The Gold Rush Season 1 Fight That Ended With Setting Fire To A Cabin
Fans of Discovery's "Gold Rush" will know that tensions can run pretty high when working in the grueling conditions of an Alaskan gold mine. The series constantly emphasizes just how unforgiving and debilitating this line of work can be, and as such it's not surprising that arguments between miners will often flare up into full-on physical violence.
Indeed, there have been multiple instances of fighting throughout the history of "Gold Rush," most of which goes no further than some aggressive shoving and shouting before another crew member breaks it up, as seen in the Season 1 fight between "Dakota" Fred Hurt and James Harness. Unfortunately, there are also times these fights get out of hand so fast that nobody can stop them. Such was the case in a particularly vicious brawl between Dave Turin and Trey Poulson in Season 7, which ended with Turin leaving Todd Hoffman's crew for good.
As terrible as that might sound, there is still one "Gold Rush" fight that stands above all the rest in terms of sheer cruelty and pettiness, as it ended with one miner's cabin going up in flames.
The Hoffman crew ignited Jim Dorsey's cabin after his exit from the show
The fight in question occurred all the way back in Season 1 of "Gold Rush," and was actually the first true fight that ever occurred within the series. This particular brawl involved two miners named Jim Dorsey and Greg Remsburg, both of whom were struggling immensely with the tough conditions of the Alaskan gold-mining business.
Season 1, Episode 6 saw the team in extremely dire straits — as their lack of success forced them to kick all of their families off of the mining site — something which upset Remsburg tremendously. Dorsey's emotions were also flying high. Not because of his family (who also left the camp), but rather due to the intense financial gamble he'd poured into this industry. Eventually, tensions broiled over and ended with a full-blown brawl that left both men beaten and seeking justice from the local authorities.
Although neither men was ever charged for the fight, Dorsey left "Gold Rush" shortly thereafter — something that apparently delighted the Hoffman crew, who had grown sick of Dorsey's alleged attitude problems during his time on "Gold Rush." As such, the crew decided to light Dorsey's cabin on fire to mark his exit from the camp, something that remains to this day one of the most petty moments in the entirety of "Gold Rush."