Ice Road Truckers (2007) s03e01 Episode Script
Deadliest Ice Road
male narrator: At the top of The world [beeping.]
[horn honks.]
There's a job only a few would Dare.
Last season, the dash for the Cash was fought on the smooth Playing field of canada's arctic Ice.
This season, two old pros alex: I came for the cash.
narrator: Join four of America's bravest truckers jack: Come on, boys, saddle Up.
Let's go.
narrator: To tackle the Continent's deadliest ice Passage.
Just when you thought extreme Trucking couldn't get more Dangerous george: Most dangerous road I've ever been on.
hugh: They say she's a Treacherous one.
So I'm here to give her a shot.
narrator: Ice road truckers Take on alaska.
[aerosmith's living on the edge.]
These are the truckers who make Their living on thin ice.
we're living on the edge you can't help yourself living on the edge you can't help yourself living on the edge you can't help yourself from falling living on the edge narrator: Prudhoe bay, alaska On the arctic ocean holds the Mother lode of the 21st century: Oil pumped by the billions of Gallons down the trans-alaskan Pipeline to supply america's Increasing demand for energy.
jack: The oil business is Obviously the bread and butter Of the state.
george: It's the lifeblood of The state of alaska.
narrator: But there's only One road to these ridges.
And it's the most fearsome on The planet.
This is the unpaved, ice-coated Track called the dalton, better Known as the haul road.
It's an ice road of a deadlier Breed where trucks smash head-on Or fly off instead of breaking Through, averaging a dead man For almost every one of its 414 Miles.
george:T's dangerous.
There's no two ways about it.
There's a lot of trucks that's Upside-down up there to prove It.
jack: It's curve after curve After uphill, downhill, curve.
Crazy.
narrator: For an ice road Trucker, this road is the Ultimate challenge, because Every mile through the alaskan Wilderness is met with a new and Unpredictable threat.
The gauntlet of terror begins With a brutal initiation: 56 Miles of icy hills and srp Curves.
There's a white knuckle stretch Called the rollercoaster and a Hairpin turn whose name says it All.
george: Oh, [bleep.]
corner.
[laughs.]
Oh, [bleep.]
.
narrator: 250 miles in, the Most feared enemy the road: Avalanches strike at any moment And bury truckers alive.
tim: You can freeze to death Out there in half an hour.
narrator: The final assault: The bluffs where temperatures Dive to 70 below and the road Can suddenly vanish in a total Whiteout.
tim: Can't see a [bleep.]
Thing.
narrator: And if the ice on The dalton road doesn't kill You, the final stretch over the Arctic ocean just might.
tim: They say it's not if you Wreck, it's when you wreck.
jack: You could easily die Out there.
narrator: The ice road Truckers' mission: To haul more Than 6,000 loads from fairbanks To deadhorse, the gateway to The prudhoe bay oil fields.
And they have just 12 weeks to Do it in.
It's such a deadly route that They earn the equivalent of Combat pay$120,000 and up.
The more loads, the more cash.
george: That's the Highest-paying job there is.
They don't pay us this good Because it's easy.
The girl scouts are not up there Doing it.
narrator: 24 hours before The winter season begins, Northern lights flare in the Sky.
The ragged thunder of diesel Engines builds in the yard, But the trucks are at a Standstill, waiting for the Last mile of ice road to be Built.
time to go make an ice road.
narrator: The dalton is paved With ice because big rigs Require a smooth driving Surface, and no other material Can hold up to the extreme Conditions.
An 8,500-gallon tanker unloads Water onto the roadbed.
one mile of road, and we Basically lay down 32,000 Gallons of water per mile.
narrator: And then a grader Does a pass over the Fast-freezing slush.
we raise this road surface Almost 2 inches.
This here is 2 inches of ice Exactly.
narrator: But the tradeoff For an even surface of ice is A road that can turn as slick As a skating rink.
The trek north begins in the City of fairbanks.
Here in the yards of carlile Transportation systems, Thousands of loads are piling Up.
The blue trucks of carlile are One of the most familiar sights In the far north.
They move a third of the freight That goes up the dalton and over The ice.
it's a challenging, Dangerous road, and our goal in Our company is to run it 100% Safely.
We just got a really big season Going on this winter.
It's the busiest one we've had For about ten years, probably, This winter.
narrator: With so much Freight to move, dispatchers Send out the word: Drivers Wanted.
we're just swamped with Business.
We just don't have enough Drivers right now to get on the Road.
We're basically looking for Anyone that's capable of running The dalton.
We've got a couple leads on Bringing some drivers out of Canada right now that are gonna Help us.
narrator: Across town in Fairbanks, the canadian invasion Has already begun.
hugh: Yee-haw.
Fairbanks, alaska.
Dalton highway, here I come.
narrator: Hugh "the polar Bear" rowland has conquered just About every ice road in canada.
Now he's on the prowl stateside.
hugh: Everybody knows polar Bears have the right of way.
narrator: And he's not alone.
alex: Good morning, Fairbanks, alaska.
Looks like it's gonna be a nice Morning.
All I need is a truck and a Load, a map, and the dalton.
Lord, go with me.
narrator: Alex and hugh have A combined 60 years' experience As ice road truckers.
But they've never seen anything Like the extreme hills and Curves of the dalton.
They know the legend.
Now they're here to drive it.
hugh: You spin out on one of These hills, and she's a long Way to the bottom, and you're Upside-down by the time you get There, that's for sure.
narrator: Finally, opening Day of the ice road season.
[engine rumbles.]
The 500-mile race to the oil Fields is on.
[horn honks.]
One of carlile's top drivers, Jack jessee, is chosen tmove The first heavy load of the Season.
In alaska there are truck Drivers, and then there are Heavy haulers who move anything Oversized or overweight.
jack: They put it on the Trailer, they tell me to get it There safely, I get it there.
narrator: 20 feet long, 18 Feet high, the massive modular, Or mod, is a structure used to House heavy equipment.
This load will hang so far into The oncoming lane that it's at High risk for a head-on Collision.
To run interference, jack Commands a small fleet of three Pilot cars.
jack: There's gonna be some Spots where I'm really gonna Have to slow down.
To go through some of the things Like this.
The lololololololoadit'll be s OfAll kinds of weird stuff.
narrator: Jack's convoy is First out of the gate.
Priority: Critical.
you know, a heavy haul driver Has a lot more responsibility.
They may have a module worth $10-12 million, and a lot of Times there might be a work crew Of maybe 20 or 30 guys waiting On that to show up.
narrator: The mod has to Reach an oil rig in less than Schedule.
The express mission will take Jack over 414 miles of steep Mountain ice.
And if that doesn't take him Down, he'll face the final Stretch over a frozen arctic Ocean.
Virginia-born, college-educated, Jack found his calling on the Haul road.
it's a freedom thing, you Know.
An easy rider, get on the Motorcycle and go.
You're just doing it in a truck.
When you're driving a truck, it Kinda gets into your blood.
You hate it sometimes, and Sometimes you just love it to Death.
narrator: Now that he's at The very top of the game, he Aims to stay there.
jack: My goal for this year Is to survive the year, make a Living for my family, be around To do it next year, and keep Doing it.
I'm doing a job that I love to Do.
narrator: 70 miles north of Fairbanks, the pavement drops Off, and the solid ice of the Haul road begins.
The road narrows.
Jack's pilot car drivers begin Their vigilant watch for Oncoming traffic.
there's a pretty high level Of trust going on with the pilot Cars.
You know, I mean, they're my Eyes, my ears, out ahead of me.
'cause there's spots that I Can't meet anybody.
narrator: Almost immediately The great ascent begins.
Jack hits the first hill of the Trip, called "2,5 mile", with A steep grade of 8 degrees.
To climb it, a heavy hauler Needs plenty of momentum, but Not so much speed that he can't Stop.
jack: When you're that heavy, It takes a long distance to Stop.
It's like a train.
narrator: Jack slowly inches His way to the top.
Tires holding on the ice.
But this is just the first of Many hurdles.
The monstrous rollercoaster is Dead ahead.
Back at carlile, the american Veteran of the ice rolls in to Begin his 30th and final year on The road.
George spears started driving The haul road because it's the Closest thing he could find to Combat.
george: Veterans like myself Seek out something that's Dangerous.
Something that's right on the Edge like that.
People ask what's worse, to Crash into another truck or go Off a cliff? I'd just as soon not do either One of 'em.
narrator: In fact, he's done Both, including flipping his Truck over a cliff.
george: Boom, boom, boom, Went bounding over the hill.
Rolled over twice.
I walked out the windshield.
It happens real fast up there.
I don't care how good a driver You are or what, if you don't Have a good respect for that Road, sooner or later, it'll Reach out and grab ya.
narrator: The list of fallen Drivers is long.
At the last truck stop before The dalton begins stands a Memorial.
And many of george's friends' Names are on the wall.
george: There's my good Friend, dale harris.
We called him spud.
He was just an outgoing guy.
He was just a lot of fun to be Around, and he's been sorely Missed.
narrator: It was st last Winter that dale was driving South on a long, winding hill.
He was only 60 miles from home Rounding a blind curve when Headlights stabbed the darkness Ahead.
This is the haul road's greatest Danger: Two big rigs meeting Suddenly on a narrow stretch Of ice.
The oncoming truck, loaded with Cement, jackknifed as it Approached.
The heavy trailer drifted into Dale's lane.
[crash.]
it was an accident.
It was an accident.
It was a trucker's worst Nightmare on both sides.
george: See, he was about my Age, he was about ready to Retire, same as I am, so A shame to go that long and Then not make it.
narrator: Fairbanks, alaska, January 20thopening day of The ice road season.
And day one on the job for haul Road rookie, tim freeman.
tim: I'm a little nervous.
Well, I've listened to people Talk about the dalton all my Life.
narrator: A fourth-generation Driver from minnesota, tim is Here for trucking's ultimate Challenge And biggest payday.
tim: Make some of that money.
[laughs.]
I just feel confident because I was trained by my father, Who's been around trucks 51 Years he's been alive.
I taught tim how to drive.
I'd say anybody that starts out Running that road's under Pressure.
The minute you're not nervous up There, you better start looking For something else to do, is the Way I look at it.
narrator: Before tim senior Sent his son to the ice roads, He enlisted an old friend as his Mentor.
tim jr.
: Scrap-iron georgie Spears.
George is a good family friend.
He's a case too.
I love that guy.
narrator: But the haul road Breaks rookie drivers.
tim jr.
: [bleep.]
.
This is bad.
narrator: And if tim's going To succeed on this road, he's Got to show something special.
tim jr.
: There is no Guarantee.
All I can do is hope.
I'm ready to go trucking, man.
narrator: Over in the carlile Shop, tim's truck is being Refitted with a set of arctic Armor.
It's the first and essential Step to surviving the punishing Road ahead.
jarid: These trucks have what What you would call an arctic Package from the factory.
But their version of arctic and Our version of arctic up here Are two different things.
We're gonna start off wrapping These lines here so that we can Keep this power steering warm.
The cold that we deal with up Hereyou probably don't see 60 Or 70 below down in the states.
narrator: In this kind of Cold, just about every fluid Could freeze solid.
jarid: Once you get up there In that wind and that cold Weather, you can't steer this Truck.
The fluid becomes so thick that It will not turn.
narrator: If brakes aren't Protected from the elements, They can lock up without Warning.
jarid: They pack up with ice.
Well, then you go to step on Your brakes and you don't have Brakes.
narrator: Jarid rebuilds the Brake assembly with heavy-duty Bushings to prevent ice from Building up inside.
Weather-beaten batteries need Replacing And finally, the engine needs Protecting.
jarid: This will actually Keep the truck warm so that the Driver is not freezing to death While he's driving down the Road.
narrator: 150 miles north is Heavy hauler jack jessee [honking horn.]
Just entering a set of dips like Nothing else on earth.
jack: Okay, so we're dropping Down into the roller coaster.
narrator: These are the Treacherous coils of ice called "the roller coaster.
" [rumbling, rattling.]
jack: Oh, you're [bleep.]
me.
narrator: Just ahead, a Trucker is in serious trouble.
jack: I've seen more than one Guy slide backwards on this Hill.
narrator: The truck spun out In front of jack, making it Easier for him to do the same.
When tires spin out on the ice They act like polishing wheels, Making the surface even slicker For the next truck that comes Along.
jack: Something I callyou Know, we all call "breaking Loose" up here, or "wiping your Feet.
" But we're gonna get in his parts Where he spun his tires.
I could easily spin mine and Actually spin out in the same Place, so I gotta be sure not to Be in the same place that he Was.
narrator: Jack slows down to Make sure the driver's been Rescued.
jack: Okay, thank you.
It may be him this trip And it may be me the next trip.
narrator: But it cost him Precious momentum for getting up The hill.
Suddenly he loses traction.
[wheels squealing.]
[rattling, clinking.]
narrator: Then jack's tires Start slipping With 32,000 pounds dragging him Down.
jack: Most of our biggest Fear would be sliding backwards, 'cause you have no control.
And then all of a sudden you Start spinning your tires and You stop, and instantaneously You start sliding backwards.
And there ain't a thing you can Do.
Just hold on for the ride, I Guess.
well, I think we just Broke loose.
narrator: Jack backs off the Power to stop his wheels from Spinning, then precisely Feathers the throttle to keep Just enough forward momentum.
narrator: He gives it all the Power he dares, and his tires Grip the ice just enough to keep Climbing.
jack: Ah, this is easy.
We'll just nurse this truck Right over the top.
narrator: And finally, he Rounds the top of the roller Coaster.
jack: [laughs.]
narrator: But yet another Terror of the haul road lies Dead aheadavalanche alley.
narrator: Day two of the ice Road season.
High in the brooks mountain Range a fresh new snow has Created a whole new danger of Avalanches.
reid: [laughs.]
I'm looking at.
[laughs.]
Once the wind hits this stuff, It's just going to turn into Rock-hard avalanches.
narrator: At 4,700 feet, Atigun pass is both the midpoint And highest reach of the haul Roadthe "avalanche alley" of The north.
reid: If we did not shoot This snow down, very likely There would be trucks hit and Trapped and maybe even knocked Over the guard rail and down Into the canyon.
narrator: Avalanche control Expert reid bahnson and his crew Set out to defuse the danger With a very big gun.
The weapon is a korean war era Recoilless rifle.
It fires shells packed with Conditions: A near whiteout.
reid: Uh, with the lack of Visibility we have today, we're Going to have to blind-fire the Weapon.
If we get a break we'll use the Sight.
It's a lot more fun.
Is the road closed? man: Road's closed.
reid: Clear to the front? man: Clear the rear! reid: Ready to load shot 305.
reid: All clear.
Ready to fire.
Fire! narrator: The rifle has no Recoil because it vents the Explosion out the rear of the Gun in a ball of flame.
reid: Loaded.
Fire! narrator: When the shell Hits, the tnt detonates.
reid: Report.
narrator: And invisible in The whiteout, a tsunami of snow Rumbles down the mountain.
reid: All clear.
Ready to fire.
Fire! [shouting.]
Report.
[booming, rumbling.]
Report.
We're good.
We caused three pretty Good-sized avalanches.
narrator: With three big Slides down, the pass can reopen And the big rigs can get Through.
But the danger is far from over On the haul road.
Like wrecks and breakdowns, Avalanches are inevitable.
In fairbanks, rookie tim freeman Gets his first chance to drive The haul road, provided he runs With his mentor and family Friend george spears.
tim jr.
: Yeah, I'm nervous About running up there.
Uh, there's lots of hazards in The way.
I'm most nervous about the Hills.
[beeping.]
[beeping.]
[honks horn.]
narrator: George is hauling Enough to build five Heat-efficient houses for the Oil workers in prudhoe bay.
Behind him, tim pulls a typical Rookie load25,000 pounds of Canned foodwhich is difficult To damage.
tim jr.
: Heading to prudhoe For my first trip.
It's something I've been waiting To do since I started driving The truck.
tim jr.
: All right, george.
No sweat.
narrator: Tim first has to Navigate a 75-mile stretch of Icy curves before the pavement Ends and the dalton itself Begins.
george: Pretty steep grade Along here.
If it doesn't get you spinning Out going up the hill, you're Sliding off the other side, So tim jr.
: Eh, it's a son of a Bitch, that hill.
I think I just slipped a little Bit on that last hill.
narrator: Tim feels the rear End of his truck losing contact With the road, which is usually The last feeling a driver gets Before he goes off the edge.
Back in fairbanks, hugh rowland Reports to carlile Transportation to take on America's ice road.
hugh: They say she's a road From hell, so I'm here to give Her a shot.
Take a little american money Home with me.
narrator: On the canadian ice Roads, he's the one and only Polar bear.
First in hauling freight.
First in money-making.
Last in humility.
hugh: Walk tall.
Carry a big stick.
The ice road trucker with the Bigger stick wins.
narrator: But on american Soil, the polar bear is just Another rookie.
But before he can be trusted in The alaskan wilderness, he has To prove himself on a video Game.
roberta: So this is a Simulator.
We're gonna get this cranked up And, uh, let you, uh, see what It's like to drive the alaska Roads.
All right? So if I can get you To put your seatbelt on, and Whenever you're comfortable, go Ahead and start it up and let's Roll.
[suspenseful music.]
hugh: Away we go.
Nobody coming through the Intersection.
[gearshift grinding.]
narrator: The instructor Tests hugh's driving skills on Varying terrain and how quickly He can react to sudden Obstacles.
hugh: [chuckles.]
I tipped it over.
roberta: You did tip it over.
hugh: Roberta's probably Messing with the storms out There.
roberta: I blew out your, um, Left steer tire.
Left steer tire.
Youyou noticed.
You had your trailer swinging Back and forth.
narrator: Hugh narrowly Passes the exam.
He walks away from this wreck, But if this happens on the Dalton, he might not be so Lucky.
Narrow, high-walled passage cut Into the mountainside Notorious for causing rollovers And head-ons.
It's dangerous for any two Trucks to meet here, and jack Jessee approaches it with the Widest load on the road An 18-foot modular.
man on radio: There you go.
Go smooth, uh A lot of southbounds are Starting your way, coming Awfully fast.
jack, you copy? We got a load of Southbounders it's too dangerous over your Pass.
I don't think you've got Enough room to get through that Up there.
narrator: Oncoming trucks Clear his rig with as little as jack: A little snug, there, Wasn't it, dawg? narrator: But there's an even More dangerous stretch just 50 Miles ahead at 4,700-foot Atigun pass.
jack: What, is it starting to Blow or something? narrator: When high winds Blow through this terrain, Avalanches follow.
jack: What happened up there? Avalanche or are they just Cleaning the road? yeah, an avalanche.
I don't think that you'll be Able to fit between there.
It was up higher than my truck.
jack: When did that avalanche Happen? Just a little bit ago? must have.
Looked pretty fresh.
narrator: Minutes ago, an Avalanche tore down the pass And buried the road ahead in 12 Feet of snow.
jack, you copy, we need to Hang out here in the chain-up Area.
State's getting it cleared out.
It's too narrow for us to get Through there right now.
jack: Oh, lovely.
narrator: Jack narrowly Escaped being buried.
He pulls over to wait for the Plows to clear the way.
Every minute the load waits, an Oil rig crew sits idle.
Yet jack still faces the heart Of alaska's avalanche alley.
jack: I don't know if I even Want to go up there, you know.
When one avalanche falls, There's a good chance there's Gonna be more of 'em.
narrator: On 4,700-foot Atigun pass, the highest Point of the dalton, the road Suddenly disappeared under a Heavy hauler jack jessee and His convoy just missed getting Hit by the avalanche.
Then they were delayed for two Hours by the cleanup, losing Money as the load stands idle.
Finally, some good news.
yes, you're good to go now.
Jack, you got a copy there? jack: Okay, I'm moving.
Well, anyway, they got the Avalanche cleared enough for Me to go through.
Oh, it's right here's where the Avalanche was, you know? That'll stop a truck.
Okay, guys, watch out for any More avalanches here.
We don't want to get caught in One today.
all right, here we come.
jack: So we've made it up and Over the pass, through the Avalanche and down the other Side.
narrator: After the pass, The road descends to the open Tundra of the north slope.
Here there's yet another Prevailing danger.
jack: Mother nature's Starting to pick herpick her Fury back up again, up north.
narrator: The high winds of The polar region blast across The ice without a tree or a Mountain to slow them down, Hitting a big, square load Like jack's with terrifying Force.
jack: It could just, you Know, blow the truck sideways.
And, uh, you know, push me off The road.
narrator: One of the most Dreaded hazards of the haul road Is a whiteoutwhat alaskans Call a blow, and jack has just Driven into a blinding, howling Blow.
These conditions cause head-on Collisions, or you can drive Off the road without knowing it And be buried alive by the snow.
jack: And your motor's Gonna plug up, your air Cleaner's gonna plug up, Your motor's gonna die.
You're out here so far in such Bad weather that nobody's really Gonna be able to get to you.
narrator: Phase three means It's too dangerous for even Emergency crews.
Truckers are now completely on Their own.
Back at carlile, alex Debogorski gets ready for his First alaskan challenge.
alex: I've never really been Tested by somebody.
I got my license out of a Popcorn box years ago.
narrator: Last year, his Run was cut short when he was Suddenly stricken with heart Trouble.
This year, he's setting out to Make a comeback on a road even More dangerous than the last.
yeah, I think alex Has something to prove to Himself, not only to anybody Else.
He's back.
He'she's full of piss and Vinegar.
He's gonna get at 'er.
narrator: To pursue Alaska's big paycheck, alex Left his family of 11 children And 9 grandchildren behind In yellowknife, canada.
alex: You gotta die sometime.
yeah, but I don't want You to go on the ice road.
he's never driven this road Before, and we hear it's quite A dangerous road.
And, of course, I always worry About his health, but we're just Gonna pray that everything Goes well, and god always Looks after us.
alex: Give us direction and Guidance, protect us from evil And harm.
narrator: With his family's Blessing, alex is a rookie all Over again, but can he make it Through five minutes on the haul Road simulator? alex: Whoa.
Run over the lawn.
narrator: He's off to a bad Start.
alex: I started off with The truck being turned all the Way to the right, and so when I put it in gear, the truck Just sort of drove right up on The lawn, and so I ran over About an acre of lawn before I Got back down on the road.
narrator: Getting out of Town is the biggest hurdle.
[horn honks.]
alex: Get your ass out of The way, okay? narrator: On the snowy Curves of the dalton, Alex excels.
there you go, perfect.
narrator: And passes like a Pro.
alex: It made me seasick, And you just gotta drive this This thing all over the place.
But it went all right.
good job.
[alex laughs.]
narrator: 50 miles north of Fairbanks is rookie tim Freeman, who's having trouble With his truck's rear end.
tim: I'm just trying to Concentrate on this to see if It'll do it again.
narrator: The drive wheels Of his cab are hopping off the Road and skidding sideways, And he's still on the pavement.
tim: I'm feeling hot.
Yeah, just get it back there.
It hopped.
narrator: The rear end was Just rebuilt on the truck, and Either the mechanic made a Mistake or tim's got a bad Case of rookie nerves.
tim: I'd like to get one One more good pull to make sure I'm not imagining this.
narrator: Either way, his Mentor and lead driver george Spears is not taking a chance On tim's safety.
tim: Yeah, something's Jumping back there, george.
[bleep.]
narrator: Eight miles from The dalton and his dream of Driving the haul road, tim Decides that his truck is Dangerously unfit for the trip.
tim: Yeah, I'm bummed about It.
I'm finally up here and doing It andNow I have to go back To town.
Won't even make it to the Dalton highway.
This sucks.
george: I know it.
Those guys from minnesota, man, They're rough on equipment, Aren't they? [tim laughs.]
Okay, buddy.
tim: All right, george.
niceit was nice working With you.
[tim laughs.]
I sure hope they fire you When you get back to town.
[tim laughs.]
narrator: George spears Will have to continue north by Himself while tim abandons his Load and turns back for Fairbanks.
tim: I'm gonna turn around And drop this trailer here and Bring her back to town and get Her fixed and drive her Another day.
narrator: 62 miles south of Prudhoe bay and the entrance to The ice road, jack jessee is Trapped by bad weather.
Just up the road is a phase Three whiteout, conditions so Extreme that emergency crews Can't drive, much less jack and His high priority load.
He's parked on the open tundra Until the wind dies down, Which can take days and cause Him to miss his deadline.
[tapping.]
jack: No horsing around here.
We got work to do.
Just gonna hunker in and sit This one out, so there's no Need for us to go in and get Into that mess.
can't see 10 feet between Us to begin with.
jack: Yeah, pretty well Stuck here.
see you in the morning.
We'll figure it out then.
narrator: As day two of the Ice road season comes to an end, So does a rookie's first attempt At driving the haul road.
tim: I called my dad right Before we pulled out of the yard And asked him for any Last-minute advice.
He said, "don't [bleep.]
up.
" [laughs.]
narrator: Tim freeman Returns to the carlile yard In fairbanks, defeated.
tim: Hey, dad, what's Happening? narrator: As he breaks the News to his father, he wonders If he made the right call or Possibly caved under pressure.
well, sure, yeah, absolutely There's pressure on you.
If you screw up, you're gonna Hear about it for a long time, So you don't want to screw up.
tim: Yep.
be a professional when You're behind the wheel.
tim: All right, dad.
I'll talk to you tomorrow, then.
Good night.
narrator: Turning back on Your first run is bad enough, But 225 miles north, on the Shelf, another rookie's trip Comes to a far worse end.
some tanker went off the Road up there.
oh, there he is.
narrator: Rescuers rush to The sceneAnd arrive braced For the worst.
[grunts.]
You all right? yeah, I'm okay.
not hurt or anything? We can have the medical check You out if you want to go up To pump four.
no, I'm all right.
okay.
narrator: The driver, bruce Carl, is shaken but manages to Climb out of the wreck.
He's got years of trucking Experience, but this was his First attempt on the ice.
you know it hurts your pride.
There's no way around that.
I know I made a mistake.
narrator: One mistake on This road is all it takes.
I reached up to grab Something off the dash, and I Got too close to the edge.
narrator: In the instant that Bruce reached over, his front Right wheel caught the edge of The road.
The whole truck followed as it Flipped onto its side and slid Into the ditch.
I wasn't goin' but about 25 Mile an hour, but once it Grabbed and started, I couldn't Stop it.
This road is no joke.
It can get you, and today was My day.
narrator: Prudhoe bay, Alaska.
Land's endBut the beginning Of the arctic ice road for jack Jessee.
In the 500 miles from fairbanks, The most dangerous road in North america threw everything It had at jack.
He just missed getting hit by An avalanche, then was stranded In a massive whiteout.
But now comes the danger that Deeply haunts every driverthe Possibility of breaking Through the ice.
Jack arrives at the oil field Operated by the italian company Known as eni.
jack: This is just about It's one of the most northern Parts you can actually drive to.
This oil rig we're rolling to Right here is actually just It's right on the sea, the Arctic sea up here.
narrator: He eases his rig Onto the ice road.
The arctic ice cracks as it Flexes with the weight of jack's Truck.
jack: It's got really big Cracks in it because ice Changes with the temperature.
The colder it gets, the ice Shrinks more and actually Creates its own cracks that Way.
narrator: With 48 hours and Almost 600 white-knuckle miles Behind him, jack arrives on time At the oil rig.
[horn honks.]
jack: Here we are Prudhoe bay right now, out in The middle of the oil field.
If the oil industry wasn't up Here, digging holes in the Ground, trying to find oil, You know, the dalton highway Wouldn't be there, my job Wouldn't be there, you know, and I wouldn'twouldn't have the Experiences up on this road that I have.
It's one of the most amazing Views I've ever seen.
Yeah, it's been a great Experience for me.
[horn honks.]
There's a job only a few would Dare.
Last season, the dash for the Cash was fought on the smooth Playing field of canada's arctic Ice.
This season, two old pros alex: I came for the cash.
narrator: Join four of America's bravest truckers jack: Come on, boys, saddle Up.
Let's go.
narrator: To tackle the Continent's deadliest ice Passage.
Just when you thought extreme Trucking couldn't get more Dangerous george: Most dangerous road I've ever been on.
hugh: They say she's a Treacherous one.
So I'm here to give her a shot.
narrator: Ice road truckers Take on alaska.
[aerosmith's living on the edge.]
These are the truckers who make Their living on thin ice.
we're living on the edge you can't help yourself living on the edge you can't help yourself living on the edge you can't help yourself from falling living on the edge narrator: Prudhoe bay, alaska On the arctic ocean holds the Mother lode of the 21st century: Oil pumped by the billions of Gallons down the trans-alaskan Pipeline to supply america's Increasing demand for energy.
jack: The oil business is Obviously the bread and butter Of the state.
george: It's the lifeblood of The state of alaska.
narrator: But there's only One road to these ridges.
And it's the most fearsome on The planet.
This is the unpaved, ice-coated Track called the dalton, better Known as the haul road.
It's an ice road of a deadlier Breed where trucks smash head-on Or fly off instead of breaking Through, averaging a dead man For almost every one of its 414 Miles.
george:T's dangerous.
There's no two ways about it.
There's a lot of trucks that's Upside-down up there to prove It.
jack: It's curve after curve After uphill, downhill, curve.
Crazy.
narrator: For an ice road Trucker, this road is the Ultimate challenge, because Every mile through the alaskan Wilderness is met with a new and Unpredictable threat.
The gauntlet of terror begins With a brutal initiation: 56 Miles of icy hills and srp Curves.
There's a white knuckle stretch Called the rollercoaster and a Hairpin turn whose name says it All.
george: Oh, [bleep.]
corner.
[laughs.]
Oh, [bleep.]
.
narrator: 250 miles in, the Most feared enemy the road: Avalanches strike at any moment And bury truckers alive.
tim: You can freeze to death Out there in half an hour.
narrator: The final assault: The bluffs where temperatures Dive to 70 below and the road Can suddenly vanish in a total Whiteout.
tim: Can't see a [bleep.]
Thing.
narrator: And if the ice on The dalton road doesn't kill You, the final stretch over the Arctic ocean just might.
tim: They say it's not if you Wreck, it's when you wreck.
jack: You could easily die Out there.
narrator: The ice road Truckers' mission: To haul more Than 6,000 loads from fairbanks To deadhorse, the gateway to The prudhoe bay oil fields.
And they have just 12 weeks to Do it in.
It's such a deadly route that They earn the equivalent of Combat pay$120,000 and up.
The more loads, the more cash.
george: That's the Highest-paying job there is.
They don't pay us this good Because it's easy.
The girl scouts are not up there Doing it.
narrator: 24 hours before The winter season begins, Northern lights flare in the Sky.
The ragged thunder of diesel Engines builds in the yard, But the trucks are at a Standstill, waiting for the Last mile of ice road to be Built.
time to go make an ice road.
narrator: The dalton is paved With ice because big rigs Require a smooth driving Surface, and no other material Can hold up to the extreme Conditions.
An 8,500-gallon tanker unloads Water onto the roadbed.
one mile of road, and we Basically lay down 32,000 Gallons of water per mile.
narrator: And then a grader Does a pass over the Fast-freezing slush.
we raise this road surface Almost 2 inches.
This here is 2 inches of ice Exactly.
narrator: But the tradeoff For an even surface of ice is A road that can turn as slick As a skating rink.
The trek north begins in the City of fairbanks.
Here in the yards of carlile Transportation systems, Thousands of loads are piling Up.
The blue trucks of carlile are One of the most familiar sights In the far north.
They move a third of the freight That goes up the dalton and over The ice.
it's a challenging, Dangerous road, and our goal in Our company is to run it 100% Safely.
We just got a really big season Going on this winter.
It's the busiest one we've had For about ten years, probably, This winter.
narrator: With so much Freight to move, dispatchers Send out the word: Drivers Wanted.
we're just swamped with Business.
We just don't have enough Drivers right now to get on the Road.
We're basically looking for Anyone that's capable of running The dalton.
We've got a couple leads on Bringing some drivers out of Canada right now that are gonna Help us.
narrator: Across town in Fairbanks, the canadian invasion Has already begun.
hugh: Yee-haw.
Fairbanks, alaska.
Dalton highway, here I come.
narrator: Hugh "the polar Bear" rowland has conquered just About every ice road in canada.
Now he's on the prowl stateside.
hugh: Everybody knows polar Bears have the right of way.
narrator: And he's not alone.
alex: Good morning, Fairbanks, alaska.
Looks like it's gonna be a nice Morning.
All I need is a truck and a Load, a map, and the dalton.
Lord, go with me.
narrator: Alex and hugh have A combined 60 years' experience As ice road truckers.
But they've never seen anything Like the extreme hills and Curves of the dalton.
They know the legend.
Now they're here to drive it.
hugh: You spin out on one of These hills, and she's a long Way to the bottom, and you're Upside-down by the time you get There, that's for sure.
narrator: Finally, opening Day of the ice road season.
[engine rumbles.]
The 500-mile race to the oil Fields is on.
[horn honks.]
One of carlile's top drivers, Jack jessee, is chosen tmove The first heavy load of the Season.
In alaska there are truck Drivers, and then there are Heavy haulers who move anything Oversized or overweight.
jack: They put it on the Trailer, they tell me to get it There safely, I get it there.
narrator: 20 feet long, 18 Feet high, the massive modular, Or mod, is a structure used to House heavy equipment.
This load will hang so far into The oncoming lane that it's at High risk for a head-on Collision.
To run interference, jack Commands a small fleet of three Pilot cars.
jack: There's gonna be some Spots where I'm really gonna Have to slow down.
To go through some of the things Like this.
The lololololololoadit'll be s OfAll kinds of weird stuff.
narrator: Jack's convoy is First out of the gate.
Priority: Critical.
you know, a heavy haul driver Has a lot more responsibility.
They may have a module worth $10-12 million, and a lot of Times there might be a work crew Of maybe 20 or 30 guys waiting On that to show up.
narrator: The mod has to Reach an oil rig in less than Schedule.
The express mission will take Jack over 414 miles of steep Mountain ice.
And if that doesn't take him Down, he'll face the final Stretch over a frozen arctic Ocean.
Virginia-born, college-educated, Jack found his calling on the Haul road.
it's a freedom thing, you Know.
An easy rider, get on the Motorcycle and go.
You're just doing it in a truck.
When you're driving a truck, it Kinda gets into your blood.
You hate it sometimes, and Sometimes you just love it to Death.
narrator: Now that he's at The very top of the game, he Aims to stay there.
jack: My goal for this year Is to survive the year, make a Living for my family, be around To do it next year, and keep Doing it.
I'm doing a job that I love to Do.
narrator: 70 miles north of Fairbanks, the pavement drops Off, and the solid ice of the Haul road begins.
The road narrows.
Jack's pilot car drivers begin Their vigilant watch for Oncoming traffic.
there's a pretty high level Of trust going on with the pilot Cars.
You know, I mean, they're my Eyes, my ears, out ahead of me.
'cause there's spots that I Can't meet anybody.
narrator: Almost immediately The great ascent begins.
Jack hits the first hill of the Trip, called "2,5 mile", with A steep grade of 8 degrees.
To climb it, a heavy hauler Needs plenty of momentum, but Not so much speed that he can't Stop.
jack: When you're that heavy, It takes a long distance to Stop.
It's like a train.
narrator: Jack slowly inches His way to the top.
Tires holding on the ice.
But this is just the first of Many hurdles.
The monstrous rollercoaster is Dead ahead.
Back at carlile, the american Veteran of the ice rolls in to Begin his 30th and final year on The road.
George spears started driving The haul road because it's the Closest thing he could find to Combat.
george: Veterans like myself Seek out something that's Dangerous.
Something that's right on the Edge like that.
People ask what's worse, to Crash into another truck or go Off a cliff? I'd just as soon not do either One of 'em.
narrator: In fact, he's done Both, including flipping his Truck over a cliff.
george: Boom, boom, boom, Went bounding over the hill.
Rolled over twice.
I walked out the windshield.
It happens real fast up there.
I don't care how good a driver You are or what, if you don't Have a good respect for that Road, sooner or later, it'll Reach out and grab ya.
narrator: The list of fallen Drivers is long.
At the last truck stop before The dalton begins stands a Memorial.
And many of george's friends' Names are on the wall.
george: There's my good Friend, dale harris.
We called him spud.
He was just an outgoing guy.
He was just a lot of fun to be Around, and he's been sorely Missed.
narrator: It was st last Winter that dale was driving South on a long, winding hill.
He was only 60 miles from home Rounding a blind curve when Headlights stabbed the darkness Ahead.
This is the haul road's greatest Danger: Two big rigs meeting Suddenly on a narrow stretch Of ice.
The oncoming truck, loaded with Cement, jackknifed as it Approached.
The heavy trailer drifted into Dale's lane.
[crash.]
it was an accident.
It was an accident.
It was a trucker's worst Nightmare on both sides.
george: See, he was about my Age, he was about ready to Retire, same as I am, so A shame to go that long and Then not make it.
narrator: Fairbanks, alaska, January 20thopening day of The ice road season.
And day one on the job for haul Road rookie, tim freeman.
tim: I'm a little nervous.
Well, I've listened to people Talk about the dalton all my Life.
narrator: A fourth-generation Driver from minnesota, tim is Here for trucking's ultimate Challenge And biggest payday.
tim: Make some of that money.
[laughs.]
I just feel confident because I was trained by my father, Who's been around trucks 51 Years he's been alive.
I taught tim how to drive.
I'd say anybody that starts out Running that road's under Pressure.
The minute you're not nervous up There, you better start looking For something else to do, is the Way I look at it.
narrator: Before tim senior Sent his son to the ice roads, He enlisted an old friend as his Mentor.
tim jr.
: Scrap-iron georgie Spears.
George is a good family friend.
He's a case too.
I love that guy.
narrator: But the haul road Breaks rookie drivers.
tim jr.
: [bleep.]
.
This is bad.
narrator: And if tim's going To succeed on this road, he's Got to show something special.
tim jr.
: There is no Guarantee.
All I can do is hope.
I'm ready to go trucking, man.
narrator: Over in the carlile Shop, tim's truck is being Refitted with a set of arctic Armor.
It's the first and essential Step to surviving the punishing Road ahead.
jarid: These trucks have what What you would call an arctic Package from the factory.
But their version of arctic and Our version of arctic up here Are two different things.
We're gonna start off wrapping These lines here so that we can Keep this power steering warm.
The cold that we deal with up Hereyou probably don't see 60 Or 70 below down in the states.
narrator: In this kind of Cold, just about every fluid Could freeze solid.
jarid: Once you get up there In that wind and that cold Weather, you can't steer this Truck.
The fluid becomes so thick that It will not turn.
narrator: If brakes aren't Protected from the elements, They can lock up without Warning.
jarid: They pack up with ice.
Well, then you go to step on Your brakes and you don't have Brakes.
narrator: Jarid rebuilds the Brake assembly with heavy-duty Bushings to prevent ice from Building up inside.
Weather-beaten batteries need Replacing And finally, the engine needs Protecting.
jarid: This will actually Keep the truck warm so that the Driver is not freezing to death While he's driving down the Road.
narrator: 150 miles north is Heavy hauler jack jessee [honking horn.]
Just entering a set of dips like Nothing else on earth.
jack: Okay, so we're dropping Down into the roller coaster.
narrator: These are the Treacherous coils of ice called "the roller coaster.
" [rumbling, rattling.]
jack: Oh, you're [bleep.]
me.
narrator: Just ahead, a Trucker is in serious trouble.
jack: I've seen more than one Guy slide backwards on this Hill.
narrator: The truck spun out In front of jack, making it Easier for him to do the same.
When tires spin out on the ice They act like polishing wheels, Making the surface even slicker For the next truck that comes Along.
jack: Something I callyou Know, we all call "breaking Loose" up here, or "wiping your Feet.
" But we're gonna get in his parts Where he spun his tires.
I could easily spin mine and Actually spin out in the same Place, so I gotta be sure not to Be in the same place that he Was.
narrator: Jack slows down to Make sure the driver's been Rescued.
jack: Okay, thank you.
It may be him this trip And it may be me the next trip.
narrator: But it cost him Precious momentum for getting up The hill.
Suddenly he loses traction.
[wheels squealing.]
[rattling, clinking.]
narrator: Then jack's tires Start slipping With 32,000 pounds dragging him Down.
jack: Most of our biggest Fear would be sliding backwards, 'cause you have no control.
And then all of a sudden you Start spinning your tires and You stop, and instantaneously You start sliding backwards.
And there ain't a thing you can Do.
Just hold on for the ride, I Guess.
well, I think we just Broke loose.
narrator: Jack backs off the Power to stop his wheels from Spinning, then precisely Feathers the throttle to keep Just enough forward momentum.
narrator: He gives it all the Power he dares, and his tires Grip the ice just enough to keep Climbing.
jack: Ah, this is easy.
We'll just nurse this truck Right over the top.
narrator: And finally, he Rounds the top of the roller Coaster.
jack: [laughs.]
narrator: But yet another Terror of the haul road lies Dead aheadavalanche alley.
narrator: Day two of the ice Road season.
High in the brooks mountain Range a fresh new snow has Created a whole new danger of Avalanches.
reid: [laughs.]
I'm looking at.
[laughs.]
Once the wind hits this stuff, It's just going to turn into Rock-hard avalanches.
narrator: At 4,700 feet, Atigun pass is both the midpoint And highest reach of the haul Roadthe "avalanche alley" of The north.
reid: If we did not shoot This snow down, very likely There would be trucks hit and Trapped and maybe even knocked Over the guard rail and down Into the canyon.
narrator: Avalanche control Expert reid bahnson and his crew Set out to defuse the danger With a very big gun.
The weapon is a korean war era Recoilless rifle.
It fires shells packed with Conditions: A near whiteout.
reid: Uh, with the lack of Visibility we have today, we're Going to have to blind-fire the Weapon.
If we get a break we'll use the Sight.
It's a lot more fun.
Is the road closed? man: Road's closed.
reid: Clear to the front? man: Clear the rear! reid: Ready to load shot 305.
reid: All clear.
Ready to fire.
Fire! narrator: The rifle has no Recoil because it vents the Explosion out the rear of the Gun in a ball of flame.
reid: Loaded.
Fire! narrator: When the shell Hits, the tnt detonates.
reid: Report.
narrator: And invisible in The whiteout, a tsunami of snow Rumbles down the mountain.
reid: All clear.
Ready to fire.
Fire! [shouting.]
Report.
[booming, rumbling.]
Report.
We're good.
We caused three pretty Good-sized avalanches.
narrator: With three big Slides down, the pass can reopen And the big rigs can get Through.
But the danger is far from over On the haul road.
Like wrecks and breakdowns, Avalanches are inevitable.
In fairbanks, rookie tim freeman Gets his first chance to drive The haul road, provided he runs With his mentor and family Friend george spears.
tim jr.
: Yeah, I'm nervous About running up there.
Uh, there's lots of hazards in The way.
I'm most nervous about the Hills.
[beeping.]
[beeping.]
[honks horn.]
narrator: George is hauling Enough to build five Heat-efficient houses for the Oil workers in prudhoe bay.
Behind him, tim pulls a typical Rookie load25,000 pounds of Canned foodwhich is difficult To damage.
tim jr.
: Heading to prudhoe For my first trip.
It's something I've been waiting To do since I started driving The truck.
tim jr.
: All right, george.
No sweat.
narrator: Tim first has to Navigate a 75-mile stretch of Icy curves before the pavement Ends and the dalton itself Begins.
george: Pretty steep grade Along here.
If it doesn't get you spinning Out going up the hill, you're Sliding off the other side, So tim jr.
: Eh, it's a son of a Bitch, that hill.
I think I just slipped a little Bit on that last hill.
narrator: Tim feels the rear End of his truck losing contact With the road, which is usually The last feeling a driver gets Before he goes off the edge.
Back in fairbanks, hugh rowland Reports to carlile Transportation to take on America's ice road.
hugh: They say she's a road From hell, so I'm here to give Her a shot.
Take a little american money Home with me.
narrator: On the canadian ice Roads, he's the one and only Polar bear.
First in hauling freight.
First in money-making.
Last in humility.
hugh: Walk tall.
Carry a big stick.
The ice road trucker with the Bigger stick wins.
narrator: But on american Soil, the polar bear is just Another rookie.
But before he can be trusted in The alaskan wilderness, he has To prove himself on a video Game.
roberta: So this is a Simulator.
We're gonna get this cranked up And, uh, let you, uh, see what It's like to drive the alaska Roads.
All right? So if I can get you To put your seatbelt on, and Whenever you're comfortable, go Ahead and start it up and let's Roll.
[suspenseful music.]
hugh: Away we go.
Nobody coming through the Intersection.
[gearshift grinding.]
narrator: The instructor Tests hugh's driving skills on Varying terrain and how quickly He can react to sudden Obstacles.
hugh: [chuckles.]
I tipped it over.
roberta: You did tip it over.
hugh: Roberta's probably Messing with the storms out There.
roberta: I blew out your, um, Left steer tire.
Left steer tire.
Youyou noticed.
You had your trailer swinging Back and forth.
narrator: Hugh narrowly Passes the exam.
He walks away from this wreck, But if this happens on the Dalton, he might not be so Lucky.
Narrow, high-walled passage cut Into the mountainside Notorious for causing rollovers And head-ons.
It's dangerous for any two Trucks to meet here, and jack Jessee approaches it with the Widest load on the road An 18-foot modular.
man on radio: There you go.
Go smooth, uh A lot of southbounds are Starting your way, coming Awfully fast.
jack, you copy? We got a load of Southbounders it's too dangerous over your Pass.
I don't think you've got Enough room to get through that Up there.
narrator: Oncoming trucks Clear his rig with as little as jack: A little snug, there, Wasn't it, dawg? narrator: But there's an even More dangerous stretch just 50 Miles ahead at 4,700-foot Atigun pass.
jack: What, is it starting to Blow or something? narrator: When high winds Blow through this terrain, Avalanches follow.
jack: What happened up there? Avalanche or are they just Cleaning the road? yeah, an avalanche.
I don't think that you'll be Able to fit between there.
It was up higher than my truck.
jack: When did that avalanche Happen? Just a little bit ago? must have.
Looked pretty fresh.
narrator: Minutes ago, an Avalanche tore down the pass And buried the road ahead in 12 Feet of snow.
jack, you copy, we need to Hang out here in the chain-up Area.
State's getting it cleared out.
It's too narrow for us to get Through there right now.
jack: Oh, lovely.
narrator: Jack narrowly Escaped being buried.
He pulls over to wait for the Plows to clear the way.
Every minute the load waits, an Oil rig crew sits idle.
Yet jack still faces the heart Of alaska's avalanche alley.
jack: I don't know if I even Want to go up there, you know.
When one avalanche falls, There's a good chance there's Gonna be more of 'em.
narrator: On 4,700-foot Atigun pass, the highest Point of the dalton, the road Suddenly disappeared under a Heavy hauler jack jessee and His convoy just missed getting Hit by the avalanche.
Then they were delayed for two Hours by the cleanup, losing Money as the load stands idle.
Finally, some good news.
yes, you're good to go now.
Jack, you got a copy there? jack: Okay, I'm moving.
Well, anyway, they got the Avalanche cleared enough for Me to go through.
Oh, it's right here's where the Avalanche was, you know? That'll stop a truck.
Okay, guys, watch out for any More avalanches here.
We don't want to get caught in One today.
all right, here we come.
jack: So we've made it up and Over the pass, through the Avalanche and down the other Side.
narrator: After the pass, The road descends to the open Tundra of the north slope.
Here there's yet another Prevailing danger.
jack: Mother nature's Starting to pick herpick her Fury back up again, up north.
narrator: The high winds of The polar region blast across The ice without a tree or a Mountain to slow them down, Hitting a big, square load Like jack's with terrifying Force.
jack: It could just, you Know, blow the truck sideways.
And, uh, you know, push me off The road.
narrator: One of the most Dreaded hazards of the haul road Is a whiteoutwhat alaskans Call a blow, and jack has just Driven into a blinding, howling Blow.
These conditions cause head-on Collisions, or you can drive Off the road without knowing it And be buried alive by the snow.
jack: And your motor's Gonna plug up, your air Cleaner's gonna plug up, Your motor's gonna die.
You're out here so far in such Bad weather that nobody's really Gonna be able to get to you.
narrator: Phase three means It's too dangerous for even Emergency crews.
Truckers are now completely on Their own.
Back at carlile, alex Debogorski gets ready for his First alaskan challenge.
alex: I've never really been Tested by somebody.
I got my license out of a Popcorn box years ago.
narrator: Last year, his Run was cut short when he was Suddenly stricken with heart Trouble.
This year, he's setting out to Make a comeback on a road even More dangerous than the last.
yeah, I think alex Has something to prove to Himself, not only to anybody Else.
He's back.
He'she's full of piss and Vinegar.
He's gonna get at 'er.
narrator: To pursue Alaska's big paycheck, alex Left his family of 11 children And 9 grandchildren behind In yellowknife, canada.
alex: You gotta die sometime.
yeah, but I don't want You to go on the ice road.
he's never driven this road Before, and we hear it's quite A dangerous road.
And, of course, I always worry About his health, but we're just Gonna pray that everything Goes well, and god always Looks after us.
alex: Give us direction and Guidance, protect us from evil And harm.
narrator: With his family's Blessing, alex is a rookie all Over again, but can he make it Through five minutes on the haul Road simulator? alex: Whoa.
Run over the lawn.
narrator: He's off to a bad Start.
alex: I started off with The truck being turned all the Way to the right, and so when I put it in gear, the truck Just sort of drove right up on The lawn, and so I ran over About an acre of lawn before I Got back down on the road.
narrator: Getting out of Town is the biggest hurdle.
[horn honks.]
alex: Get your ass out of The way, okay? narrator: On the snowy Curves of the dalton, Alex excels.
there you go, perfect.
narrator: And passes like a Pro.
alex: It made me seasick, And you just gotta drive this This thing all over the place.
But it went all right.
good job.
[alex laughs.]
narrator: 50 miles north of Fairbanks is rookie tim Freeman, who's having trouble With his truck's rear end.
tim: I'm just trying to Concentrate on this to see if It'll do it again.
narrator: The drive wheels Of his cab are hopping off the Road and skidding sideways, And he's still on the pavement.
tim: I'm feeling hot.
Yeah, just get it back there.
It hopped.
narrator: The rear end was Just rebuilt on the truck, and Either the mechanic made a Mistake or tim's got a bad Case of rookie nerves.
tim: I'd like to get one One more good pull to make sure I'm not imagining this.
narrator: Either way, his Mentor and lead driver george Spears is not taking a chance On tim's safety.
tim: Yeah, something's Jumping back there, george.
[bleep.]
narrator: Eight miles from The dalton and his dream of Driving the haul road, tim Decides that his truck is Dangerously unfit for the trip.
tim: Yeah, I'm bummed about It.
I'm finally up here and doing It andNow I have to go back To town.
Won't even make it to the Dalton highway.
This sucks.
george: I know it.
Those guys from minnesota, man, They're rough on equipment, Aren't they? [tim laughs.]
Okay, buddy.
tim: All right, george.
niceit was nice working With you.
[tim laughs.]
I sure hope they fire you When you get back to town.
[tim laughs.]
narrator: George spears Will have to continue north by Himself while tim abandons his Load and turns back for Fairbanks.
tim: I'm gonna turn around And drop this trailer here and Bring her back to town and get Her fixed and drive her Another day.
narrator: 62 miles south of Prudhoe bay and the entrance to The ice road, jack jessee is Trapped by bad weather.
Just up the road is a phase Three whiteout, conditions so Extreme that emergency crews Can't drive, much less jack and His high priority load.
He's parked on the open tundra Until the wind dies down, Which can take days and cause Him to miss his deadline.
[tapping.]
jack: No horsing around here.
We got work to do.
Just gonna hunker in and sit This one out, so there's no Need for us to go in and get Into that mess.
can't see 10 feet between Us to begin with.
jack: Yeah, pretty well Stuck here.
see you in the morning.
We'll figure it out then.
narrator: As day two of the Ice road season comes to an end, So does a rookie's first attempt At driving the haul road.
tim: I called my dad right Before we pulled out of the yard And asked him for any Last-minute advice.
He said, "don't [bleep.]
up.
" [laughs.]
narrator: Tim freeman Returns to the carlile yard In fairbanks, defeated.
tim: Hey, dad, what's Happening? narrator: As he breaks the News to his father, he wonders If he made the right call or Possibly caved under pressure.
well, sure, yeah, absolutely There's pressure on you.
If you screw up, you're gonna Hear about it for a long time, So you don't want to screw up.
tim: Yep.
be a professional when You're behind the wheel.
tim: All right, dad.
I'll talk to you tomorrow, then.
Good night.
narrator: Turning back on Your first run is bad enough, But 225 miles north, on the Shelf, another rookie's trip Comes to a far worse end.
some tanker went off the Road up there.
oh, there he is.
narrator: Rescuers rush to The sceneAnd arrive braced For the worst.
[grunts.]
You all right? yeah, I'm okay.
not hurt or anything? We can have the medical check You out if you want to go up To pump four.
no, I'm all right.
okay.
narrator: The driver, bruce Carl, is shaken but manages to Climb out of the wreck.
He's got years of trucking Experience, but this was his First attempt on the ice.
you know it hurts your pride.
There's no way around that.
I know I made a mistake.
narrator: One mistake on This road is all it takes.
I reached up to grab Something off the dash, and I Got too close to the edge.
narrator: In the instant that Bruce reached over, his front Right wheel caught the edge of The road.
The whole truck followed as it Flipped onto its side and slid Into the ditch.
I wasn't goin' but about 25 Mile an hour, but once it Grabbed and started, I couldn't Stop it.
This road is no joke.
It can get you, and today was My day.
narrator: Prudhoe bay, Alaska.
Land's endBut the beginning Of the arctic ice road for jack Jessee.
In the 500 miles from fairbanks, The most dangerous road in North america threw everything It had at jack.
He just missed getting hit by An avalanche, then was stranded In a massive whiteout.
But now comes the danger that Deeply haunts every driverthe Possibility of breaking Through the ice.
Jack arrives at the oil field Operated by the italian company Known as eni.
jack: This is just about It's one of the most northern Parts you can actually drive to.
This oil rig we're rolling to Right here is actually just It's right on the sea, the Arctic sea up here.
narrator: He eases his rig Onto the ice road.
The arctic ice cracks as it Flexes with the weight of jack's Truck.
jack: It's got really big Cracks in it because ice Changes with the temperature.
The colder it gets, the ice Shrinks more and actually Creates its own cracks that Way.
narrator: With 48 hours and Almost 600 white-knuckle miles Behind him, jack arrives on time At the oil rig.
[horn honks.]
jack: Here we are Prudhoe bay right now, out in The middle of the oil field.
If the oil industry wasn't up Here, digging holes in the Ground, trying to find oil, You know, the dalton highway Wouldn't be there, my job Wouldn't be there, you know, and I wouldn'twouldn't have the Experiences up on this road that I have.
It's one of the most amazing Views I've ever seen.
Yeah, it's been a great Experience for me.