Ice Road Truckers (2007) s06e10 Episode Script
Stacking the Deck
Tonight on Ice Road Truckers Okay, are we raring, boys? Hugh risks it all with a rookie driver Oh, my God, it's cracking.
To save his season from crashing down.
Come on! Oh, it's gonna be a long, long night.
- In the Yukon - Whoa! Alex has a million-dollar load riding on the edge.
Whoa, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on! And on the Dalton Get out of the way! Two haul road heavyweights battle it out Don't cut my throat to keep your nickname! It's all about freight, man.
For bragging rights, and cold, hard cash.
Suck on this, Jack.
Feels like it's my turn to kick some butt.
But only one Holy motherfucker.
Can be the king of the load count.
Sucks to be you, Jack.
Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.
Rock 'n' roll.
Darrell Ward's looking for a backhaul that'll break his tie with Jack Jessee at the top of the load count.
I'm gonna get a load, and head back south, you know? It ain't gonna take me long, and I'm gonna be ahead of Jack in the load count.
Goin' to get my dispatch, and get the hell outta here.
Hey, Sam.
What's goin' on, Darrell? Oh, you know.
I need something to go back to town with, back to Fairbanks.
Well, you're bobtailing.
Just how it goes sometimes, you know? I'm bobtailing.
It sucks, but you'll survive.
I go in there, and they tell me they don't have anything for me.
I've gotta bobtail.
I'm sure there's something here goin' back to Fairbanks.
You know, it's fucked up.
- Across the yard - Seniority has its privileges.
These guys up here took care of me.
Got me a load goin' back.
Haul road ace Jack Jessee's day is off to a better start.
Suh-weet! Sweet as my mama's pecan pie.
Fuck, that's Jack.
He got a load, what's with that? Hey, Darrell.
Well, how the fuck did you get a load? I called from Coldfoot, and pulled a little seniority on that one.
That's kinda fucked up, isn't it? Not on my end, it's not.
Us new guys, we gotta fucking sit up here, and wait for fucking loads.
Hell, I'm doin' bobtailing back.
It's wasting my fucking logbook hours.
You just come in and get 'em any time you want.
Yup.
A little seniority gets a long way around here, sometimes.
I got a few more tricks, I could teach you a couple.
This is fucked.
If there are backhauls to be had, they ought to be given to the senior drivers, you know? Give it to the people that have been here, people that have proven themselves.
I'm here first, I get the fucking load.
Calling from Coldfoot to pull a load out from underneath me is bullshit.
Don't dig in my pocket.
You're costing me fucking money.
You're costing Reno money, just so you can fucking be the ace of the fucking haul road? Fuck you, Jack! It's time somebody puts old Jack in his place.
- At the other end of the Dalton - Eh, looks like no one's here.
Austin Wheeler's the first to arrive at the Fairbanks lot.
A little too early for them, I guess.
See if they left something in my box.
Oh, yeah.
- All season - Fuck! Holy! Austin's been struggling to prove himself as a heavy hauler Holy shit! Hoping to get the respect and top-dollar paycheck of a heavy haul driver.
Steiger machine? Pretty big machine.
So we're in the mammoth yard.
That's a heavy haul, that's for sure.
You know, I've hauled all these heavy haul loads up there, and-- Well, I've shown 'em, and I've proved to myself that I'm not just some punk kid, that I know what I'm doing.
Today will be his first solo heavy haul up the Dalton Let's hook onto this bad boy.
And he'll be moving an oversized quad-track snow plow.
I'm trying to make a name for myself, by, you know, hauling the most loads, hauling some of the biggest loads, showing these guys, uh, that I have what it takes to be here.
Sweet! They wouldn't let me work heavy haulin' if they didn't think I knew what I was doing.
Let's put the landing gear up.
Ahh.
Gosh, darn it.
Ah.
Nothing likes to work properly when it's cold.
God, ah! The load can't move with the landing gear frozen in place.
I just don't know what to do-- Fuck.
- Austin's gotta figure it out on his own - I don't know.
Or his heavy haul will be over before he's out of the yard.
Just gonna rig something up, so they don't come down.
I'm tired of fucking with these landing gears all the freaking time.
What I had to do is take a chain and wrap it around the landing gear and then tie 'em up to the trailers so they won't fall down.
He's got the load ready to go, but now he's gotta get the 30-ton plow up the icy inclines of the Dalton alone.
I always figure out a way, and that's the way I've always been.
east at the Cantung mine.
It's kinda like getting into a tank.
Alex Debogorski is preparing for one of the most valuable loads of his career.
I'm interested in prospecting.
I'm interested in looking for gold.
I'm interested in other minerals, too.
So here you get a chance to go into an operating mine and see how they do their work.
Each year, the mine produces over 6 million pounds - of tungsten - So what's in here, now? Which is used in everything from light bulbs to X-ray machines.
This is called a refuge station.
You got water, you got fresh air.
So when they had all those miners trapped underground in South America, that's what-- This is what they were in? Something similar.
Do they got any games, or anything in here, to entertain 'em? Uh, just jokes.
You gotta make up your jokes.
Absolutely, yeah.
Today, Alex is hauling a day's worth of tungsten ore out of the mine.
So you're gonna be at maximum weight.
There's 11 bags.
It's pretty valuable.
It's a million-dollar load, so no pressure.
Right there.
Great, take care, thank you very much.
Safely delivering the load means once again facing one of the most feared roads in the Yukon.
One big truck outbound.
- Yesterday - I think I've got a problem, here.
The one-lane mine road's steep grades and sheer cliffs almost took out the veteran.
Hang on! And now he's gotta head back down the mountain with a million-dollar load on the line.
It's a pretty special load, 'cause they've told me it's worth a million dollars, so I better look after it.
Thank you, dear God, for all your blessings and help.
Keep me safe, amen.
at the edge of Lake Winnipeg We need three loads up to, uh, Pauingassi today, three loads of cement.
Rick's still sick.
Hugh's desperate to get a profit on the books.
Holy fuck! This season, warm weather's made the winter roads nearly undriveable.
We're just goin' in to the fucking water, here.
And a respiratory infection has Rick on the sick list.
Why the fuck did that have to happen to me? Why can't it be fucking Hugh-ey down here? And it's forced Hugh to make a Hail Mary play to save his season.
So I wrangled Vlad into it, here.
So I got another guy, and he's never even been on the fucking ice before.
He's put together a convoy with dispatcher Vlad Pleskot and the shop mechanic, who's never driven on the ice.
Never driven across ice, never drilled holes in ice.
I've never done nothing on ice, except put it in my drink.
Wish me luck.
Okay, we rarin' boys? Up and at 'er.
Yeah, I guess now or never.
I'm gonna go on right now.
Vlad will come down, and then I'll tell him when it's safe, and then, uh, he'll tell you when it's safe.
Get 'er done.
Let's rock and roll.
Don't nobody go swimming.
Swimming.
It's up to Hugh to get this ragtag team over the crossing and see that no one ends up at the bottom of the frozen lake.
It's cracking pretty good today, you can hear it.
Okay, you can probably head out there, Wilson.
Thank you.
Hey, buddy, help.
I'm going through, I'm going through! I think you should be okay to go.
Just give 'er a try.
Give her a try? Yeah.
You'll see what happens.
They're gonna be cracking and popping the ice, and I get to be the-- the tail end of it all.
Oh, this is crazy, this is crazy, this is crazy, man.
Oh, man.
The first-timer creeps forward with over 30,000 pounds of cement and the weight of the season on his shoulders.
I'm on the water.
I have some low gear on the water, coming on, is good, right? When you go on just go as slow as you can, and then pick her up.
Oh, it's cracking.
Ughh I'm driving onto the ice here, and I can hear it cracking already.
Oh, my God, it's cracking! Holy crap.
Ahhhh! I hear it poppin', I hear the ice poppin'.
Big-fucking cracks there, man.
It's looking pretty wild right now, man.
Mechanic Derek there, he's pretty nervous.
Either he'll do it, or he won't.
Wow.
Okay, there's a big truck comin' at us, so make sure you slow down when you get close to 'im.
When you meet a truck crossing on the ice, you gotta slow right down, 'cause the two waves come together, and, uh, you don't want that.
I gotta slow down, 'cause the wave underneath my ice is meeting his wave.
So we cannot bump up the ice in front of us.
There's a big truck coming at me.
I'm going to slow right down, to about 5 K.
I better double-check.
Are you doin' about 5 K when you're passing the truck? Yeah, and just remember, Derek, whatever you do, don't stop, because it's not rated for stop weight.
No stopping on the ice, 10-4, 10-4.
Holy crap.
- Coming up - I missed the shift.
- And later - That's ridiculous! Haul road rage.
Get out the way! - In Manitoba, Canada - Okay, there's a big truck comin' at it.
Aw, jeez, man.
Desperate to make some cash, Hugh's leading a Hail - Mary convoy across the ice with dispatcher Vlad - I gotta slow down.
Oh, my God, it's cracking.
And the shop mechanic, who's driving on ice for the first time.
Just remember, Derek, whatever you do, don't stop, because it's not rated for stop weight.
No stopping on the ice, 10-4, 10-4.
Ahh.
Holy crap.
Sweet! Passed the truck? I'm glad I'm rolling with the Polar Bear.
If anybody's gonna teach me, it's gonna be him.
Okay, I'm the first one off the ice, and I made her.
Hope you guys make her.
And we are on the ground.
I've heard stories of people going through, but, uh, holy crap, this is cracking, man.
Oh, jeez.
I made 'er.
If my old man saw me now, he'd be proud.
Hugh gets his team across the lake Well, you popped your cherry, and, uh, you're, uh-- Welcome to the ice road truckers.
And the mechanic survives his first ice crossing.
Officially an ice road trucker now.
- 1,800 miles to the northwest - We got a hot load of freight on this truck, getting there as quick as we can.
Ronald "Porkchop" Mangum is racing up the road to get his season back on track.
By God, I'm gonna win this load count.
Damn it, I'm gonna show 'em just how big a boy I am, by God.
- Two days ago - Prudhoe Bay, get the hell out the way, here comes the Chop.
He was unleashed on his first solo run up the Dalton.
First trip to frickin' Prudhoe, by myself, baby! And only two loads off the lead, he's making good time with a light load of construction supplies.
We only have about a 10,000 pound load on here right now.
It's so light, I'm gonna have to end up juicing up my speed a little bit to get up these hills, get my momentum going.
Looks like we got a truck coming up here.
Slow, old fuel trucks.
I wish they would get out my way.
Get over.
He needs to get out the way, before I lose momentum.
This is ridiculous.
Without enough momentum to carry him up Koyukuk's steep grade, Porkchop's light load could easily spin out.
Ten miles an hour up the hill, and as heavy as he is, and as light I am, I've got to keep my speed up on these hills.
This is ridiculous.
He's got plenty of pulling weight, he should've let me come by.
If I lose traction on this, I'm screwed.
Damn it, boy, we're spinning.
I'm spinning like hell.
This is ridiculous.
I'm spinning out, can't keep my damn traction, I'm so light.
Get out the way! Move, move! Damn! Thank God.
It's fricking ridiculous.
The aggressive move gets the tanker out of the way and the load up the Koyukuk.
It's supposed to be a hot load of freight, but it will get there when I get it there.
While Porkchop charges north, another Dalton newcomer's on his way south.
If you gotta cheat to win, you're not the ace.
Darrell Ward's driven after losing out on a back haul to rival Jack Jessee.
I'm going up against the haul road ace.
I'm-- I'm chasing him for load count, that's what this is all about.
Hey, there.
Are you Darrell? Yep.
I have a paper for you.
There you go.
"Had an emergency back home.
Had to return to Fairbanks.
Please run this load to Prudhoe for me.
Thanks, Zeke.
" Right on.
Huh.
I ain't eatin' breakfast.
I'm gonna-- get outta here.
I got a fucking load, that's cool.
That'll fucking do it.
Sucks to be you, Jack, play your fucking games on me.
After a stroke of luck, Darrell's heading back to Prudhoe Bay with a load of drill pipe that'll keep him tied with Jack.
I am going to hook up to this load and get the fuck outta here.
Pulls his bullshit on me, you know, that's fucking karma for ya.
It's got me an extra load, is what it did.
Nice.
Right on, man, fucking awesome.
He might be Jack Jessee, he might be the ace of the haul road.
But I know what I can do.
I'll take him down.
Looks like Jack made it here with my load.
Huh.
Maybe I oughta have a nice little word with him? See-- see what happens when you take my load? Yeah.
That's all right.
I got my own load.
I'm headed down the road.
You got one, I got one waitin' when I get back.
Well, I hope I got one waitin' up there.
I'll meet you on the road somewhere, unless you're calling them, telling them not to give me one, you know? - If that's how you stay on top of the load count, you know, that, uh-- - No.
You know, don't-- don't cut my throat to keep your nickname.
It's all about freight, man.
Neck and neck in the dash for the cash, Darrell hits the road for Prudhoe Bay while Jack makes a break for Fairbanks.
It's all good for my load count and my paycheck, you know.
Well, the new guys are complaining they don't get the loads that I get, as many runs as I get, you know.
But it's one of the benefits of being a senior driver out here.
- 450 miles to the east - Tractor trailer, southbound into the pass.
Alex Debogorski's hauling a million-dollar load of tungsten, and it's one of the most valuable of his career.
We can't handle any surprises today, because it's so slippery.
I guess we will have to manage the best way we can.
And he's taking it over the unforgiving mine road.
The number one thing here is icy conditions.
So very little traction for turning.
The road's barely wider than a big rig.
If Alex loses traction and slips too close to the edge gravity will do the rest.
Come on, move, move! Get up the hill.
I missed a shift.
Whoa, boy.
No Stop! Coming up Holy motherfucker, look out.
Jackknife.
Get up the hill! - Riding 3,500 feet above sea level - Whoa, boy.
Whoa! Alex Debogorski's million-dollar load of tungsten is out of control.
Stop! He missed a shift, sending the truck rolling toward the edge.
That wasn't exactly what I wanted to do.
The veteran puts it in gear for another shot at the 10% grade.
Come on.
Come on You know, that's a pretty long way down.
I don't want to have to have a closer look.
Back in business.
Alex is over the first major incline.
Thank you, Lord.
In Jesus' name, I pray, amen.
But over a dozen remain on the 120 mile-long mine road.
I guess we will have to manage the best way we can.
We still got a long way to go.
- 450 miles to the west - Really excited about pulling this thing up there.
A machine like that can cost $300,000.
Austin Wheeler's riding high with an oversized plow on his first solo heavy haul up the Dalton.
Kinda shows people, uh, what I'm made of and what I'm capable of.
So I'm totally stoked for that.
I think Lane gave this load to me because he realized, like, yeah, "Austin is capable of doing whatever I throw at him.
" And I am, I-I don't-- don't let anybody down.
I always try my hardest to get the job done, no matter what it takes.
But just ahead is to slow down for the left-hand turn but keep enough momentum to make it up the 8% grade.
I'd be on the ball up ahead.
The road doesn't look very pretty.
All right, thank you, sir.
Just got word from a driver over the CB that this hill that we're climbing up was a little slick.
But, uh, the more I look at it and examine the road, it doesn't look too slick at all.
So, not gonna worry about throwing chains on or nothin'.
You can't even steer.
Don't do this to me now.
Fucking damn it! Huhhh! Austin's call to try the hill without chains has him right in the path of oncoming traffic.
Oh, fuck.
Whoa! It's a pretty bad situation to get into.
People can't see you when they're coming down the hill.
That's why I tried to hurry up and act fast.
It's just a rookie mistake.
It's pretty fucking stupid.
With this load I got, it's, like, cream of the crop right now.
Jack Jessee's racing to Fairbanks to hold on to his lead in the load count.
It's probably the easiest backhaul you could ever have.
Just light enough that I can-- I can make some really good time here.
But even a nice day on the Dalton isn't easy.
Sun's coming up more.
It's low on the horizon.
With all the ice in the road, we're getting double glare.
Everything's totally white out here.
I'll be seeing spots for the next week.
Can't see anything but a big orange ball.
Holy motherfucker, look out.
Damn slide.
That almost took us out right there.
Motherfucker, whoa.
While Jack heads south, battling the blinding sun - 200 miles north - We got a nice rough stretch of road for a while.
Rival Darrell Ward is heading into darkness.
Man, you hit these rough roads like this, man, you know, you can bust springs, suspension, air bags, break wheels.
Pretty hazardous.
Whoa, fucking caribou, man.
My brakes are locking up.
Fuck.
- Coming up - I can't see a thing.
Porkchop fights the ice.
Oh, shit.
- 150 miles south of Prudhoe Bay - I mean, it's-- it's rough.
After scoring an unexpected haul, Darrell's racing north to get ahead of Jack in the load count.
Whoa! Caribou, man.
My brakes are locking up.
Fuck.
Whoa! Caribou, man, mysteriously appear in the road, right in front of me.
How? I don't know.
Like a fucking freight train.
They make a hole for me.
It was close, man.
I mean, it was real close.
- 70 miles to the north - Ready to get up here and get this load off and get back to Fairbanks.
Porkchop's an hour outside of Prudhoe Bay with a load of construction supplies.
I got this.
Southbound.
Yeah, go ahead.
Is it clear down there, buddy? A lot of fog all the way in.
All the way, great.
It's coming in.
It wasn't there when I went north a few hours ago.
Just talked to a driver on the radio.
He said this fog's in and out, all the way to Prudhoe.
I don't know what ice fog is, but it sucks driving in it.
Shit.
Frigging ridiculous.
Visibility's down to about an We went from great driving weather to crappy driving weather.
At temperatures below minus 40, water in the air freezes, forming a thick fog made of ice.
Made up a little bit of time.
Now I'm losing it again, 'cause of all this ice fog.
Ain't gonna catch a break on time now.
It's real treacherous right now trying to see out through here.
I can't see a thing.
Oh, fuck.
Oh, shit! Man, it's real tough to see.
The main thing is, I'd rather get there safe than dead, that's for sure.
- Finally - Yee-haw! The lights of Prudhoe Bay break through the fog.
You can't stop the Chop, baby.
And after two successful solo runs, Porkchop's on a hot streak.
Had a expedited load.
Got it up here as quick as I could.
I got here safe and sound.
I'm a long way from my family, I'ma here in Prudhoe, and I miss my family, but it's one more for them, too.
- 2,000 miles to the southeast - That must be Pauingassi, up there.
Hugh's managed to get his convoy across the ice and up the winter roads.
Okay, we're in Pauingassi.
That's where we're at, this is where we're supposed to be.
End of the journey, man.
Holy fuck! Hey, wow.
I'm just gonna park up here, make sure there's enough room for everybody.
We're late.
But we're here.
But the late arrival means there's no one around to off-load the cargo.
Unfortunately, you know, we got here, you know, six or seven hours later than we were supposed to and I cannot leave the trailers up here.
I don't believe they open up till, like, noon tomorrow.
So we lose about seven hours.
But for Hugh, there's no time for another failed trip We ain't got much time to sit around.
And the Polar Bear takes matters into his own hands.
I'm not quittin'.
I never quit.
Well, we found a loader.
And luckily, Hugh is here with us, so he can jump in it.
I know he loves those things and he's got a couple of 'em at home.
What the hell? But the forklift is busted.
What if he brings this fork down, then we just-- Can we lift up that other fork at all? Well, I thought it was going to be an easy job, but the forks are pretty bended, so we cannot lift them up.
Once again, Hugh's forced to improvise.
All depends on Hugh, how good he's gonna be with that loader.
Watch out, there we go! Each bag weighs over 3,000 pounds and is worth 500 bucks.
Careful, careful, careful! You know, this takes some guts to try to do something like that.
Oh! - Coming up - It feels like it's my turn to kick some butt now.
The rivalry gets personal.
Sucks to be you, Jack.
No BSing around.
Get the job done.
- In Manitoba, Canada - Really bouncing.
I'll be glad when we're done.
After showing up late for the off-load, Hugh's taking matters into his own hands to get three loads on the books.
Oh! You gotta be jokin'.
But the cement bags are barely making it off the trucks intact.
You know, it's, uh, $500 each bag, multiplied by 39.
Basically, you're losing a profit for the whole season.
There's nearly $20,000 on the line, and just one busted bag will eat away at Hugh's profit.
Ah, fuck.
This thing's coming right off.
Oh, fuck! Damn it! Yeah, we got one truck unloaded, now, and two more to go.
- 13 bags down - Watch yourself, he's gonna back up.
You're good! Come on! Oh, it's gonna be a long, long night.
- So far - This is a great, big clusterfuck.
The bags are battered but unbroken.
I've just about had enough of that shit.
Come on, come on, stick with it.
What's going on, I just about had her.
Hell, yeah! - After a rough start - That bag's not damaged.
Polar Bear gets the hang of it.
We basically had to chain every bag up, and that, uh, I don't know what it took, four or five hours to unload all three loads, but we got 'em off.
Mission Impossible, done.
It's, like, 4:00 or I'm dirty, I'm soaked, I'm tired, I'm hungry, but we got the load done, and that's the most important thing.
We're starting into crunch time right now, and this is where it really matters.
Haul road ace Jack Jessee pulls into Carlile and takes the lead in the load count.
No BSing around.
Get the job done.
Feels like it's my turn to kick some butt now.
- But at the other end of the Dalton - Got the lights of Prudhoe Bay right here ahead of me.
Jack's lead is short-lived, as Darrell delivers his load of drill pipe.
It was a perfect day for me.
Life is good today.
Sucks to be you, Jack.
Go in here, and see if dispatch is around, if there's anybody here, and figure out which ones of these pieces of paper I need to turn in.
Nobody here, huh? Well, that blows.
Inbound, outbound.
Well, okay, do I have anything here? Ward, Darrell, here we go.
Line haul manifest.
Let's go find it.
RV, 1173.
The day started with a backhaul for Jack, but it ends with a backhaul for the Montana legend.
I was a little pissed off last night over the whole deal and made it to Coldfoot, and there's a load sitting right there for me, you know? And I'm already caught up to Jack in the load count.
You know, Jack's gonna be following me.
And now, Darrell's the one with the upper hand.
The good lord looks after those who take care of themselves.
But while the two heavyweights battle it out We're unloading this steiger machine.
Wheeler's hot on their heels with the delivery of his first solo heavy haul.
Took some real thought and skill.
It's been a really long day.
I'm tired.
It's time to go to bed.
And now there's a three-way tie for the load count lead.
- In Canada - Load's been delivered.
I made it.
Alex pulls into Watson Lake with his million-dollar load of tungsten ore.
North is great, the ice is great, but if they wanna send me back to another mine, that's fine, too.
I'll go wherever they send me.
Next time on Ice Road Truckers I'm seeing a whole bunch of white.
Where are we? The veteran fights hurricane alley.
Yeah, I don't think this is a very good idea.
- In Alaska - Come on, Kitty Kenworth.
The Dalton fights back.
Holy shit! And no one is safe form mother nature's fury.
Fuck me!
To save his season from crashing down.
Come on! Oh, it's gonna be a long, long night.
- In the Yukon - Whoa! Alex has a million-dollar load riding on the edge.
Whoa, hold on, hold on, hold on, hold on! And on the Dalton Get out of the way! Two haul road heavyweights battle it out Don't cut my throat to keep your nickname! It's all about freight, man.
For bragging rights, and cold, hard cash.
Suck on this, Jack.
Feels like it's my turn to kick some butt.
But only one Holy motherfucker.
Can be the king of the load count.
Sucks to be you, Jack.
Prudhoe Bay, Alaska.
Rock 'n' roll.
Darrell Ward's looking for a backhaul that'll break his tie with Jack Jessee at the top of the load count.
I'm gonna get a load, and head back south, you know? It ain't gonna take me long, and I'm gonna be ahead of Jack in the load count.
Goin' to get my dispatch, and get the hell outta here.
Hey, Sam.
What's goin' on, Darrell? Oh, you know.
I need something to go back to town with, back to Fairbanks.
Well, you're bobtailing.
Just how it goes sometimes, you know? I'm bobtailing.
It sucks, but you'll survive.
I go in there, and they tell me they don't have anything for me.
I've gotta bobtail.
I'm sure there's something here goin' back to Fairbanks.
You know, it's fucked up.
- Across the yard - Seniority has its privileges.
These guys up here took care of me.
Got me a load goin' back.
Haul road ace Jack Jessee's day is off to a better start.
Suh-weet! Sweet as my mama's pecan pie.
Fuck, that's Jack.
He got a load, what's with that? Hey, Darrell.
Well, how the fuck did you get a load? I called from Coldfoot, and pulled a little seniority on that one.
That's kinda fucked up, isn't it? Not on my end, it's not.
Us new guys, we gotta fucking sit up here, and wait for fucking loads.
Hell, I'm doin' bobtailing back.
It's wasting my fucking logbook hours.
You just come in and get 'em any time you want.
Yup.
A little seniority gets a long way around here, sometimes.
I got a few more tricks, I could teach you a couple.
This is fucked.
If there are backhauls to be had, they ought to be given to the senior drivers, you know? Give it to the people that have been here, people that have proven themselves.
I'm here first, I get the fucking load.
Calling from Coldfoot to pull a load out from underneath me is bullshit.
Don't dig in my pocket.
You're costing me fucking money.
You're costing Reno money, just so you can fucking be the ace of the fucking haul road? Fuck you, Jack! It's time somebody puts old Jack in his place.
- At the other end of the Dalton - Eh, looks like no one's here.
Austin Wheeler's the first to arrive at the Fairbanks lot.
A little too early for them, I guess.
See if they left something in my box.
Oh, yeah.
- All season - Fuck! Holy! Austin's been struggling to prove himself as a heavy hauler Holy shit! Hoping to get the respect and top-dollar paycheck of a heavy haul driver.
Steiger machine? Pretty big machine.
So we're in the mammoth yard.
That's a heavy haul, that's for sure.
You know, I've hauled all these heavy haul loads up there, and-- Well, I've shown 'em, and I've proved to myself that I'm not just some punk kid, that I know what I'm doing.
Today will be his first solo heavy haul up the Dalton Let's hook onto this bad boy.
And he'll be moving an oversized quad-track snow plow.
I'm trying to make a name for myself, by, you know, hauling the most loads, hauling some of the biggest loads, showing these guys, uh, that I have what it takes to be here.
Sweet! They wouldn't let me work heavy haulin' if they didn't think I knew what I was doing.
Let's put the landing gear up.
Ahh.
Gosh, darn it.
Ah.
Nothing likes to work properly when it's cold.
God, ah! The load can't move with the landing gear frozen in place.
I just don't know what to do-- Fuck.
- Austin's gotta figure it out on his own - I don't know.
Or his heavy haul will be over before he's out of the yard.
Just gonna rig something up, so they don't come down.
I'm tired of fucking with these landing gears all the freaking time.
What I had to do is take a chain and wrap it around the landing gear and then tie 'em up to the trailers so they won't fall down.
He's got the load ready to go, but now he's gotta get the 30-ton plow up the icy inclines of the Dalton alone.
I always figure out a way, and that's the way I've always been.
east at the Cantung mine.
It's kinda like getting into a tank.
Alex Debogorski is preparing for one of the most valuable loads of his career.
I'm interested in prospecting.
I'm interested in looking for gold.
I'm interested in other minerals, too.
So here you get a chance to go into an operating mine and see how they do their work.
Each year, the mine produces over 6 million pounds - of tungsten - So what's in here, now? Which is used in everything from light bulbs to X-ray machines.
This is called a refuge station.
You got water, you got fresh air.
So when they had all those miners trapped underground in South America, that's what-- This is what they were in? Something similar.
Do they got any games, or anything in here, to entertain 'em? Uh, just jokes.
You gotta make up your jokes.
Absolutely, yeah.
Today, Alex is hauling a day's worth of tungsten ore out of the mine.
So you're gonna be at maximum weight.
There's 11 bags.
It's pretty valuable.
It's a million-dollar load, so no pressure.
Right there.
Great, take care, thank you very much.
Safely delivering the load means once again facing one of the most feared roads in the Yukon.
One big truck outbound.
- Yesterday - I think I've got a problem, here.
The one-lane mine road's steep grades and sheer cliffs almost took out the veteran.
Hang on! And now he's gotta head back down the mountain with a million-dollar load on the line.
It's a pretty special load, 'cause they've told me it's worth a million dollars, so I better look after it.
Thank you, dear God, for all your blessings and help.
Keep me safe, amen.
at the edge of Lake Winnipeg We need three loads up to, uh, Pauingassi today, three loads of cement.
Rick's still sick.
Hugh's desperate to get a profit on the books.
Holy fuck! This season, warm weather's made the winter roads nearly undriveable.
We're just goin' in to the fucking water, here.
And a respiratory infection has Rick on the sick list.
Why the fuck did that have to happen to me? Why can't it be fucking Hugh-ey down here? And it's forced Hugh to make a Hail Mary play to save his season.
So I wrangled Vlad into it, here.
So I got another guy, and he's never even been on the fucking ice before.
He's put together a convoy with dispatcher Vlad Pleskot and the shop mechanic, who's never driven on the ice.
Never driven across ice, never drilled holes in ice.
I've never done nothing on ice, except put it in my drink.
Wish me luck.
Okay, we rarin' boys? Up and at 'er.
Yeah, I guess now or never.
I'm gonna go on right now.
Vlad will come down, and then I'll tell him when it's safe, and then, uh, he'll tell you when it's safe.
Get 'er done.
Let's rock and roll.
Don't nobody go swimming.
Swimming.
It's up to Hugh to get this ragtag team over the crossing and see that no one ends up at the bottom of the frozen lake.
It's cracking pretty good today, you can hear it.
Okay, you can probably head out there, Wilson.
Thank you.
Hey, buddy, help.
I'm going through, I'm going through! I think you should be okay to go.
Just give 'er a try.
Give her a try? Yeah.
You'll see what happens.
They're gonna be cracking and popping the ice, and I get to be the-- the tail end of it all.
Oh, this is crazy, this is crazy, this is crazy, man.
Oh, man.
The first-timer creeps forward with over 30,000 pounds of cement and the weight of the season on his shoulders.
I'm on the water.
I have some low gear on the water, coming on, is good, right? When you go on just go as slow as you can, and then pick her up.
Oh, it's cracking.
Ughh I'm driving onto the ice here, and I can hear it cracking already.
Oh, my God, it's cracking! Holy crap.
Ahhhh! I hear it poppin', I hear the ice poppin'.
Big-fucking cracks there, man.
It's looking pretty wild right now, man.
Mechanic Derek there, he's pretty nervous.
Either he'll do it, or he won't.
Wow.
Okay, there's a big truck comin' at us, so make sure you slow down when you get close to 'im.
When you meet a truck crossing on the ice, you gotta slow right down, 'cause the two waves come together, and, uh, you don't want that.
I gotta slow down, 'cause the wave underneath my ice is meeting his wave.
So we cannot bump up the ice in front of us.
There's a big truck coming at me.
I'm going to slow right down, to about 5 K.
I better double-check.
Are you doin' about 5 K when you're passing the truck? Yeah, and just remember, Derek, whatever you do, don't stop, because it's not rated for stop weight.
No stopping on the ice, 10-4, 10-4.
Holy crap.
- Coming up - I missed the shift.
- And later - That's ridiculous! Haul road rage.
Get out the way! - In Manitoba, Canada - Okay, there's a big truck comin' at it.
Aw, jeez, man.
Desperate to make some cash, Hugh's leading a Hail - Mary convoy across the ice with dispatcher Vlad - I gotta slow down.
Oh, my God, it's cracking.
And the shop mechanic, who's driving on ice for the first time.
Just remember, Derek, whatever you do, don't stop, because it's not rated for stop weight.
No stopping on the ice, 10-4, 10-4.
Ahh.
Holy crap.
Sweet! Passed the truck? I'm glad I'm rolling with the Polar Bear.
If anybody's gonna teach me, it's gonna be him.
Okay, I'm the first one off the ice, and I made her.
Hope you guys make her.
And we are on the ground.
I've heard stories of people going through, but, uh, holy crap, this is cracking, man.
Oh, jeez.
I made 'er.
If my old man saw me now, he'd be proud.
Hugh gets his team across the lake Well, you popped your cherry, and, uh, you're, uh-- Welcome to the ice road truckers.
And the mechanic survives his first ice crossing.
Officially an ice road trucker now.
- 1,800 miles to the northwest - We got a hot load of freight on this truck, getting there as quick as we can.
Ronald "Porkchop" Mangum is racing up the road to get his season back on track.
By God, I'm gonna win this load count.
Damn it, I'm gonna show 'em just how big a boy I am, by God.
- Two days ago - Prudhoe Bay, get the hell out the way, here comes the Chop.
He was unleashed on his first solo run up the Dalton.
First trip to frickin' Prudhoe, by myself, baby! And only two loads off the lead, he's making good time with a light load of construction supplies.
We only have about a 10,000 pound load on here right now.
It's so light, I'm gonna have to end up juicing up my speed a little bit to get up these hills, get my momentum going.
Looks like we got a truck coming up here.
Slow, old fuel trucks.
I wish they would get out my way.
Get over.
He needs to get out the way, before I lose momentum.
This is ridiculous.
Without enough momentum to carry him up Koyukuk's steep grade, Porkchop's light load could easily spin out.
Ten miles an hour up the hill, and as heavy as he is, and as light I am, I've got to keep my speed up on these hills.
This is ridiculous.
He's got plenty of pulling weight, he should've let me come by.
If I lose traction on this, I'm screwed.
Damn it, boy, we're spinning.
I'm spinning like hell.
This is ridiculous.
I'm spinning out, can't keep my damn traction, I'm so light.
Get out the way! Move, move! Damn! Thank God.
It's fricking ridiculous.
The aggressive move gets the tanker out of the way and the load up the Koyukuk.
It's supposed to be a hot load of freight, but it will get there when I get it there.
While Porkchop charges north, another Dalton newcomer's on his way south.
If you gotta cheat to win, you're not the ace.
Darrell Ward's driven after losing out on a back haul to rival Jack Jessee.
I'm going up against the haul road ace.
I'm-- I'm chasing him for load count, that's what this is all about.
Hey, there.
Are you Darrell? Yep.
I have a paper for you.
There you go.
"Had an emergency back home.
Had to return to Fairbanks.
Please run this load to Prudhoe for me.
Thanks, Zeke.
" Right on.
Huh.
I ain't eatin' breakfast.
I'm gonna-- get outta here.
I got a fucking load, that's cool.
That'll fucking do it.
Sucks to be you, Jack, play your fucking games on me.
After a stroke of luck, Darrell's heading back to Prudhoe Bay with a load of drill pipe that'll keep him tied with Jack.
I am going to hook up to this load and get the fuck outta here.
Pulls his bullshit on me, you know, that's fucking karma for ya.
It's got me an extra load, is what it did.
Nice.
Right on, man, fucking awesome.
He might be Jack Jessee, he might be the ace of the haul road.
But I know what I can do.
I'll take him down.
Looks like Jack made it here with my load.
Huh.
Maybe I oughta have a nice little word with him? See-- see what happens when you take my load? Yeah.
That's all right.
I got my own load.
I'm headed down the road.
You got one, I got one waitin' when I get back.
Well, I hope I got one waitin' up there.
I'll meet you on the road somewhere, unless you're calling them, telling them not to give me one, you know? - If that's how you stay on top of the load count, you know, that, uh-- - No.
You know, don't-- don't cut my throat to keep your nickname.
It's all about freight, man.
Neck and neck in the dash for the cash, Darrell hits the road for Prudhoe Bay while Jack makes a break for Fairbanks.
It's all good for my load count and my paycheck, you know.
Well, the new guys are complaining they don't get the loads that I get, as many runs as I get, you know.
But it's one of the benefits of being a senior driver out here.
- 450 miles to the east - Tractor trailer, southbound into the pass.
Alex Debogorski's hauling a million-dollar load of tungsten, and it's one of the most valuable of his career.
We can't handle any surprises today, because it's so slippery.
I guess we will have to manage the best way we can.
And he's taking it over the unforgiving mine road.
The number one thing here is icy conditions.
So very little traction for turning.
The road's barely wider than a big rig.
If Alex loses traction and slips too close to the edge gravity will do the rest.
Come on, move, move! Get up the hill.
I missed a shift.
Whoa, boy.
No Stop! Coming up Holy motherfucker, look out.
Jackknife.
Get up the hill! - Riding 3,500 feet above sea level - Whoa, boy.
Whoa! Alex Debogorski's million-dollar load of tungsten is out of control.
Stop! He missed a shift, sending the truck rolling toward the edge.
That wasn't exactly what I wanted to do.
The veteran puts it in gear for another shot at the 10% grade.
Come on.
Come on You know, that's a pretty long way down.
I don't want to have to have a closer look.
Back in business.
Alex is over the first major incline.
Thank you, Lord.
In Jesus' name, I pray, amen.
But over a dozen remain on the 120 mile-long mine road.
I guess we will have to manage the best way we can.
We still got a long way to go.
- 450 miles to the west - Really excited about pulling this thing up there.
A machine like that can cost $300,000.
Austin Wheeler's riding high with an oversized plow on his first solo heavy haul up the Dalton.
Kinda shows people, uh, what I'm made of and what I'm capable of.
So I'm totally stoked for that.
I think Lane gave this load to me because he realized, like, yeah, "Austin is capable of doing whatever I throw at him.
" And I am, I-I don't-- don't let anybody down.
I always try my hardest to get the job done, no matter what it takes.
But just ahead is to slow down for the left-hand turn but keep enough momentum to make it up the 8% grade.
I'd be on the ball up ahead.
The road doesn't look very pretty.
All right, thank you, sir.
Just got word from a driver over the CB that this hill that we're climbing up was a little slick.
But, uh, the more I look at it and examine the road, it doesn't look too slick at all.
So, not gonna worry about throwing chains on or nothin'.
You can't even steer.
Don't do this to me now.
Fucking damn it! Huhhh! Austin's call to try the hill without chains has him right in the path of oncoming traffic.
Oh, fuck.
Whoa! It's a pretty bad situation to get into.
People can't see you when they're coming down the hill.
That's why I tried to hurry up and act fast.
It's just a rookie mistake.
It's pretty fucking stupid.
With this load I got, it's, like, cream of the crop right now.
Jack Jessee's racing to Fairbanks to hold on to his lead in the load count.
It's probably the easiest backhaul you could ever have.
Just light enough that I can-- I can make some really good time here.
But even a nice day on the Dalton isn't easy.
Sun's coming up more.
It's low on the horizon.
With all the ice in the road, we're getting double glare.
Everything's totally white out here.
I'll be seeing spots for the next week.
Can't see anything but a big orange ball.
Holy motherfucker, look out.
Damn slide.
That almost took us out right there.
Motherfucker, whoa.
While Jack heads south, battling the blinding sun - 200 miles north - We got a nice rough stretch of road for a while.
Rival Darrell Ward is heading into darkness.
Man, you hit these rough roads like this, man, you know, you can bust springs, suspension, air bags, break wheels.
Pretty hazardous.
Whoa, fucking caribou, man.
My brakes are locking up.
Fuck.
- Coming up - I can't see a thing.
Porkchop fights the ice.
Oh, shit.
- 150 miles south of Prudhoe Bay - I mean, it's-- it's rough.
After scoring an unexpected haul, Darrell's racing north to get ahead of Jack in the load count.
Whoa! Caribou, man.
My brakes are locking up.
Fuck.
Whoa! Caribou, man, mysteriously appear in the road, right in front of me.
How? I don't know.
Like a fucking freight train.
They make a hole for me.
It was close, man.
I mean, it was real close.
- 70 miles to the north - Ready to get up here and get this load off and get back to Fairbanks.
Porkchop's an hour outside of Prudhoe Bay with a load of construction supplies.
I got this.
Southbound.
Yeah, go ahead.
Is it clear down there, buddy? A lot of fog all the way in.
All the way, great.
It's coming in.
It wasn't there when I went north a few hours ago.
Just talked to a driver on the radio.
He said this fog's in and out, all the way to Prudhoe.
I don't know what ice fog is, but it sucks driving in it.
Shit.
Frigging ridiculous.
Visibility's down to about an We went from great driving weather to crappy driving weather.
At temperatures below minus 40, water in the air freezes, forming a thick fog made of ice.
Made up a little bit of time.
Now I'm losing it again, 'cause of all this ice fog.
Ain't gonna catch a break on time now.
It's real treacherous right now trying to see out through here.
I can't see a thing.
Oh, fuck.
Oh, shit! Man, it's real tough to see.
The main thing is, I'd rather get there safe than dead, that's for sure.
- Finally - Yee-haw! The lights of Prudhoe Bay break through the fog.
You can't stop the Chop, baby.
And after two successful solo runs, Porkchop's on a hot streak.
Had a expedited load.
Got it up here as quick as I could.
I got here safe and sound.
I'm a long way from my family, I'ma here in Prudhoe, and I miss my family, but it's one more for them, too.
- 2,000 miles to the southeast - That must be Pauingassi, up there.
Hugh's managed to get his convoy across the ice and up the winter roads.
Okay, we're in Pauingassi.
That's where we're at, this is where we're supposed to be.
End of the journey, man.
Holy fuck! Hey, wow.
I'm just gonna park up here, make sure there's enough room for everybody.
We're late.
But we're here.
But the late arrival means there's no one around to off-load the cargo.
Unfortunately, you know, we got here, you know, six or seven hours later than we were supposed to and I cannot leave the trailers up here.
I don't believe they open up till, like, noon tomorrow.
So we lose about seven hours.
But for Hugh, there's no time for another failed trip We ain't got much time to sit around.
And the Polar Bear takes matters into his own hands.
I'm not quittin'.
I never quit.
Well, we found a loader.
And luckily, Hugh is here with us, so he can jump in it.
I know he loves those things and he's got a couple of 'em at home.
What the hell? But the forklift is busted.
What if he brings this fork down, then we just-- Can we lift up that other fork at all? Well, I thought it was going to be an easy job, but the forks are pretty bended, so we cannot lift them up.
Once again, Hugh's forced to improvise.
All depends on Hugh, how good he's gonna be with that loader.
Watch out, there we go! Each bag weighs over 3,000 pounds and is worth 500 bucks.
Careful, careful, careful! You know, this takes some guts to try to do something like that.
Oh! - Coming up - It feels like it's my turn to kick some butt now.
The rivalry gets personal.
Sucks to be you, Jack.
No BSing around.
Get the job done.
- In Manitoba, Canada - Really bouncing.
I'll be glad when we're done.
After showing up late for the off-load, Hugh's taking matters into his own hands to get three loads on the books.
Oh! You gotta be jokin'.
But the cement bags are barely making it off the trucks intact.
You know, it's, uh, $500 each bag, multiplied by 39.
Basically, you're losing a profit for the whole season.
There's nearly $20,000 on the line, and just one busted bag will eat away at Hugh's profit.
Ah, fuck.
This thing's coming right off.
Oh, fuck! Damn it! Yeah, we got one truck unloaded, now, and two more to go.
- 13 bags down - Watch yourself, he's gonna back up.
You're good! Come on! Oh, it's gonna be a long, long night.
- So far - This is a great, big clusterfuck.
The bags are battered but unbroken.
I've just about had enough of that shit.
Come on, come on, stick with it.
What's going on, I just about had her.
Hell, yeah! - After a rough start - That bag's not damaged.
Polar Bear gets the hang of it.
We basically had to chain every bag up, and that, uh, I don't know what it took, four or five hours to unload all three loads, but we got 'em off.
Mission Impossible, done.
It's, like, 4:00 or I'm dirty, I'm soaked, I'm tired, I'm hungry, but we got the load done, and that's the most important thing.
We're starting into crunch time right now, and this is where it really matters.
Haul road ace Jack Jessee pulls into Carlile and takes the lead in the load count.
No BSing around.
Get the job done.
Feels like it's my turn to kick some butt now.
- But at the other end of the Dalton - Got the lights of Prudhoe Bay right here ahead of me.
Jack's lead is short-lived, as Darrell delivers his load of drill pipe.
It was a perfect day for me.
Life is good today.
Sucks to be you, Jack.
Go in here, and see if dispatch is around, if there's anybody here, and figure out which ones of these pieces of paper I need to turn in.
Nobody here, huh? Well, that blows.
Inbound, outbound.
Well, okay, do I have anything here? Ward, Darrell, here we go.
Line haul manifest.
Let's go find it.
RV, 1173.
The day started with a backhaul for Jack, but it ends with a backhaul for the Montana legend.
I was a little pissed off last night over the whole deal and made it to Coldfoot, and there's a load sitting right there for me, you know? And I'm already caught up to Jack in the load count.
You know, Jack's gonna be following me.
And now, Darrell's the one with the upper hand.
The good lord looks after those who take care of themselves.
But while the two heavyweights battle it out We're unloading this steiger machine.
Wheeler's hot on their heels with the delivery of his first solo heavy haul.
Took some real thought and skill.
It's been a really long day.
I'm tired.
It's time to go to bed.
And now there's a three-way tie for the load count lead.
- In Canada - Load's been delivered.
I made it.
Alex pulls into Watson Lake with his million-dollar load of tungsten ore.
North is great, the ice is great, but if they wanna send me back to another mine, that's fine, too.
I'll go wherever they send me.
Next time on Ice Road Truckers I'm seeing a whole bunch of white.
Where are we? The veteran fights hurricane alley.
Yeah, I don't think this is a very good idea.
- In Alaska - Come on, Kitty Kenworth.
The Dalton fights back.
Holy shit! And no one is safe form mother nature's fury.
Fuck me!