Ice Road Truckers (2007) s03e07 Episode Script
Wicked Weather
Whiteouts.
something devastating can Happen, for sure.
hi-ho, hi-ho.
Into the blow we go.
lord, give us a hand.
narrator: At the top of the World [horn honks.]
There's a job only a few would Dare.
[horn honks.]
Just when you thought extreme Trucking couldn't get more Dangerous Ice road truckers take on Alaska.
[aerosmith's living on the edge.]
living on the edge narrator: These are the Truckers who make their living On thin ice.
living on the edge you can't help yourself you can't help yourself living on the edge you can't help yourself from falling living on the edge yeah yeah narrator: Seven weeks into The season, carlile has Delivered nearly half of the Fields.
But with only five weeks left, A series of powerful storms Are rolling in, threatening Their progress.
One determined trucker isn't About to let bad weather stop Her from reaching her goals.
It's 7:00 a.
M.
At the carlile Yard in fairbanks.
I don't know where to hook It.
narrator: And lisa kelly is Preparing to hit the dalton with Another massive load.
are these rig mats? Oh, my gosh.
This one's gonna be pretty Heavy.
narrator: Rig mats are Protect the artic tundra from The crushing weight of oil rigs.
I have some rig mats, And a big metal frame thing, And pickup truck on board.
All that on the back of the Trailer and this on the front, Eh, it's gonna be a fun trip.
[chuckles.]
narrator: This is lisa's Third oversized load of the Season.
She's already hauled A 42,000-pound load of truck Tires and 80 feet of pipe across The arctic ocean.
Now she's got another chance To prove she's got what it takes To become carlile's first female Driver in heavy haul.
going to prudhoe bay.
I am nine wide.
So I got my oversize signs And blinking light on And little flags.
And it looks like it's way Tail-heavy, but it's, like, Perfectly even, like, give Or take 40 pounds.
narrator: Transporting this Giant load for 500 miles is A challenge under the best Of circumstances.
But today's forecast is calling For major storm conditions up Ahead.
I don't know a whole lot About the incoming storm.
I'll know more when I get To coldfoot when we sit around Gossip central table and find Out what's going on up north.
We're gonna fight weather.
We're gonna fight nighttime.
We're gonna get there.
narrator: Back in fairbanks, Meteorologist mike richmond Is tracking the region's Approaching storm.
fairbanks is right here.
And the dalton highway starts Near livengood right here and Moves north up to prudhoe bay There.
We broke our daily snowfall Record.
So far we've had seven inches At the airport.
And we're going to getnother Three to four, maybe even more Than that overnight tonight And a couple more inches Tomorrow.
Today is one of those days where Everything that can happen With winter weather is Occurring.
narrator: 244 miles north, In the mountains of the brooks Range, d.
O.
T.
Avalanche Specialist reed bonson prepares For another day of blasting Before the new storm brings More deadly slides.
we've brought six rounds Along.
There are three of these paths, Which are relatively dangerous.
They have a lot of vertical Descent that can hit the road At about 70 or 80 miles an hour.
It can certainly knock the Trucks off the road, so the Focus is to get those paths Cleaned out today.
Slide path 12, over.
[whistles.]
Hey.
If it comes big, I jump in, And I take the truck and go That way.
So don't put anything in the Way, 'cause I'm gonna run over It.
narrator: Reed's goal is to Aim for the sweet spot, The beginning of the slide zone, Clamp's down.
The bolts are good.
This is a zero-failure mission Here.
We close the breach.
Pull the safety.
Turn the firing handle.
Breach sounded good.
Cleared the front.
cle the road! all clear.
Ready to load, h.
E.
, shot 112.
Fire.
narrator: While reed clears The pass fire.
narrator: Truckers in Coldfoot, halfway between Fairbanks and deadhorse, Are just receiving news about The impending storm.
this is the updated weather Report for you.
thanks, chad, yeah.
doesn't look too good.
I don't know that I want To read it, but thanks.
sure you don't.
visibility's down to zero.
"chains are required on the Hills and passes.
Travel is not advised at this Time.
" narrator: After tim freeman Got his truck out of the shop Yesterday they figured out it was The engine speed sensor.
They got that put in for me Overnight.
narrator: He and george Spears battled 30 mile per hour Winds just to make it to Coldfoot.
I don't think I have it in Me.
[wind whistling.]
narrator: Now worried about Putting his rookie protege in Harm's way, george puts in A call to consult with dispatch.
good morning.
Carlile.
hello, lane.
georgey.
hey, yeah, it's me, georgey.
how are you? well, we're still going North, and they say it's A phase three blow up there.
they said they thought it was Supposed to lay down a little Bit at 9:00 tonight.
We'll probably go ahead and Send you up there.
okay.
Thanks, lane.
Bye.
bye.
narrator: Tim and george Realize they could be driving Straight into the eye of A storm, but they also know There's no money to be made Sitting around coldfoot.
and some trucks aren't Moving, and obviously they're Not generating and revenue.
The driver's not making any Money.
so we're gonna go ahead and Go.
We're tired of sitting in Coldfoot, so we'll just take The consequences and head north.
narrator: Up ahead, tim And george face the deadly duo: The ice slope called the shelf And then 4,700-foot atigun pass.
timmy, how you making it back There? oh, just fine, george.
good deal.
got a set of three-railers On.
Everything's looking good.
Shouldn't have no problem going Up the pass.
I don't get worried about it Until the road starts blowing.
narrator: 240 miles up the Ice road, at 4,000 feet and Climbing, george spears and Rookie tim freeman are running Against the weather, hoping to Make it to deadhorse before the Storm hits again.
southbounder we just met told Us the 70-mile flats, when he Come through there, he couldn't See a thing.
Blowing all the way into Prudhoe.
I hear that.
he said it was a son of A bitch, but, you know, it might Be cleaned up, might hit A window of opportunity to get Through there by the time we Get up there, so that's what We're hoping for.
narrator: As they move north, There's more bad signs of Dangerous weather ahead.
With weather growing worse By the mile George pulls over to get word From southbounders who've Just been through it.
see, there's a bunch of Trucks sitting down there Right now.
[indistinct.]
Looks like there's plenty of [bleep.]
around there to keep us Entertained anyway.
I've been stuck in the drift At 66 mile for the last two Hours.
is it still blowing up there? still blowing a little bit There from [indistinct.]
.
But it is starting to lay down.
I would say right now, georgey, Is your window.
And the window's gonna close not Very long after this.
maybe we can get on up Through there then.
I'd say give her hell.
narrator: George decides to Make a run for it before the Dalton is totally shut down.
jim bob come in and told us That if we were gonna go, This is our window of Opportunity.
So we're going for it.
Hi-ho, hi-ho.
Into the blow we go.
narrator: 170 miles north In deadhorse, hugh rowland Is getting ready to head south With his fifth load of the Season.
I gotta go over to the other Yard and grab a van to haul Back, get going down to Coldfoot.
narrator: On his last trip, Hugh hauled 50,000 pounds of Drill pipe north.
Today's backhaul is dramatically Lighter but exponentially more Dangerous.
He's got nine tons of drilling Waste, a hazardous load that Could devastate the arctic Tundra if spilled.
I have to put air into the Trailer.
I gotta crank up the dollies.
Come on, you bitch.
And then everything's good To go.
Okay, I got my van here, And find out willwhere Phil billy is here and see how He's making out.
narrator: Still a newcomer To the dalton, hugh will again Be guided by carlile safety Supervisor, phil krom.
all right, we're all fueled Up and about half froze, so yeah.
Yeah, that wind is [bleep.]
Chilly up here today.
yeah, go right through you.
okay, lead the way.
let's head on down the road.
lead the way, man.
We're heading back.
We're just going around the Airport now and turning and Burning, and I'm gonna go back To coldfoot.
Well, this morning, the road Was good.
You know, it was pretty good This morning.
And now later on in the Afternoon, she's slicker than Snot on a chicken's lip.
narrator: Any trouble on The road today could cost hugh His lead on alex debogorski.
He's still two loads up and Wants to keep it that way.
That's been his strategy since Their rivalry began more than A decade ago.
I always lied to him.
I always told him I had less Loads then what I had, and Then at the end of the year, He was alwayshe was always Choked up at me because he Always thought he was keeping up And I was always ahead of him.
[laughs.]
narrator: 80 miles down The road, storm clouds begin To roll in, bringing warmer Temperatures and slicker ice.
when we just came up, It was slicker than hell.
Yeah, that's what I was Thinking.
made the ice pretty darn Slippery.
How you doing back there, hugh? Yeah, well, down it.
Just be careful.
Once you learn on the gas pedal And no sudden turns on the Wheel, and you'll be all right.
I've seen more of the side of The trailer today than I have Of the [bleep.]
front end of it.
Jeez, this is even icier.
[bleep.]
.
that curve's slippery.
yeah, you don't want to make Any sudden moves on any of These curves today.
narrator: With the Treacherous atigun pass just His lead from phil.
well, if he can make 'er, I can make 'er.
[laughs.]
narrator: 350 miles south, Lisa is on the ice-covered taps, A daunting 56-mile stretch Of twisted hills and terrifying Curves.
oh, boy.
Don't hit your brakes.
Just keep it coming.
hauling an oversized load Makes sharing this stretch Especially dangerous.
I'd rather some trucker dust Me out than hit their brakes Coming at me too fast.
Because if you hit your brakes, There's a good chance your Trailer's gonna slide around and Take me out.
I'd rather them just dust me out At full speed thanKill me.
today's slick roads are not Making this trip any easier.
how's the roads? How's the weather here? oh, it's just like you see It.
oh, it's a lot of chain marks Here.
It's pretty slicker.
chaining.
as lisa approaches the road's Next white-knuckle challenge The set of vertical hills called "the roller coaster"she Decides to err on the side of Caution.
I'm chaining up because it Was highly recommended to me.
[truck beeping.]
If you make 'em too tight, they Hurt the tires.
If you make 'em too loose, you Break links.
There we go.
Probably as tight as I can get Them.
Northbound roller coaster.
They made it all slippery.
We make it up this, we're gonna Have a good day today.
lisa tops the first hill.
And then guns it down the other Side.
you don't usually hit a lot Of the hills going fast.
Usually just ease off 'em.
But this one We don't go slow off of it 'cause we got to run for the Other side.
on the next ride up, she has Just one chance to hit the right Gear.
and here's where it will Always get me.
Whew! Got that done.
Took a minute, but I got her.
We made it.
We made it to the top.
I'm thinking we're gonna be in Prudhoe around If we make a decent time I'm gonna shoot for late and go For 1:00 in the morning.
lisa is optimistic about Making it to prudhoe bay tonight Even with dark storm clouds on The horizon.
it looks awful.
It looks like it's slippery.
There is a good chance mother Nature will barf all over this Road.
Deadhorse, alex debogorski Trails his convoy partner jack Mccann as they head south for Fairbanks.
well, we just finished my Third trip to prudhoe bay.
Things look a little more Familiar.
I'm taking an empty van back.
Road is pretty slippery today.
If I'm not careful, a guy could Easily jacknife or something, Because it is that slick.
with an empty trailer, alex Has little weight to give him Traction on the ice.
the back hano weight, so it Tends to slip around and the Truck tends to slip a little More too because there's nothing Really holding the tires down Tight to the ice.
Some of this section from Prudhoe bay south, you have to Tiptoe over.
Can't be turning the steering Wheel too quick or hitting the Brakes or else a guy will go in The snow bank for sure.
It's a challenging road.
It, you know, changes.
I mean, every trip it changes, You know, because it's either Melting or freezing or, you Know, one day the snow starts to Melt.
Next day, new snow falls on it.
And one day you got traction in A certain place.
Next day, it's slippery and you Don't have traction.
up ahead, alex's first big Challenge.
Oil spill hill.
Southbound, it's a slick Two-mile slope straight to the Bottom.
you know, there's a pretty Steep incline on the curve at The bottom.
You know, 35 or 40-mile-an-hour Corner at the bottom, so that if You start to slide, you're Really gonna be doing some Pretty hard praying by the time You get to the bottom.
just as alex begins the Descent, he loses all traction.
boy, is that slippery right There.
Whew.
Spinning going downhill.
I can't believe it.
On the steep narrow slope called Oil spill hill Alex is spinning out.
come on, baby.
She doesn't like it.
Kicked her a couple times.
every time alex brakes, he Loses traction.
boy, is that slippery right There.
Spinning going downhill.
I can't believe it.
his convoy partner jack Mccann knows that the problem is Made worse by alex's empty Trailer.
yeah, if my wife was here, I Could put her in the back and That would be good.
alex downshifts until he Feels his wheels bite into the Ice.
you get over? yeah, I was even spinning Coming over the top and coming Downhill.
It was ice.
Couldn't get it to grab at all.
I kept going slower and slower.
I had to keep taking my foot off The throttle, you know? Had to keep slowing the wheels Down because it kept wanting to Spin and spinning When you're spinning, you're not Gaining.
You start losing.
So it's better I keep backing Off and backing off.
alex keeps his speed to a Minimum.
He still has 200 miles to reach Coldfoot tonight.
And with bad weather ahead, he Wants to make it there in one Piece.
getting pretty foggy here.
Seems like things got worse.
Kelly is racing north hoping to Beat the storm.
we had a couple drifts back On finger, so that's kind of a Preview of what's to come on Places with no mountains and Trees.
I would prefer to hit the storm In the daylight than at night.
That's why we must drive faster.
lisa's next challenge: The Beaver slide.
A treacherous two-mile downhill Slope.
Once a trucker starts down Beaver slide, there's no turning Back.
it's drifting a little bit Right now.
Starting to drift across the Roads.
drifting snow on top of the Ice is making the hill extremely Dangerous to navigate.
we're slipping.
So we're gonna slide all the way Down the beaver slide.
lisa pumps her brakes, but She can only apply so much Pressure.
you can't just hit your Brakes, because the chances of It, like, locking up and Swinging out sideways on you.
You could slip easy.
You just can't ride your brakes All the way down and just smoke 'em till their on fire, 'cause Then you won't have brakes for The rest of the trip.
halfway down, she starts to Dangerously pick up speed.
we could get going really Fast.
I'm gonna try to reign this Thing in.
lisa has no choice but to Ride it out to the bottom of the Hill.
there we go.
Turned the jake down to two.
Run my fan and dropped a gear or Two.
We're not slipping anymore.
so far lisa's on schedule to Make it to prudhoe bay tonight.
I'm excited to get to Prudhoe, but I got to face Weather and snow and storms that Are coming in.
But I'm gonna weather it all to Go straight to prudhoe.
That's the whole goal.
just north of atigun pass Hugh and phil are moving south Into the edge of the storm.
[intercom beeps.]
yeah, we're hitting some Pretty thick fog here.
You pretty much cut it with a Knife up here right now.
Something devastating can happen For sure.
Fog is just as bad as a [bleep.]
Snowstorm.
ice fog forms when extremely Cold air suddenly hits a warm Front.
Tiny ice particles crystalize Into a layer so thick it's Sometimes called the white Death.
[horn honks.]
you can't see the curves, the Ditches.
Lots of [bleep.]
can happ There.
And not only that, but you got Oncoming traffic that's in the Same boat you are.
[intercom beeps.]
got three big ones coming at You.
if you're in the fog, Everybody better be calling out Where they are one truck to Another.
hugh knows the protocol for Driving in fog.
What worries him are the Truckers who don't.
The ones who cause deadly Accidents.
Suddenly, a driver behind hugh Wants to pass.
A risky maneuver in these Conditions.
yeah.
It's clear, is it, phil? yes, yes, it's clear.
yeah, you can If you want to go around me, go Ahead.
the passing truck steers into The oncoming lane.
yeah, phil's got her clear up There.
Go ahead.
but the driver hesitates as He starts to pass.
A potentially fatal mistake.
don't be such a pansy and get At it [bleep.]
.
suddenly, phil spots a snow Plow heading in the opposite Direction right for the passing Truck.
[horn honks.]
in a thick ice fog on the North slope A truck is trying to pass hugh Rowland.
And up ahead, a snow plow is Heading straight for them.
[horn honks.]
[horn honks.]
get over! the truck clears the oncoming Lane just seconds before a Head-on collision.
[horn honks.]
see? You don't want to get Over-[bleep.]
-anxious when the Fog is thick like that.
He was halfway by and then he Got scared and started backing Off.
That's just prolonging the Agony.
[bleep.]
, if you're gonna do Something, make a [bleep.]
move.
Once you're committed, [bleep.]
Do it, and don't back down.
Closing in on the dalton's Midway point.
we're 15 minutes away from Coldfoot.
That's our information station.
We can sit down and check the Load, check the road conditions, Grab something to eat, and hit The road.
I'm confident we're gonna hit The road.
We're not staying.
[winds howling.]
with the winter storm gaining Strength Lisa's hoping to make it over Atigun pass, before it's closed To northbound trucks.
But as she pulls into coldfoot, Lisa realizes she's hit the end Of the road.
oh, my gosh.
Oh, look how bad this is.
As you can see, coldfoot is Packed full.
And that would be a huge, Gigantic hint that it's only The roads are closed.
So we're closed down.
[sighs.]
[winds howling.]
No turning back for hugh and Phil.
They're southbound in the storm.
As they approach atigun pass oh, the pass is [bleep.]
.
Look like, to me, they got about Two to three inches of snow Up there.
they've got to make it over Atigun and down to coldfoot Before the road is completely Undriveable.
oh, [bleep.]
.
[suspenseful music.]
She's not that easy, that's for [bleep.]
damn sure.
I'll give her a try.
jeez, this is even icier.
[bleep.]
.
Whoa.
[laughing.]
Still spinning.
Lots of spinning going on today.
battling 30-mile-per-hour Winds, hugh and phil finally Reach the summit.
But they get troubling news About what's ahead.
We've got a guy spun out.
We're going to get him out of The way.
The road's going to be blocked.
with no room to pass until The wreck is cleared pull over here.
hugh and phil are stuck at [winds howling.]
As they pull over, phil decides To make the best of The situation.
all right, get your ass out Of the truck.
I got something to show you.
okay.
this is normal for us up Here.
We are going to make dinner on Top of atigun pass.
right on.
I got a big, old chunk of Caribou, and some fresh Vegetables.
We'll throw it all on the grill, And just burn the piss out of It.
sounds good.
there it goes.
Been marinating for two days.
should be good now.
some asparagus A yellow squash, a zucchini, and An onion.
It won't take that long.
As long as everybody likes A little blood in their meat.
for most people, a barbeque In minus 20 might seem strange.
But for the man they call The polar bear, he's right at Home.
yeah, he's definitely Becoming part of the dalton Gang, definitely.
good.
I have to get my six guns out.
yeah.
[laughing.]
It's about time to eat, and it Won't stay hot for very long.
hell of a good job there, Hillbilly.
pretty good? yep.
an hour later, the wreck is Pulled to the side of the road, And traffic can now pass.
all right, we're on the way.
Ah, it's one of these guys that Like to blow by you.
All the time.
I was going to ask phil why These guardrails were so banged Up, now I know.
[laughing.]
once hugh and phil are safely Off the pass, they make a run For coldfoot.
Just 75 miles ahead.
George are racing to deadhorse Before the next wave of bad Weather closes the road.
man, I can't believe this Weather.
we're running through the ice Cut right now.
Hopefully, we get up through There and make it on down to About any blows.
ice cut is a dangerously Slick and narrow passage.
And to top it requires both Speed and precision behind The wheel.
mm-kay, man.
Here's the cut.
Oh, this is [bleep.]
slick here.
Whoo.
Wind blows around on the road, Polishes it up like glass.
That's why it gets so slick Up here.
[laughing.]
yeah, georgie, no problem.
Spun a little bit, but caught Her anyway.
with ice cut behind them, They descend ontthe open Tundra Where the brutal winds start To blow.
I guess it's blowing pretty Hard all the way, 30 mile in.
So we're going to try andtry And beat it.
Beat the road closing up.
Wayne wasn't lying when he said They were filling in, huh? Yeah, we better get after it, George.
you bet ya.
My left arm's getting kind of Sore from holding this wheel To the left.
The wind's blowing pretty hard To our right.
Hitting the side of this van Trailer.
Setting like a sail.
I let go of the wheel, she Just heads right for the ditch.
Okay, georgie.
No sweat.
All right-y, I appreciate that.
the storm grows worse.
And deep snow drifts begin to Pile up on the road.
ah, here's the drifts they've Been telling us about.
driving on ice through Several feet of snow can easily Throw a trucker off course And cause them to suddenly spin Out of control.
They call it drift slamming.
And if tim and george are going To make it to deadhorse tonight, They'll have to blast through oh, wow.
Look at this [bleep.]
, man.
Holy cow.
still 100 miles from coldfoot Alex debogorski and Jack mccann are southbound in The storm.
jack's got a load, I'm empty.
I got an empty van.
Just trying to keep the truck From spinning.
while others have been Advised not to travel, those Already on the road have No choice but to push through.
just keeptry to keep the Greasy side down and the shiny Side up.
as night falls, they approach The most feared stretch of The road we're going over atigun, It'll be the first time I've Gone over it in the dark.
It's better in the dark, because Then you can't see over The side.
[laughing.]
You can only see what's in front Of you.
Nothing to scare you, until Everything goes black.
We're going to put chains on One axle.
AndGive her a shot.
although alex has 27 years of Trucking experience, he's not A pro with chains because he Rarely uses them on the canadian Ice roads.
we haven't got that much room To get under here.
I need long, skinny arms.
ten minutes later, his Partner jack is chained and Ready to go.
roll this thing ahead now.
but alex doesn't have his First set on.
stay there.
I lost my backup lights.
I'll have to back up a little Bit.
I lost my damn chain.
as the weather grows worse, Alex continues to fumble with His chains.
And jack's patience begins to Wear thin.
Jack becomes so frustrated with Alex He takes off without him.
hopefully it'll work.
leaving alex to make The drive over atigun alone.
okay.
[sighs.]
Lord give us a hand.
Make sure I don't mess it up.
alex slowly creeps up The pass.
yep, she's going to be slow Driving in the dark.
This looks quite a bit snowier Here, eh? Looks pretty white, wouldn't you Say? This is what's been causing The problem here today.
Sure can't see too much here.
It's just all white, and kind of Foggy.
White and froggy.
one wrong turn and this Whiteout could send alex Tumbling thousands of feet down The mountainside.
oh, it's slippery.
Right now, I got no traction At all.
alex pushes through The storm.
damn.
he's only got 70 miles to go To reach coldfoot tonight.
Winds have reduced visibility to Almost zero.
Giant snowdrifts are overtaking The road.
And tim and george are battling To make it to safety without Going over the edge.
timmy, how you making her Back there? just dandy, george.
Just dandy.
Going a lot better than it was Backback down the road a ways.
Gone 480 miles, but the last Bother us.
But I'm bound and determined To get up there today.
Looks like we got us a convoy.
I know, I'll bet in ten minutes After we come through them heavy Drifts, that nobody else will be Able to get through there.
after ten long miles of Slamming massive drifts Deadhorse is finally in sight.
tim, I can see you over There to the warehouse.
oh, yeah.
We're at deadhorse, prudhoe bay Right now.
Just rolling into town.
SoWe made her anyways.
[honking.]
as week six of the ice road Season comes to a close, Jack jessee leads the dash for The cash with ten loads.
Tim freeman has only completed Four trips on the dalton.
But he's quickly earning his Stripes as an ice road trucker.
here we are, we're at The stop sign at the end of The dalton highway.
The north end, the good end To be at.
Has cleared atigun pass.
And is finally reaching the end Of his day.
well, we finally got to Coldfoot.
I survived, eh.
[laughing.]
after three long hours in The storm, alex is one Road-weary ice road trucker.
But he made it safely through His first solo voyage on The dalton.
it's 3:00 in the morning.
It'sI'm looking forward to Sleeping, so I guess this is it For the night.
I'm going to bed.
something devastating can Happen, for sure.
hi-ho, hi-ho.
Into the blow we go.
lord, give us a hand.
narrator: At the top of the World [horn honks.]
There's a job only a few would Dare.
[horn honks.]
Just when you thought extreme Trucking couldn't get more Dangerous Ice road truckers take on Alaska.
[aerosmith's living on the edge.]
living on the edge narrator: These are the Truckers who make their living On thin ice.
living on the edge you can't help yourself you can't help yourself living on the edge you can't help yourself from falling living on the edge yeah yeah narrator: Seven weeks into The season, carlile has Delivered nearly half of the Fields.
But with only five weeks left, A series of powerful storms Are rolling in, threatening Their progress.
One determined trucker isn't About to let bad weather stop Her from reaching her goals.
It's 7:00 a.
M.
At the carlile Yard in fairbanks.
I don't know where to hook It.
narrator: And lisa kelly is Preparing to hit the dalton with Another massive load.
are these rig mats? Oh, my gosh.
This one's gonna be pretty Heavy.
narrator: Rig mats are Protect the artic tundra from The crushing weight of oil rigs.
I have some rig mats, And a big metal frame thing, And pickup truck on board.
All that on the back of the Trailer and this on the front, Eh, it's gonna be a fun trip.
[chuckles.]
narrator: This is lisa's Third oversized load of the Season.
She's already hauled A 42,000-pound load of truck Tires and 80 feet of pipe across The arctic ocean.
Now she's got another chance To prove she's got what it takes To become carlile's first female Driver in heavy haul.
going to prudhoe bay.
I am nine wide.
So I got my oversize signs And blinking light on And little flags.
And it looks like it's way Tail-heavy, but it's, like, Perfectly even, like, give Or take 40 pounds.
narrator: Transporting this Giant load for 500 miles is A challenge under the best Of circumstances.
But today's forecast is calling For major storm conditions up Ahead.
I don't know a whole lot About the incoming storm.
I'll know more when I get To coldfoot when we sit around Gossip central table and find Out what's going on up north.
We're gonna fight weather.
We're gonna fight nighttime.
We're gonna get there.
narrator: Back in fairbanks, Meteorologist mike richmond Is tracking the region's Approaching storm.
fairbanks is right here.
And the dalton highway starts Near livengood right here and Moves north up to prudhoe bay There.
We broke our daily snowfall Record.
So far we've had seven inches At the airport.
And we're going to getnother Three to four, maybe even more Than that overnight tonight And a couple more inches Tomorrow.
Today is one of those days where Everything that can happen With winter weather is Occurring.
narrator: 244 miles north, In the mountains of the brooks Range, d.
O.
T.
Avalanche Specialist reed bonson prepares For another day of blasting Before the new storm brings More deadly slides.
we've brought six rounds Along.
There are three of these paths, Which are relatively dangerous.
They have a lot of vertical Descent that can hit the road At about 70 or 80 miles an hour.
It can certainly knock the Trucks off the road, so the Focus is to get those paths Cleaned out today.
Slide path 12, over.
[whistles.]
Hey.
If it comes big, I jump in, And I take the truck and go That way.
So don't put anything in the Way, 'cause I'm gonna run over It.
narrator: Reed's goal is to Aim for the sweet spot, The beginning of the slide zone, Clamp's down.
The bolts are good.
This is a zero-failure mission Here.
We close the breach.
Pull the safety.
Turn the firing handle.
Breach sounded good.
Cleared the front.
cle the road! all clear.
Ready to load, h.
E.
, shot 112.
Fire.
narrator: While reed clears The pass fire.
narrator: Truckers in Coldfoot, halfway between Fairbanks and deadhorse, Are just receiving news about The impending storm.
this is the updated weather Report for you.
thanks, chad, yeah.
doesn't look too good.
I don't know that I want To read it, but thanks.
sure you don't.
visibility's down to zero.
"chains are required on the Hills and passes.
Travel is not advised at this Time.
" narrator: After tim freeman Got his truck out of the shop Yesterday they figured out it was The engine speed sensor.
They got that put in for me Overnight.
narrator: He and george Spears battled 30 mile per hour Winds just to make it to Coldfoot.
I don't think I have it in Me.
[wind whistling.]
narrator: Now worried about Putting his rookie protege in Harm's way, george puts in A call to consult with dispatch.
good morning.
Carlile.
hello, lane.
georgey.
hey, yeah, it's me, georgey.
how are you? well, we're still going North, and they say it's A phase three blow up there.
they said they thought it was Supposed to lay down a little Bit at 9:00 tonight.
We'll probably go ahead and Send you up there.
okay.
Thanks, lane.
Bye.
bye.
narrator: Tim and george Realize they could be driving Straight into the eye of A storm, but they also know There's no money to be made Sitting around coldfoot.
and some trucks aren't Moving, and obviously they're Not generating and revenue.
The driver's not making any Money.
so we're gonna go ahead and Go.
We're tired of sitting in Coldfoot, so we'll just take The consequences and head north.
narrator: Up ahead, tim And george face the deadly duo: The ice slope called the shelf And then 4,700-foot atigun pass.
timmy, how you making it back There? oh, just fine, george.
good deal.
got a set of three-railers On.
Everything's looking good.
Shouldn't have no problem going Up the pass.
I don't get worried about it Until the road starts blowing.
narrator: 240 miles up the Ice road, at 4,000 feet and Climbing, george spears and Rookie tim freeman are running Against the weather, hoping to Make it to deadhorse before the Storm hits again.
southbounder we just met told Us the 70-mile flats, when he Come through there, he couldn't See a thing.
Blowing all the way into Prudhoe.
I hear that.
he said it was a son of A bitch, but, you know, it might Be cleaned up, might hit A window of opportunity to get Through there by the time we Get up there, so that's what We're hoping for.
narrator: As they move north, There's more bad signs of Dangerous weather ahead.
With weather growing worse By the mile George pulls over to get word From southbounders who've Just been through it.
see, there's a bunch of Trucks sitting down there Right now.
[indistinct.]
Looks like there's plenty of [bleep.]
around there to keep us Entertained anyway.
I've been stuck in the drift At 66 mile for the last two Hours.
is it still blowing up there? still blowing a little bit There from [indistinct.]
.
But it is starting to lay down.
I would say right now, georgey, Is your window.
And the window's gonna close not Very long after this.
maybe we can get on up Through there then.
I'd say give her hell.
narrator: George decides to Make a run for it before the Dalton is totally shut down.
jim bob come in and told us That if we were gonna go, This is our window of Opportunity.
So we're going for it.
Hi-ho, hi-ho.
Into the blow we go.
narrator: 170 miles north In deadhorse, hugh rowland Is getting ready to head south With his fifth load of the Season.
I gotta go over to the other Yard and grab a van to haul Back, get going down to Coldfoot.
narrator: On his last trip, Hugh hauled 50,000 pounds of Drill pipe north.
Today's backhaul is dramatically Lighter but exponentially more Dangerous.
He's got nine tons of drilling Waste, a hazardous load that Could devastate the arctic Tundra if spilled.
I have to put air into the Trailer.
I gotta crank up the dollies.
Come on, you bitch.
And then everything's good To go.
Okay, I got my van here, And find out willwhere Phil billy is here and see how He's making out.
narrator: Still a newcomer To the dalton, hugh will again Be guided by carlile safety Supervisor, phil krom.
all right, we're all fueled Up and about half froze, so yeah.
Yeah, that wind is [bleep.]
Chilly up here today.
yeah, go right through you.
okay, lead the way.
let's head on down the road.
lead the way, man.
We're heading back.
We're just going around the Airport now and turning and Burning, and I'm gonna go back To coldfoot.
Well, this morning, the road Was good.
You know, it was pretty good This morning.
And now later on in the Afternoon, she's slicker than Snot on a chicken's lip.
narrator: Any trouble on The road today could cost hugh His lead on alex debogorski.
He's still two loads up and Wants to keep it that way.
That's been his strategy since Their rivalry began more than A decade ago.
I always lied to him.
I always told him I had less Loads then what I had, and Then at the end of the year, He was alwayshe was always Choked up at me because he Always thought he was keeping up And I was always ahead of him.
[laughs.]
narrator: 80 miles down The road, storm clouds begin To roll in, bringing warmer Temperatures and slicker ice.
when we just came up, It was slicker than hell.
Yeah, that's what I was Thinking.
made the ice pretty darn Slippery.
How you doing back there, hugh? Yeah, well, down it.
Just be careful.
Once you learn on the gas pedal And no sudden turns on the Wheel, and you'll be all right.
I've seen more of the side of The trailer today than I have Of the [bleep.]
front end of it.
Jeez, this is even icier.
[bleep.]
.
that curve's slippery.
yeah, you don't want to make Any sudden moves on any of These curves today.
narrator: With the Treacherous atigun pass just His lead from phil.
well, if he can make 'er, I can make 'er.
[laughs.]
narrator: 350 miles south, Lisa is on the ice-covered taps, A daunting 56-mile stretch Of twisted hills and terrifying Curves.
oh, boy.
Don't hit your brakes.
Just keep it coming.
hauling an oversized load Makes sharing this stretch Especially dangerous.
I'd rather some trucker dust Me out than hit their brakes Coming at me too fast.
Because if you hit your brakes, There's a good chance your Trailer's gonna slide around and Take me out.
I'd rather them just dust me out At full speed thanKill me.
today's slick roads are not Making this trip any easier.
how's the roads? How's the weather here? oh, it's just like you see It.
oh, it's a lot of chain marks Here.
It's pretty slicker.
chaining.
as lisa approaches the road's Next white-knuckle challenge The set of vertical hills called "the roller coaster"she Decides to err on the side of Caution.
I'm chaining up because it Was highly recommended to me.
[truck beeping.]
If you make 'em too tight, they Hurt the tires.
If you make 'em too loose, you Break links.
There we go.
Probably as tight as I can get Them.
Northbound roller coaster.
They made it all slippery.
We make it up this, we're gonna Have a good day today.
lisa tops the first hill.
And then guns it down the other Side.
you don't usually hit a lot Of the hills going fast.
Usually just ease off 'em.
But this one We don't go slow off of it 'cause we got to run for the Other side.
on the next ride up, she has Just one chance to hit the right Gear.
and here's where it will Always get me.
Whew! Got that done.
Took a minute, but I got her.
We made it.
We made it to the top.
I'm thinking we're gonna be in Prudhoe around If we make a decent time I'm gonna shoot for late and go For 1:00 in the morning.
lisa is optimistic about Making it to prudhoe bay tonight Even with dark storm clouds on The horizon.
it looks awful.
It looks like it's slippery.
There is a good chance mother Nature will barf all over this Road.
Deadhorse, alex debogorski Trails his convoy partner jack Mccann as they head south for Fairbanks.
well, we just finished my Third trip to prudhoe bay.
Things look a little more Familiar.
I'm taking an empty van back.
Road is pretty slippery today.
If I'm not careful, a guy could Easily jacknife or something, Because it is that slick.
with an empty trailer, alex Has little weight to give him Traction on the ice.
the back hano weight, so it Tends to slip around and the Truck tends to slip a little More too because there's nothing Really holding the tires down Tight to the ice.
Some of this section from Prudhoe bay south, you have to Tiptoe over.
Can't be turning the steering Wheel too quick or hitting the Brakes or else a guy will go in The snow bank for sure.
It's a challenging road.
It, you know, changes.
I mean, every trip it changes, You know, because it's either Melting or freezing or, you Know, one day the snow starts to Melt.
Next day, new snow falls on it.
And one day you got traction in A certain place.
Next day, it's slippery and you Don't have traction.
up ahead, alex's first big Challenge.
Oil spill hill.
Southbound, it's a slick Two-mile slope straight to the Bottom.
you know, there's a pretty Steep incline on the curve at The bottom.
You know, 35 or 40-mile-an-hour Corner at the bottom, so that if You start to slide, you're Really gonna be doing some Pretty hard praying by the time You get to the bottom.
just as alex begins the Descent, he loses all traction.
boy, is that slippery right There.
Whew.
Spinning going downhill.
I can't believe it.
On the steep narrow slope called Oil spill hill Alex is spinning out.
come on, baby.
She doesn't like it.
Kicked her a couple times.
every time alex brakes, he Loses traction.
boy, is that slippery right There.
Spinning going downhill.
I can't believe it.
his convoy partner jack Mccann knows that the problem is Made worse by alex's empty Trailer.
yeah, if my wife was here, I Could put her in the back and That would be good.
alex downshifts until he Feels his wheels bite into the Ice.
you get over? yeah, I was even spinning Coming over the top and coming Downhill.
It was ice.
Couldn't get it to grab at all.
I kept going slower and slower.
I had to keep taking my foot off The throttle, you know? Had to keep slowing the wheels Down because it kept wanting to Spin and spinning When you're spinning, you're not Gaining.
You start losing.
So it's better I keep backing Off and backing off.
alex keeps his speed to a Minimum.
He still has 200 miles to reach Coldfoot tonight.
And with bad weather ahead, he Wants to make it there in one Piece.
getting pretty foggy here.
Seems like things got worse.
Kelly is racing north hoping to Beat the storm.
we had a couple drifts back On finger, so that's kind of a Preview of what's to come on Places with no mountains and Trees.
I would prefer to hit the storm In the daylight than at night.
That's why we must drive faster.
lisa's next challenge: The Beaver slide.
A treacherous two-mile downhill Slope.
Once a trucker starts down Beaver slide, there's no turning Back.
it's drifting a little bit Right now.
Starting to drift across the Roads.
drifting snow on top of the Ice is making the hill extremely Dangerous to navigate.
we're slipping.
So we're gonna slide all the way Down the beaver slide.
lisa pumps her brakes, but She can only apply so much Pressure.
you can't just hit your Brakes, because the chances of It, like, locking up and Swinging out sideways on you.
You could slip easy.
You just can't ride your brakes All the way down and just smoke 'em till their on fire, 'cause Then you won't have brakes for The rest of the trip.
halfway down, she starts to Dangerously pick up speed.
we could get going really Fast.
I'm gonna try to reign this Thing in.
lisa has no choice but to Ride it out to the bottom of the Hill.
there we go.
Turned the jake down to two.
Run my fan and dropped a gear or Two.
We're not slipping anymore.
so far lisa's on schedule to Make it to prudhoe bay tonight.
I'm excited to get to Prudhoe, but I got to face Weather and snow and storms that Are coming in.
But I'm gonna weather it all to Go straight to prudhoe.
That's the whole goal.
just north of atigun pass Hugh and phil are moving south Into the edge of the storm.
[intercom beeps.]
yeah, we're hitting some Pretty thick fog here.
You pretty much cut it with a Knife up here right now.
Something devastating can happen For sure.
Fog is just as bad as a [bleep.]
Snowstorm.
ice fog forms when extremely Cold air suddenly hits a warm Front.
Tiny ice particles crystalize Into a layer so thick it's Sometimes called the white Death.
[horn honks.]
you can't see the curves, the Ditches.
Lots of [bleep.]
can happ There.
And not only that, but you got Oncoming traffic that's in the Same boat you are.
[intercom beeps.]
got three big ones coming at You.
if you're in the fog, Everybody better be calling out Where they are one truck to Another.
hugh knows the protocol for Driving in fog.
What worries him are the Truckers who don't.
The ones who cause deadly Accidents.
Suddenly, a driver behind hugh Wants to pass.
A risky maneuver in these Conditions.
yeah.
It's clear, is it, phil? yes, yes, it's clear.
yeah, you can If you want to go around me, go Ahead.
the passing truck steers into The oncoming lane.
yeah, phil's got her clear up There.
Go ahead.
but the driver hesitates as He starts to pass.
A potentially fatal mistake.
don't be such a pansy and get At it [bleep.]
.
suddenly, phil spots a snow Plow heading in the opposite Direction right for the passing Truck.
[horn honks.]
in a thick ice fog on the North slope A truck is trying to pass hugh Rowland.
And up ahead, a snow plow is Heading straight for them.
[horn honks.]
[horn honks.]
get over! the truck clears the oncoming Lane just seconds before a Head-on collision.
[horn honks.]
see? You don't want to get Over-[bleep.]
-anxious when the Fog is thick like that.
He was halfway by and then he Got scared and started backing Off.
That's just prolonging the Agony.
[bleep.]
, if you're gonna do Something, make a [bleep.]
move.
Once you're committed, [bleep.]
Do it, and don't back down.
Closing in on the dalton's Midway point.
we're 15 minutes away from Coldfoot.
That's our information station.
We can sit down and check the Load, check the road conditions, Grab something to eat, and hit The road.
I'm confident we're gonna hit The road.
We're not staying.
[winds howling.]
with the winter storm gaining Strength Lisa's hoping to make it over Atigun pass, before it's closed To northbound trucks.
But as she pulls into coldfoot, Lisa realizes she's hit the end Of the road.
oh, my gosh.
Oh, look how bad this is.
As you can see, coldfoot is Packed full.
And that would be a huge, Gigantic hint that it's only The roads are closed.
So we're closed down.
[sighs.]
[winds howling.]
No turning back for hugh and Phil.
They're southbound in the storm.
As they approach atigun pass oh, the pass is [bleep.]
.
Look like, to me, they got about Two to three inches of snow Up there.
they've got to make it over Atigun and down to coldfoot Before the road is completely Undriveable.
oh, [bleep.]
.
[suspenseful music.]
She's not that easy, that's for [bleep.]
damn sure.
I'll give her a try.
jeez, this is even icier.
[bleep.]
.
Whoa.
[laughing.]
Still spinning.
Lots of spinning going on today.
battling 30-mile-per-hour Winds, hugh and phil finally Reach the summit.
But they get troubling news About what's ahead.
We've got a guy spun out.
We're going to get him out of The way.
The road's going to be blocked.
with no room to pass until The wreck is cleared pull over here.
hugh and phil are stuck at [winds howling.]
As they pull over, phil decides To make the best of The situation.
all right, get your ass out Of the truck.
I got something to show you.
okay.
this is normal for us up Here.
We are going to make dinner on Top of atigun pass.
right on.
I got a big, old chunk of Caribou, and some fresh Vegetables.
We'll throw it all on the grill, And just burn the piss out of It.
sounds good.
there it goes.
Been marinating for two days.
should be good now.
some asparagus A yellow squash, a zucchini, and An onion.
It won't take that long.
As long as everybody likes A little blood in their meat.
for most people, a barbeque In minus 20 might seem strange.
But for the man they call The polar bear, he's right at Home.
yeah, he's definitely Becoming part of the dalton Gang, definitely.
good.
I have to get my six guns out.
yeah.
[laughing.]
It's about time to eat, and it Won't stay hot for very long.
hell of a good job there, Hillbilly.
pretty good? yep.
an hour later, the wreck is Pulled to the side of the road, And traffic can now pass.
all right, we're on the way.
Ah, it's one of these guys that Like to blow by you.
All the time.
I was going to ask phil why These guardrails were so banged Up, now I know.
[laughing.]
once hugh and phil are safely Off the pass, they make a run For coldfoot.
Just 75 miles ahead.
George are racing to deadhorse Before the next wave of bad Weather closes the road.
man, I can't believe this Weather.
we're running through the ice Cut right now.
Hopefully, we get up through There and make it on down to About any blows.
ice cut is a dangerously Slick and narrow passage.
And to top it requires both Speed and precision behind The wheel.
mm-kay, man.
Here's the cut.
Oh, this is [bleep.]
slick here.
Whoo.
Wind blows around on the road, Polishes it up like glass.
That's why it gets so slick Up here.
[laughing.]
yeah, georgie, no problem.
Spun a little bit, but caught Her anyway.
with ice cut behind them, They descend ontthe open Tundra Where the brutal winds start To blow.
I guess it's blowing pretty Hard all the way, 30 mile in.
So we're going to try andtry And beat it.
Beat the road closing up.
Wayne wasn't lying when he said They were filling in, huh? Yeah, we better get after it, George.
you bet ya.
My left arm's getting kind of Sore from holding this wheel To the left.
The wind's blowing pretty hard To our right.
Hitting the side of this van Trailer.
Setting like a sail.
I let go of the wheel, she Just heads right for the ditch.
Okay, georgie.
No sweat.
All right-y, I appreciate that.
the storm grows worse.
And deep snow drifts begin to Pile up on the road.
ah, here's the drifts they've Been telling us about.
driving on ice through Several feet of snow can easily Throw a trucker off course And cause them to suddenly spin Out of control.
They call it drift slamming.
And if tim and george are going To make it to deadhorse tonight, They'll have to blast through oh, wow.
Look at this [bleep.]
, man.
Holy cow.
still 100 miles from coldfoot Alex debogorski and Jack mccann are southbound in The storm.
jack's got a load, I'm empty.
I got an empty van.
Just trying to keep the truck From spinning.
while others have been Advised not to travel, those Already on the road have No choice but to push through.
just keeptry to keep the Greasy side down and the shiny Side up.
as night falls, they approach The most feared stretch of The road we're going over atigun, It'll be the first time I've Gone over it in the dark.
It's better in the dark, because Then you can't see over The side.
[laughing.]
You can only see what's in front Of you.
Nothing to scare you, until Everything goes black.
We're going to put chains on One axle.
AndGive her a shot.
although alex has 27 years of Trucking experience, he's not A pro with chains because he Rarely uses them on the canadian Ice roads.
we haven't got that much room To get under here.
I need long, skinny arms.
ten minutes later, his Partner jack is chained and Ready to go.
roll this thing ahead now.
but alex doesn't have his First set on.
stay there.
I lost my backup lights.
I'll have to back up a little Bit.
I lost my damn chain.
as the weather grows worse, Alex continues to fumble with His chains.
And jack's patience begins to Wear thin.
Jack becomes so frustrated with Alex He takes off without him.
hopefully it'll work.
leaving alex to make The drive over atigun alone.
okay.
[sighs.]
Lord give us a hand.
Make sure I don't mess it up.
alex slowly creeps up The pass.
yep, she's going to be slow Driving in the dark.
This looks quite a bit snowier Here, eh? Looks pretty white, wouldn't you Say? This is what's been causing The problem here today.
Sure can't see too much here.
It's just all white, and kind of Foggy.
White and froggy.
one wrong turn and this Whiteout could send alex Tumbling thousands of feet down The mountainside.
oh, it's slippery.
Right now, I got no traction At all.
alex pushes through The storm.
damn.
he's only got 70 miles to go To reach coldfoot tonight.
Winds have reduced visibility to Almost zero.
Giant snowdrifts are overtaking The road.
And tim and george are battling To make it to safety without Going over the edge.
timmy, how you making her Back there? just dandy, george.
Just dandy.
Going a lot better than it was Backback down the road a ways.
Gone 480 miles, but the last Bother us.
But I'm bound and determined To get up there today.
Looks like we got us a convoy.
I know, I'll bet in ten minutes After we come through them heavy Drifts, that nobody else will be Able to get through there.
after ten long miles of Slamming massive drifts Deadhorse is finally in sight.
tim, I can see you over There to the warehouse.
oh, yeah.
We're at deadhorse, prudhoe bay Right now.
Just rolling into town.
SoWe made her anyways.
[honking.]
as week six of the ice road Season comes to a close, Jack jessee leads the dash for The cash with ten loads.
Tim freeman has only completed Four trips on the dalton.
But he's quickly earning his Stripes as an ice road trucker.
here we are, we're at The stop sign at the end of The dalton highway.
The north end, the good end To be at.
Has cleared atigun pass.
And is finally reaching the end Of his day.
well, we finally got to Coldfoot.
I survived, eh.
[laughing.]
after three long hours in The storm, alex is one Road-weary ice road trucker.
But he made it safely through His first solo voyage on The dalton.
it's 3:00 in the morning.
It'sI'm looking forward to Sleeping, so I guess this is it For the night.
I'm going to bed.