dachshund says, "Don't be a wiener," and asks people to pick up after their dogs, and a pelican says, "Don't be trashy," and reminds people not to leave fishing line lying around.

The behaviors that the Will County Forest Preserve believes constitute being a jerk would likely strike most as timeless common sense. But a jog to the north in Cook County, CBSChicago.com reported back in 2010 that what constitutes being a jerk in the forest preserves can change over time.

At the time, the Cook County Forest Preserve District had decided to change antiquated rules on the books that forbade anyone from "juggling or any other unlawful games or plays" and "indulging in any acrobatic feats," as well as fortune telling.

"There's a rule against fortune telling in the forest preserves. I'm sure there was a good reason for that at one time," then-Cook County Forest Preserve District spokesman Steve Mayberry said at the time. "But if the code is to be taken as a serious document – and it is – that's something we'll likely have to purge as well."

But while most of the unenforced "miscellaneous misdemeanors" on that list seemed absurd, one would likely now amount to a form of discrimination. Before the revision, the rules forbade Cook County forest preserve visitors from entering "in a dress not properly belonging to his or her sex."

And as the Cook County Forest Preserve noted at the time, there are certain behaviors that go well beyond anything the "jerk" of Will County does. Restrictions on gambling and any kind of public sex in any local forest preserve remain in place – and violating those rules would make one not only a jerk, but a criminal.