Ice Road Truckers (2007) s05e03 Episode Script
Wrong Turn & Burned
Tonight on Ice Road Truckers A monster load pushes Lisa to her limits.
The Canadian wilderness takes its toll.
You dirty bitch.
Crash.
The rookie is in hot water.
Ah.
And Dave Redmon's second chance may be his last.
Let me ask you your honest opinion.
Do you think I'm [Bleep.]
? In Fairbanks, Alaska Brand-new morning.
7:30.
See what I got today.
Lisa Kelly is up early, looking to build on her lead in the load count.
Okay.
There's the car hauler.
But today's heavy haul promises trouble.
Yeah, it's gonna be 16 1/2 feet tall.
Gonna have to have your beacon on, two "oversized" signs.
Gotcha.
Your speed restricted.
You can only move 45 miles an hour maximum.
Okay.
I have the car hauler today.
I haven't got to do the car hauler since last year when I flunked and failed miserably, so I'm not gonna do that again.
Last winter I'm gonna take her slow.
Try not to blow anything off the trailer.
Lisa's biggest failure was having to trade out on a car hauler on her first run of the season.
What? It's oversize.
See if I can get it to move.
This time Lisa will be on her own.
If she struggles with the hauler, there's no backup plan.
I have to make it today, because I don't have anyone to swap the trailer out to right now.
This load'll make it one way or another.
You watch.
Back at the yard What's happening? Hey.
What's going on? Oh, work.
Where's Dave? He's in Coldfoot, waiting for you.
I thought you were bringing him down early I was.
Left him there, huh? I did.
Two days ago, Tony Molesky's training run with Dave Redmon didn't go well.
You're on my ass non-stop.
I mean, I can't even turn into a [Bleep.]
parking lot without you over there.
They're legitimate, man.
They're-- Every time that I said these things, it's been legit.
All of 'em! And then he kind of-- Kind of tripped out and got really disrespectful, and, uh, I don't think he liked hearing what I had to say.
He's really not welcome back in here, to he honest with you.
Oh, so that's why he's in Coldfoot.
Pretty much.
250 miles up the road I'm in Coldfoot for the second night now, and still have no loads.
If they just let me drive the [Bleep.]
truck Veteran instructor Phil Kromm will have to pick up where Tony left off.
I'd rather not deal with him anymore, to be honest with you.
Okay, well, I'll see if I can, and Yeah.
So where do you think Tony is right now? Bad-mouthing me.
As you and I both know, um, with the bad attitude, that's not gonna last long up here.
Uh-uh.
As soon as I step into Phil's truck, I'll be behind the eight ball the minute I sit down in the seat.
Take it easy.
You too.
Seems like personalities are conflicting pretty hard.
Tony doesn't take disrespect.
2,600 miles southeast in winnipeg Hey.
How are you doing this morning? Drivers Rick Yemm and Hugh "the polar bear" rowland are back on the job, this time working for Dave Horbas of first nation's transport.
Anything that's required to the remote communities up north.
And you need good drivers, because they can-- They can make you or break you in the bush.
That's why we've brought on Alex and Hugh and Rick to come and help us out here this winter.
There's big money involved, but there's also big risk.
Anything can happen.
One mistake and then, you know, it's over.
It's a tough, tough business.
Yeah.
Yeah, okay.
Good.
First ones in should be smooth.
Yeah.
Nobody'll have wrecked them all All right, good enough.
Okay, thanks a lot.
See you guys.
Rick and Hugh will caravan nearly 60 miles before splitting off.
I got it.
Yeah.
Rick will roll with the town of Bloodvein, and Hugh will continue east with supplies for the little grand rapids airport.
The Mercury may be at 20 below, but Rick is still spiking with a fever of 103.
The thing is, is that the people that need this Don't give [Bleep.]
if I'm sick or not.
Let's see if I can make her.
While Rick and Hugh hit the winter roads, back in Alaska Lisa Kelly's redemption run Starts with the notorious roller coaster.
I'm gonna check my load right here before we hit roller coaster.
It's the last big pull-out for a few good hills.
Make sure everything's holding.
Might get a run at these hills.
Check my tires.
This low-slung trailer presents a tough challenge on a huge dip like the roller coaster.
Lisa has to build enough speed going down so that she can make it up the other side.
But if she hits the bottom too fast, a tire could grind against the trailer and shred, sending the entire rig out of control.
If I have a flat, it's gonna pull me in that direction, or pull the trailer that direction, and make me go Like that.
Yeah, this could very well turn out like last year.
I'm not guaranteeing it won't.
We ain't there yet.
And it ain't over till the fat lady sings.
Finally, Lisa's one step closer to putting last year's worst moment in the rearview mirror.
Like the postal service.
Neither rain, nor sleet Nor snow shall stop me from delivering the mail.
Or, in this case, these trucks.
Coming up, Rick gets lost.
I'm gonna back out.
At least an hour.
Maybe two.
And Maya faces one last test.
Oh, my God.
Are you serious? She popped out of nowhere.
In Canada's manitoba province Are you the guard dog here? Alex Debogorski has delivered a much-needed load of supplies to red sucker lake.
Well, we've got the load here.
That's the good part.
Number one's to get the load there.
Load's delivered, we got the customer signing the bill.
Long as we got a happy customer, next challenge is get the truck home in one piece.
Yeah, yeah.
Beautiful.
So I see you put a load on.
Yeah.
You're a good man.
Alex's back-haul, of a long tradition on the winter roads.
Yeah, I'm getting a load of fresh fish to take back.
In the early 1960-- Right around the '60s--'50s, '60s, a lot of these communities, uh, were commercial fishing.
And there was enough money in fishing that a lot of the, uh, bush pilots, that's how they bought their airplanes.
They'd fly fishermen into the lakes, and, uh, then they'd come back and pick up the boxed fish, and fly the fish out, and that's how they paid for their plane.
So as time went on, you put a road in, it's a lot cheaper to haul fish out in a truck than it is to haul it out with a plane.
Hey, you too.
Thank you.
Thank you.
With a paying back-haul behind him and the Canadian wilderness ahead, Alex hits the road.
We'll be going until the engine quits.
If there's a big clunk, bang, bang, that's it, then we just get out, take our suitcases, start hitchhiking.
Delivering this load of fish will put another $1,500 in Alex's pocket.
But on these roads, there's no such thing as easy money.
Well, this is getting rougher here.
Nobody's plowed it or drug it or nothing.
Driving on a road like this is a lot more tiring than just driving down the highway.
Because we got so many knobs and rocks and potholes, and-- And hummocks and snow and no snow, and So as a person's going along, you're making split-second decisions, especially getting to rough areas.
'Cause you're going down the road, you know, between-- You know, every bump you got to make a decision.
"Am I gonna go over that bump, or am I gonna swing to the left and see if there's something softer on that side, eh?" So it's a lot-- A lot more tiring than just going down the highway, just staying in your Lane at a certain speed.
There's a hole right here.
Water and ice around it.
And flags.
And then there's a-- This vehicle.
I wonder if it went through this hole and smashed itself.
That's not a real old one.
I mean, it's fairly old.
Look at the mud on it.
It's an '03.
Yeah, this truck was buried in the mud.
You know, this-- This truck was stuck in that hole there, it might have been here from last year.
Somebody got it out of the hole and moved it back here.
It's called collateral damage.
Driving down this road.
We haven't seen it yet, but they claim that there's some trucks, like, big trucks like ours, same way, just sitting in the road, still here from last year.
Making me nervous.
I got so many things making me nervous, I can't pick which one to be nervous--most nervous about first.
I got chains on.
I got theLocked up.
Like, holy mackerel.
What else am I gonna do? Wearing a condom.
Like, I mean, how safe do you want me to be? That's what makes life interesting, not knowing what's gonna happen tomorrow.
It's gonna--it's gonna blow or it's gonna rain or it's gonna, you know.
Whatever's gonna happen tomorrow, we're gonna adjust to it.
And if we get stuck in the middle of the road, we have mud up to our ears, we're gonna go home, and we're just gonna leave the truck sitting there.
We'll come back next winter and worry about it.
west, Dalton trainee Maya Sieber faces one last test before she can get behind the wheel.
Hey, I'm Trish.
Nice to meet you.
Okay.
We'll go ahead and get started.
Have you done a DOTUA.
Before? Yes, I have.
Okay.
I need this cup filled at least halfway, and I'll be right outside the door.
All right.
I'm ready.
Maya will have to wait for the results before she can hit the haul road.
Hi.
How are you? Hi.
Are you Maya? Good.
Yes.
Until then, she's found another way to prepare.
That's the funnest videogame I've ever seen.
Yeah, well, it's a lot more than a videogame.
It's just like a real truck.
You just get in here.
Carlile trainer John McCoy starts this New York city driver on a virtual city street.
Dog.
Barking dog.
Looks like he's about to Whoa.
I can tell you're from New York.
You were ready for that guy.
Oh, my God.
Are you serious? She popped out of nowhere.
Yeah, she pops out of nowhere, and you were right about three quarters of a second.
Pretty darn good for your first drive.
Having shown her stuff on the city streets, it's time for the real challenge.
Put you on a little bit of an ice road situation.
Oh, boy.
Yeah.
It's-- It's unpaved.
And you got to be ready for ice.
Sometimes ice is really hard to see, especially when Oh, [Bleep.]
.
Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Talk about slippery.
Crash.
Well, you know where you are now? End of the exercise.
That's crazy.
You did it.
That's, like, so realistic.
Oh, my God.
That-- That's tough.
That was a-- That's quite a challenging road, so That is definitely challenging.
That is slick.
I learned you just got to take it slow.
Take it slow.
Really slow.
Expect the worst.
It felt a little overwhelming sitting in that chair.
Even though it wasn't real, it was still This-- It is real what's gonna happen out there.
The rough winter road isn't the only thing Rick is fighting today.
And I'm kind of dragging ass today.
Yeah, I really got to kind of stay focused, 'cause This is the time when you make a mistake.
I got to get some rest and get over this [Bleep.]
.
Sounds like you got a mouth full of [Bleep.]
.
[Bleep.]
you.
Rick is headed 155 miles north, to the town of Bloodvein, while Hugh will split off east to little grand rapids.
As they approach the turnout Okay, here's our sign.
I guess we turn right for little grand rapids.
Rick follows Hugh instead of continuing north.
Five miles down the road Rick checks his hauling papers.
Rick checks his hauling papers.
[Bleep.]
.
For what? I knew where I was going.
I got to go back.
I got to find a spot to turn around.
Yeah, I do.
I'm gonna have to flip around here.
He's not feeling very good today.
He's not paying attention.
Should have looked at his load sheet, see where he was going.
Hey, you know if there's a spot to turn this thing around up there? I'm going to Bloodvein with this.
I took the wrong turn.
I wasn't even watching.
No? Okay thanks, man.
Just asked him if there's a spot to turn around, and he said, "nope.
" On narrow roads built to last less than three months, finding a spot to pull a u-turn isn't gonna happen.
These roads here, there's no turn-around for a truck like this, so I got to back out At least an hour.
Maybe two, to get out of here.
He followed me up, but now he's got to back out a couple clicks.
Yeah, he'll get pretty good at backing up by the time he gets out of here.
There's roads aren't that wide, so it's gonna be a pain.
It's hard to tell the white from the white.
You can't tell if it's a snow bank or the road.
And the last thing I want to do is get in the soft snow on the sides here and get myself [Bleep.]
stuck.
Gonna be a long back-up.
Coming up, Alex hits the ice.
If we go too fast, a wave will break the ice.
And Tony relives a nightmare.
I'm gonna get hurt.
Here it comes.
Free of Dave Redmon, Tony Molesky is on his first solo run of the season, hauling to Prudhoe Bay.
We're going across the 72-mile flats.
Probably about 20 miles from surprise rise.
What I'd like to do today is just take a quick stop by the spot where I went off the road.
I'd like to stop in there, and get out, and walk around a little bit, and just kind of pick up any leftover scraps and stuff, so There'll be parts of my truck probably there forever, but it'd make me feel better to get every little piece out of there, if I can, and maybe get this behind me.
Just two weeks ago, a head-on collision in this very spot nearly ended Tony's life.
Here we are.
This is my crash site.
That's where I went in.
I stuffed it right in right there.
Wow.
Looks like a few parts of my Fender here.
Little bits and pieces of plastic that got left behind.
Looks like a backup light off my headache rack.
Well, they call surprise rise "surprise rise" for a reason.
He had the advantage.
He was on the top of the hill.
I was coming up from the bottom of the hill, so he really never knew I was coming.
And he got on his brakes and locked up his trailer without knowing it, and then slid his trailer across the road into my Lane.
And at that point, I had no idea his trailer was across the road, because he had all of his lights on, blinding me.
And when he finally got all of his lights shut off, I got two seconds to see this trailer coming at me.
And what went through my head at that point was, "I'm getting hurt.
I'm gonna get hurt.
"Here it comes.
" And I just took a right as hard as I could.
I wasn't going fast enough to get out of his way.
I absolutely know I was lucky.
If that man wouldn't have shut off his lights, it would've been a whole different ball game.
We were on a dangerous road.
Next time I drive by, there won't be any pieces or parts on the side of the road that I'm looking at, saying "dang.
" I suppose this is more like closure.
That is-- I wasn't even [Bleep.]
thinking.
I'm kind of plugged up, and my head feels like it's in a bit of a vice.
So I'm just not fully on my game today, that's all.
Rick's wrong turn has cost him hours and potentially a paycheck.
We're maybe about a quarter to halfway into the back-up procedure here.
Gotta constantly reposition.
You're using your mirror, so you can only see so far.
It's hard to judge what's up next.
Ooh.
That's not good.
[Bleep.]
But just 30 miles away I guess Rick is behind the eight ball already.
Did you just hear something? The polar bear has problems of his own.
Could've swore.
I lost all my air pressure for some reason.
Without proper air pressure, the truck's brakes will lock up I haven't found anything yet.
There's an air leak somewhere.
Leaving Hugh stranded alone in the wilderness.
Looks like I'm gonna have to unhook the trailer.
Come on, you [Bleep.]
.
Oh, yeah, she's building air for some reason, though.
I guess I had a valve that got a chunk of ice in there.
And now it's working again, you dirty [Bleep.]
.
After I unhooked the trailer and everything.
Change in the weather all the time.
Everything gets warm, and you're cold If it's on self-fix, that's great for me.
Rock and roll.
At least I didn't have to fix anything.
Well, if I needed any honing on my back-up skills, I just got it today.
I can't believe I made the wrong turn, but there again, I'm not with it today, so I'm not paying proper attention.
What a [Bleep.]
dumbass.
Finally I guess I should've turned left here instead of right.
Rick reaches the turnoff.
There's my left right there.
Bloodvein.
He's headed in the right direction, but time and patience are running short.
That was [Bleep.]
exhausting.
As daylight fades Alex is headed South to winnipeg with a paying back haul of fresh fish.
We're just getting ready to go onto the ice crossing on island lake.
So we're gonna slow down, take it easy, and onto the ice we go! They have larger, longer ice crossings here.
This crossing just opened in the last couple of days.
So I'm being fairly cautious on keeping the speed down to about 10 miles an hour.
This 30-year veteran knows that on the ice, speed kills.
The ice is plastic, so it bends underneath the truck, and as it bends, we push water in front of us, which creates a wave.
And if we go too fast and we hit a shallow spot or hit the shore, or hit a weak place, the ice in the wave will break the ice.
I bought a new camera, and they told me the camera's good-- Good in water to 20 feet deep.
I told her, "if I'm in 20 feet of water, I'm not really gonna be worried about the camera.
" Thank you, lord.
Back on the Dalton, Lisa Kelly is pushing hard to deliver r oversized car hauler It's snowing, and we got a little frost breeze going on on my top-heavy load.
And erase the memory of last season's biggest failure.
Climbing up the shelf right now.
This is the rough part of the road.
This is the part I was anticipating on being careful on.
I am taking a little bit longer, but I still wanna get it there on time.
But in the dead of night, hours of intense focus begin to take their toll.
Bam! It hit me like a load of bricks.
I am very tired, and we are still a ways out.
Hall road veteran Lisa Kelly fights to redeem last year's failure.
The sandman's laying it on heavy.
I'm tired.
Very tired.
I'm gonna have a hard time.
Finally We're here! We just made it to Prudhoe Bay.
Got this trailer up here.
Last year, an oversized car hauler showed Lisa's lack of experience.
Was on time within the hours, and it's alive, and so am I.
Now, with her biggest failure behind her, Lisa's got her eyes on even greater challenges down the road.
I'm glad I got straight up here and was like, blah, okay, I'm done.
I can do it.
Next.
at Coldfoot, Carlile trainer Phil Kromm is on his way to retrieve an abandoned Dave Redmon.
Tony left him here at Coldfoot for me to come up and pick him up.
This should be interesting, to say the least.
Hey, Dave.
Phil.
What's happening? Good to see you.
You been waiting long? I heard there was a little difference in personality.
A little? On their way back to Fairbanks, Dave gets another shot in the driver's seat.
- Wanna make sure you announce yourself and - And another chance to take instruction.
So was that okay there in a put situation? You wanna be sure and, uh, gets to you, just-- If you could throw a glass of rocks, that would be good.
Okay.
Now you're going a little faster than you want.
Another thing is the lean on the jig.
All this company is, is train, train, train, train, train.
"We'll let you drive someday.
" Someday.
I'm gonna tell you-- And I told Tony when I got in his truck-- I'm the first guy that's gonna tell you if your asses stink and you're too damn ugly.
So is he, and that's where-- That's where the button "x" comes in.
That's like two guys standing in a puddle of gasoline, striking matches, see, you know.
Who can get their match lit first, you know.
Yeah, see who can get their match lit first, you know.
Yeah.
I'm sure, you know, they're waiting for me to get back to say, "well, what do you think?" Let me ask you your honest opinion-- Do you think I'm a [Bleep.]
? No, I don't, but you haven't pissed me off yet.
Alex is hauling 20,000 pounds of fresh fish back to winnipeg.
Oh, boy.
See, the last guy went in there.
But the winter roads aren't done with him yet.
They call this "underwear hill.
" One time this truck driver was coming up here, and he had trouble on the hill and scared himself so bad he pooped his pants.
Finally he got to the top of the hill.
He took his underpants off and hung 'em in the trees.
Poopy underpants.
And I suppose ever since that day, other guys have been adding underpants to his collection.
That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.
I broke the lens out of my watch! Can't believe it.
My blood pressure must've went up and just blew the lens right out of it.
So it's been kind of a-- Kind of an exciting evening! Blasted through that road there.
Finally Alex pulls his back haul into the truck yard.
Oh, lordy lordy, I'm glad to be here.
Yeah, it's been an eventful day.
In the name of the father, and the son, and the holy spirit, amen.
Coming up Dave faces the music.
How'd the trip go? And Maya Heats up.
Now I'm not burning my ass.
of winnipeg, Canada I think I see houses over there.
That's gotta be little grand rapids.
I think I'm gonna go straight into town here.
That's where I gotta go.
Hugh rowland is about to cash in on his second haul of the season.
Gonna get 'em unloaded and get the [Bleep.]
out of dodge and head on back.
Rick finally rolls into Bloodvein.
I'm here.
Yee-haw.
He's three hours late and still pushing a fever.
Everything I do today feels ten times harder.
Everything aches today.
And everybody thinks it's just jammin' gears and life is good.
You get to see the country.
Seem to forget that there's no one you can call in sick to do your job.
You gotta do it no matter what.
I'm on my way.
Despite the struggle Both Rick and Hugh She's a big one.
Have successfully delivered their loads.
We got 'em here, safe and sound.
We did what we were supposed to do, and everybody's happy.
That's two loads in the bank, anyway.
Dash for the cash.
As Rick and Hugh turn and burn, their successful deliveries bring them dead even with Alex.
But on the Dalton, Lisa stays at the front of the pack with three loads, while Dave and Maya have yet to get in the game.
At the Carlile yard Dave's made it back to Fairbanks with an empty fuel tanker.
I don't wanna be out in the yard without safety equipment.
That's right.
Three points contact on your way down too.
Oh, yeah.
That means head, ass, and knees.
After a thumbs down from Tony, Carlile boss Lane Keator is looking for a second opinion.
What's happening? Not much.
How's it going? Good.
How'd the trip go? He drove daytime, nighttime, loaded, empty a little bit.
Worked on a few things.
He made some immediate corrections.
After that, it was not an issue.
Okay.
We'll get set up and sit down and visit a little bit Okay.
And come to a conclusion on what we're gonna do going forward.
Lane will weigh Tony and Phil's assessment of Dave's abilities.
For now, the Alabama slammer will have to wait.
I don't wanna be a rookie again, you know.
It's like being the new kid in school, and it's just-- It's a pain in the ass.
It really is.
You know you can do the job, I got a resume that says I can do the job, but nobody's gonna let me do the job Because they don't know me.
All right.
Appreciate it.
Thanks, Dave.
We'll see you soon.
All right, thanks.
You bet.
I can't wait to get on that road, and make some money, and be done with this [Bleep.]
.
As one rookie gets out of hot water, another is just gettin' in.
And tomorrow she'll begin training to drive the hall road.
I'm here at Chena Springs, and I'm here to relax in the hot Springs.
Fairbanks' famous Chena hot Springs are the perfect chance to unwind before Maya gets down to business behind the wheel.
It is extremely cold out here, but the water is, like, very warm, like over 100 degrees.
Oh, my God.
Is this natural? Oh, it's so cold, but it's so hot! I have goosebumps on top of goosebumps.
Oh, my God.
Her drug test has come back clean, and tomorrow she'll begin training to drive the hall road.
Being a truck driver is extremely stressful, and, um, it's just important to try and find ways to relieve stress.
This is definitely the stress relief that I needed.
I'm enjoying today, but I'm really, really ready to do my job and get behind the wheel.
This is my life, my livelihood, and my passion.
It's great to relax, but I can't wait to get truckin'.
Next week on ice road truckers Eh, I'm not a total [Bleep.]
.
Two rookie drivers hit the hall road.
Make sure you stay to your side.
And the road hits back.
Big truck.
And in Canada There it goes! The biggest loads of the season Everybody through? Push Hugh and Rick to the breaking point.
I can't even steer this [Bleep.]
.
The Canadian wilderness takes its toll.
You dirty bitch.
Crash.
The rookie is in hot water.
Ah.
And Dave Redmon's second chance may be his last.
Let me ask you your honest opinion.
Do you think I'm [Bleep.]
? In Fairbanks, Alaska Brand-new morning.
7:30.
See what I got today.
Lisa Kelly is up early, looking to build on her lead in the load count.
Okay.
There's the car hauler.
But today's heavy haul promises trouble.
Yeah, it's gonna be 16 1/2 feet tall.
Gonna have to have your beacon on, two "oversized" signs.
Gotcha.
Your speed restricted.
You can only move 45 miles an hour maximum.
Okay.
I have the car hauler today.
I haven't got to do the car hauler since last year when I flunked and failed miserably, so I'm not gonna do that again.
Last winter I'm gonna take her slow.
Try not to blow anything off the trailer.
Lisa's biggest failure was having to trade out on a car hauler on her first run of the season.
What? It's oversize.
See if I can get it to move.
This time Lisa will be on her own.
If she struggles with the hauler, there's no backup plan.
I have to make it today, because I don't have anyone to swap the trailer out to right now.
This load'll make it one way or another.
You watch.
Back at the yard What's happening? Hey.
What's going on? Oh, work.
Where's Dave? He's in Coldfoot, waiting for you.
I thought you were bringing him down early I was.
Left him there, huh? I did.
Two days ago, Tony Molesky's training run with Dave Redmon didn't go well.
You're on my ass non-stop.
I mean, I can't even turn into a [Bleep.]
parking lot without you over there.
They're legitimate, man.
They're-- Every time that I said these things, it's been legit.
All of 'em! And then he kind of-- Kind of tripped out and got really disrespectful, and, uh, I don't think he liked hearing what I had to say.
He's really not welcome back in here, to he honest with you.
Oh, so that's why he's in Coldfoot.
Pretty much.
250 miles up the road I'm in Coldfoot for the second night now, and still have no loads.
If they just let me drive the [Bleep.]
truck Veteran instructor Phil Kromm will have to pick up where Tony left off.
I'd rather not deal with him anymore, to be honest with you.
Okay, well, I'll see if I can, and Yeah.
So where do you think Tony is right now? Bad-mouthing me.
As you and I both know, um, with the bad attitude, that's not gonna last long up here.
Uh-uh.
As soon as I step into Phil's truck, I'll be behind the eight ball the minute I sit down in the seat.
Take it easy.
You too.
Seems like personalities are conflicting pretty hard.
Tony doesn't take disrespect.
2,600 miles southeast in winnipeg Hey.
How are you doing this morning? Drivers Rick Yemm and Hugh "the polar bear" rowland are back on the job, this time working for Dave Horbas of first nation's transport.
Anything that's required to the remote communities up north.
And you need good drivers, because they can-- They can make you or break you in the bush.
That's why we've brought on Alex and Hugh and Rick to come and help us out here this winter.
There's big money involved, but there's also big risk.
Anything can happen.
One mistake and then, you know, it's over.
It's a tough, tough business.
Yeah.
Yeah, okay.
Good.
First ones in should be smooth.
Yeah.
Nobody'll have wrecked them all All right, good enough.
Okay, thanks a lot.
See you guys.
Rick and Hugh will caravan nearly 60 miles before splitting off.
I got it.
Yeah.
Rick will roll with the town of Bloodvein, and Hugh will continue east with supplies for the little grand rapids airport.
The Mercury may be at 20 below, but Rick is still spiking with a fever of 103.
The thing is, is that the people that need this Don't give [Bleep.]
if I'm sick or not.
Let's see if I can make her.
While Rick and Hugh hit the winter roads, back in Alaska Lisa Kelly's redemption run Starts with the notorious roller coaster.
I'm gonna check my load right here before we hit roller coaster.
It's the last big pull-out for a few good hills.
Make sure everything's holding.
Might get a run at these hills.
Check my tires.
This low-slung trailer presents a tough challenge on a huge dip like the roller coaster.
Lisa has to build enough speed going down so that she can make it up the other side.
But if she hits the bottom too fast, a tire could grind against the trailer and shred, sending the entire rig out of control.
If I have a flat, it's gonna pull me in that direction, or pull the trailer that direction, and make me go Like that.
Yeah, this could very well turn out like last year.
I'm not guaranteeing it won't.
We ain't there yet.
And it ain't over till the fat lady sings.
Finally, Lisa's one step closer to putting last year's worst moment in the rearview mirror.
Like the postal service.
Neither rain, nor sleet Nor snow shall stop me from delivering the mail.
Or, in this case, these trucks.
Coming up, Rick gets lost.
I'm gonna back out.
At least an hour.
Maybe two.
And Maya faces one last test.
Oh, my God.
Are you serious? She popped out of nowhere.
In Canada's manitoba province Are you the guard dog here? Alex Debogorski has delivered a much-needed load of supplies to red sucker lake.
Well, we've got the load here.
That's the good part.
Number one's to get the load there.
Load's delivered, we got the customer signing the bill.
Long as we got a happy customer, next challenge is get the truck home in one piece.
Yeah, yeah.
Beautiful.
So I see you put a load on.
Yeah.
You're a good man.
Alex's back-haul, of a long tradition on the winter roads.
Yeah, I'm getting a load of fresh fish to take back.
In the early 1960-- Right around the '60s--'50s, '60s, a lot of these communities, uh, were commercial fishing.
And there was enough money in fishing that a lot of the, uh, bush pilots, that's how they bought their airplanes.
They'd fly fishermen into the lakes, and, uh, then they'd come back and pick up the boxed fish, and fly the fish out, and that's how they paid for their plane.
So as time went on, you put a road in, it's a lot cheaper to haul fish out in a truck than it is to haul it out with a plane.
Hey, you too.
Thank you.
Thank you.
With a paying back-haul behind him and the Canadian wilderness ahead, Alex hits the road.
We'll be going until the engine quits.
If there's a big clunk, bang, bang, that's it, then we just get out, take our suitcases, start hitchhiking.
Delivering this load of fish will put another $1,500 in Alex's pocket.
But on these roads, there's no such thing as easy money.
Well, this is getting rougher here.
Nobody's plowed it or drug it or nothing.
Driving on a road like this is a lot more tiring than just driving down the highway.
Because we got so many knobs and rocks and potholes, and-- And hummocks and snow and no snow, and So as a person's going along, you're making split-second decisions, especially getting to rough areas.
'Cause you're going down the road, you know, between-- You know, every bump you got to make a decision.
"Am I gonna go over that bump, or am I gonna swing to the left and see if there's something softer on that side, eh?" So it's a lot-- A lot more tiring than just going down the highway, just staying in your Lane at a certain speed.
There's a hole right here.
Water and ice around it.
And flags.
And then there's a-- This vehicle.
I wonder if it went through this hole and smashed itself.
That's not a real old one.
I mean, it's fairly old.
Look at the mud on it.
It's an '03.
Yeah, this truck was buried in the mud.
You know, this-- This truck was stuck in that hole there, it might have been here from last year.
Somebody got it out of the hole and moved it back here.
It's called collateral damage.
Driving down this road.
We haven't seen it yet, but they claim that there's some trucks, like, big trucks like ours, same way, just sitting in the road, still here from last year.
Making me nervous.
I got so many things making me nervous, I can't pick which one to be nervous--most nervous about first.
I got chains on.
I got theLocked up.
Like, holy mackerel.
What else am I gonna do? Wearing a condom.
Like, I mean, how safe do you want me to be? That's what makes life interesting, not knowing what's gonna happen tomorrow.
It's gonna--it's gonna blow or it's gonna rain or it's gonna, you know.
Whatever's gonna happen tomorrow, we're gonna adjust to it.
And if we get stuck in the middle of the road, we have mud up to our ears, we're gonna go home, and we're just gonna leave the truck sitting there.
We'll come back next winter and worry about it.
west, Dalton trainee Maya Sieber faces one last test before she can get behind the wheel.
Hey, I'm Trish.
Nice to meet you.
Okay.
We'll go ahead and get started.
Have you done a DOTUA.
Before? Yes, I have.
Okay.
I need this cup filled at least halfway, and I'll be right outside the door.
All right.
I'm ready.
Maya will have to wait for the results before she can hit the haul road.
Hi.
How are you? Hi.
Are you Maya? Good.
Yes.
Until then, she's found another way to prepare.
That's the funnest videogame I've ever seen.
Yeah, well, it's a lot more than a videogame.
It's just like a real truck.
You just get in here.
Carlile trainer John McCoy starts this New York city driver on a virtual city street.
Dog.
Barking dog.
Looks like he's about to Whoa.
I can tell you're from New York.
You were ready for that guy.
Oh, my God.
Are you serious? She popped out of nowhere.
Yeah, she pops out of nowhere, and you were right about three quarters of a second.
Pretty darn good for your first drive.
Having shown her stuff on the city streets, it's time for the real challenge.
Put you on a little bit of an ice road situation.
Oh, boy.
Yeah.
It's-- It's unpaved.
And you got to be ready for ice.
Sometimes ice is really hard to see, especially when Oh, [Bleep.]
.
Oh, my God.
Oh, my God.
Talk about slippery.
Crash.
Well, you know where you are now? End of the exercise.
That's crazy.
You did it.
That's, like, so realistic.
Oh, my God.
That-- That's tough.
That was a-- That's quite a challenging road, so That is definitely challenging.
That is slick.
I learned you just got to take it slow.
Take it slow.
Really slow.
Expect the worst.
It felt a little overwhelming sitting in that chair.
Even though it wasn't real, it was still This-- It is real what's gonna happen out there.
The rough winter road isn't the only thing Rick is fighting today.
And I'm kind of dragging ass today.
Yeah, I really got to kind of stay focused, 'cause This is the time when you make a mistake.
I got to get some rest and get over this [Bleep.]
.
Sounds like you got a mouth full of [Bleep.]
.
[Bleep.]
you.
Rick is headed 155 miles north, to the town of Bloodvein, while Hugh will split off east to little grand rapids.
As they approach the turnout Okay, here's our sign.
I guess we turn right for little grand rapids.
Rick follows Hugh instead of continuing north.
Five miles down the road Rick checks his hauling papers.
Rick checks his hauling papers.
[Bleep.]
.
For what? I knew where I was going.
I got to go back.
I got to find a spot to turn around.
Yeah, I do.
I'm gonna have to flip around here.
He's not feeling very good today.
He's not paying attention.
Should have looked at his load sheet, see where he was going.
Hey, you know if there's a spot to turn this thing around up there? I'm going to Bloodvein with this.
I took the wrong turn.
I wasn't even watching.
No? Okay thanks, man.
Just asked him if there's a spot to turn around, and he said, "nope.
" On narrow roads built to last less than three months, finding a spot to pull a u-turn isn't gonna happen.
These roads here, there's no turn-around for a truck like this, so I got to back out At least an hour.
Maybe two, to get out of here.
He followed me up, but now he's got to back out a couple clicks.
Yeah, he'll get pretty good at backing up by the time he gets out of here.
There's roads aren't that wide, so it's gonna be a pain.
It's hard to tell the white from the white.
You can't tell if it's a snow bank or the road.
And the last thing I want to do is get in the soft snow on the sides here and get myself [Bleep.]
stuck.
Gonna be a long back-up.
Coming up, Alex hits the ice.
If we go too fast, a wave will break the ice.
And Tony relives a nightmare.
I'm gonna get hurt.
Here it comes.
Free of Dave Redmon, Tony Molesky is on his first solo run of the season, hauling to Prudhoe Bay.
We're going across the 72-mile flats.
Probably about 20 miles from surprise rise.
What I'd like to do today is just take a quick stop by the spot where I went off the road.
I'd like to stop in there, and get out, and walk around a little bit, and just kind of pick up any leftover scraps and stuff, so There'll be parts of my truck probably there forever, but it'd make me feel better to get every little piece out of there, if I can, and maybe get this behind me.
Just two weeks ago, a head-on collision in this very spot nearly ended Tony's life.
Here we are.
This is my crash site.
That's where I went in.
I stuffed it right in right there.
Wow.
Looks like a few parts of my Fender here.
Little bits and pieces of plastic that got left behind.
Looks like a backup light off my headache rack.
Well, they call surprise rise "surprise rise" for a reason.
He had the advantage.
He was on the top of the hill.
I was coming up from the bottom of the hill, so he really never knew I was coming.
And he got on his brakes and locked up his trailer without knowing it, and then slid his trailer across the road into my Lane.
And at that point, I had no idea his trailer was across the road, because he had all of his lights on, blinding me.
And when he finally got all of his lights shut off, I got two seconds to see this trailer coming at me.
And what went through my head at that point was, "I'm getting hurt.
I'm gonna get hurt.
"Here it comes.
" And I just took a right as hard as I could.
I wasn't going fast enough to get out of his way.
I absolutely know I was lucky.
If that man wouldn't have shut off his lights, it would've been a whole different ball game.
We were on a dangerous road.
Next time I drive by, there won't be any pieces or parts on the side of the road that I'm looking at, saying "dang.
" I suppose this is more like closure.
That is-- I wasn't even [Bleep.]
thinking.
I'm kind of plugged up, and my head feels like it's in a bit of a vice.
So I'm just not fully on my game today, that's all.
Rick's wrong turn has cost him hours and potentially a paycheck.
We're maybe about a quarter to halfway into the back-up procedure here.
Gotta constantly reposition.
You're using your mirror, so you can only see so far.
It's hard to judge what's up next.
Ooh.
That's not good.
[Bleep.]
But just 30 miles away I guess Rick is behind the eight ball already.
Did you just hear something? The polar bear has problems of his own.
Could've swore.
I lost all my air pressure for some reason.
Without proper air pressure, the truck's brakes will lock up I haven't found anything yet.
There's an air leak somewhere.
Leaving Hugh stranded alone in the wilderness.
Looks like I'm gonna have to unhook the trailer.
Come on, you [Bleep.]
.
Oh, yeah, she's building air for some reason, though.
I guess I had a valve that got a chunk of ice in there.
And now it's working again, you dirty [Bleep.]
.
After I unhooked the trailer and everything.
Change in the weather all the time.
Everything gets warm, and you're cold If it's on self-fix, that's great for me.
Rock and roll.
At least I didn't have to fix anything.
Well, if I needed any honing on my back-up skills, I just got it today.
I can't believe I made the wrong turn, but there again, I'm not with it today, so I'm not paying proper attention.
What a [Bleep.]
dumbass.
Finally I guess I should've turned left here instead of right.
Rick reaches the turnoff.
There's my left right there.
Bloodvein.
He's headed in the right direction, but time and patience are running short.
That was [Bleep.]
exhausting.
As daylight fades Alex is headed South to winnipeg with a paying back haul of fresh fish.
We're just getting ready to go onto the ice crossing on island lake.
So we're gonna slow down, take it easy, and onto the ice we go! They have larger, longer ice crossings here.
This crossing just opened in the last couple of days.
So I'm being fairly cautious on keeping the speed down to about 10 miles an hour.
This 30-year veteran knows that on the ice, speed kills.
The ice is plastic, so it bends underneath the truck, and as it bends, we push water in front of us, which creates a wave.
And if we go too fast and we hit a shallow spot or hit the shore, or hit a weak place, the ice in the wave will break the ice.
I bought a new camera, and they told me the camera's good-- Good in water to 20 feet deep.
I told her, "if I'm in 20 feet of water, I'm not really gonna be worried about the camera.
" Thank you, lord.
Back on the Dalton, Lisa Kelly is pushing hard to deliver r oversized car hauler It's snowing, and we got a little frost breeze going on on my top-heavy load.
And erase the memory of last season's biggest failure.
Climbing up the shelf right now.
This is the rough part of the road.
This is the part I was anticipating on being careful on.
I am taking a little bit longer, but I still wanna get it there on time.
But in the dead of night, hours of intense focus begin to take their toll.
Bam! It hit me like a load of bricks.
I am very tired, and we are still a ways out.
Hall road veteran Lisa Kelly fights to redeem last year's failure.
The sandman's laying it on heavy.
I'm tired.
Very tired.
I'm gonna have a hard time.
Finally We're here! We just made it to Prudhoe Bay.
Got this trailer up here.
Last year, an oversized car hauler showed Lisa's lack of experience.
Was on time within the hours, and it's alive, and so am I.
Now, with her biggest failure behind her, Lisa's got her eyes on even greater challenges down the road.
I'm glad I got straight up here and was like, blah, okay, I'm done.
I can do it.
Next.
at Coldfoot, Carlile trainer Phil Kromm is on his way to retrieve an abandoned Dave Redmon.
Tony left him here at Coldfoot for me to come up and pick him up.
This should be interesting, to say the least.
Hey, Dave.
Phil.
What's happening? Good to see you.
You been waiting long? I heard there was a little difference in personality.
A little? On their way back to Fairbanks, Dave gets another shot in the driver's seat.
- Wanna make sure you announce yourself and - And another chance to take instruction.
So was that okay there in a put situation? You wanna be sure and, uh, gets to you, just-- If you could throw a glass of rocks, that would be good.
Okay.
Now you're going a little faster than you want.
Another thing is the lean on the jig.
All this company is, is train, train, train, train, train.
"We'll let you drive someday.
" Someday.
I'm gonna tell you-- And I told Tony when I got in his truck-- I'm the first guy that's gonna tell you if your asses stink and you're too damn ugly.
So is he, and that's where-- That's where the button "x" comes in.
That's like two guys standing in a puddle of gasoline, striking matches, see, you know.
Who can get their match lit first, you know.
Yeah, see who can get their match lit first, you know.
Yeah.
I'm sure, you know, they're waiting for me to get back to say, "well, what do you think?" Let me ask you your honest opinion-- Do you think I'm a [Bleep.]
? No, I don't, but you haven't pissed me off yet.
Alex is hauling 20,000 pounds of fresh fish back to winnipeg.
Oh, boy.
See, the last guy went in there.
But the winter roads aren't done with him yet.
They call this "underwear hill.
" One time this truck driver was coming up here, and he had trouble on the hill and scared himself so bad he pooped his pants.
Finally he got to the top of the hill.
He took his underpants off and hung 'em in the trees.
Poopy underpants.
And I suppose ever since that day, other guys have been adding underpants to his collection.
That's my story, and I'm sticking to it.
I broke the lens out of my watch! Can't believe it.
My blood pressure must've went up and just blew the lens right out of it.
So it's been kind of a-- Kind of an exciting evening! Blasted through that road there.
Finally Alex pulls his back haul into the truck yard.
Oh, lordy lordy, I'm glad to be here.
Yeah, it's been an eventful day.
In the name of the father, and the son, and the holy spirit, amen.
Coming up Dave faces the music.
How'd the trip go? And Maya Heats up.
Now I'm not burning my ass.
of winnipeg, Canada I think I see houses over there.
That's gotta be little grand rapids.
I think I'm gonna go straight into town here.
That's where I gotta go.
Hugh rowland is about to cash in on his second haul of the season.
Gonna get 'em unloaded and get the [Bleep.]
out of dodge and head on back.
Rick finally rolls into Bloodvein.
I'm here.
Yee-haw.
He's three hours late and still pushing a fever.
Everything I do today feels ten times harder.
Everything aches today.
And everybody thinks it's just jammin' gears and life is good.
You get to see the country.
Seem to forget that there's no one you can call in sick to do your job.
You gotta do it no matter what.
I'm on my way.
Despite the struggle Both Rick and Hugh She's a big one.
Have successfully delivered their loads.
We got 'em here, safe and sound.
We did what we were supposed to do, and everybody's happy.
That's two loads in the bank, anyway.
Dash for the cash.
As Rick and Hugh turn and burn, their successful deliveries bring them dead even with Alex.
But on the Dalton, Lisa stays at the front of the pack with three loads, while Dave and Maya have yet to get in the game.
At the Carlile yard Dave's made it back to Fairbanks with an empty fuel tanker.
I don't wanna be out in the yard without safety equipment.
That's right.
Three points contact on your way down too.
Oh, yeah.
That means head, ass, and knees.
After a thumbs down from Tony, Carlile boss Lane Keator is looking for a second opinion.
What's happening? Not much.
How's it going? Good.
How'd the trip go? He drove daytime, nighttime, loaded, empty a little bit.
Worked on a few things.
He made some immediate corrections.
After that, it was not an issue.
Okay.
We'll get set up and sit down and visit a little bit Okay.
And come to a conclusion on what we're gonna do going forward.
Lane will weigh Tony and Phil's assessment of Dave's abilities.
For now, the Alabama slammer will have to wait.
I don't wanna be a rookie again, you know.
It's like being the new kid in school, and it's just-- It's a pain in the ass.
It really is.
You know you can do the job, I got a resume that says I can do the job, but nobody's gonna let me do the job Because they don't know me.
All right.
Appreciate it.
Thanks, Dave.
We'll see you soon.
All right, thanks.
You bet.
I can't wait to get on that road, and make some money, and be done with this [Bleep.]
.
As one rookie gets out of hot water, another is just gettin' in.
And tomorrow she'll begin training to drive the hall road.
I'm here at Chena Springs, and I'm here to relax in the hot Springs.
Fairbanks' famous Chena hot Springs are the perfect chance to unwind before Maya gets down to business behind the wheel.
It is extremely cold out here, but the water is, like, very warm, like over 100 degrees.
Oh, my God.
Is this natural? Oh, it's so cold, but it's so hot! I have goosebumps on top of goosebumps.
Oh, my God.
Her drug test has come back clean, and tomorrow she'll begin training to drive the hall road.
Being a truck driver is extremely stressful, and, um, it's just important to try and find ways to relieve stress.
This is definitely the stress relief that I needed.
I'm enjoying today, but I'm really, really ready to do my job and get behind the wheel.
This is my life, my livelihood, and my passion.
It's great to relax, but I can't wait to get truckin'.
Next week on ice road truckers Eh, I'm not a total [Bleep.]
.
Two rookie drivers hit the hall road.
Make sure you stay to your side.
And the road hits back.
Big truck.
And in Canada There it goes! The biggest loads of the season Everybody through? Push Hugh and Rick to the breaking point.
I can't even steer this [Bleep.]
.