Original subtitles

NARRATOR: A brutal arctic storm wipes out the road.

I see a mountain up here and I see a guardrail out here.

And the rest is a guessing game.

NARRATOR: Hugh's got a dangerous need for speed.

HUGH: I kind of like this road because we can go up

to 55 miles an hour.

That's a lot of buyers for me.

I mean, I I can kick it right in the ass.

NARRATOR: And - ventures out over the Arctic Ocean.

JACK: I'm getting a little nervous.

You're going slower.

Your heart beats a little bit faster.

NARRATOR: At the top of theworld, there's a job only a few

would dare.

Just when you thought extreme trucking couldn't get more

dangerous, Ice Road Truckers take on Alaska.

[theme music playing]

NARRATOR: It's just 10 days intoAlaska's new ice road season,

and a massive winter storm is blasting the region

from the Arctic Circle to Prudhoe Bay.

It's a phase 3 whiteout, and no trucks are on the road.

Except for one.

Dalton ace Jack Jesse is navigating through the eye

of the storm with a 50,000 pound, 17 feet wide,

18 feet tall load of pipe rack.

The storm's moving in really fast.

It's going to get pretty intense out here tonight.

I don't know what's going to happen

But I'm going to keep going.

NARRATOR: Winds are gusting at 70 miles an hour

and visibility is near zero.

You can't can see anything on this road.

We've just got to go really slow and take it easy.

So when it's snowing really hard like this,

and you're running only 10 milesan hour, maybe 15 at the most,

it can make for a really long night.

NARRATOR: The only thing guiding jack

are three foot tall reflective posts placed 100 feet apart.

You have to pay attention to a lot to do this,

not only staying on the road, seeing the delineator.

Right now, the problems is, there are no delineators.

So I literally have to sit up, look straight down and find

the road.

NARRATOR: After 13 years on the Dalton,

Jack knows this road lies in wait for the smallest driver

error.

This road, it always takes paying attention to.

You just can't relax on this road.

It's a job.

It's work all the way.

NARRATOR: If Jack stops now, he could

become stranded in the storm.

JACK: I'm doing, like, 20.

Just kind of waiting for the reflectors to show back up.

NARRATOR: He's just 50 miles from the safety of Dead Horse.

This ain't going to get any better.

And has no choice but to push forward.

JACK: If you look directly into your headlights driving

in this stuff, you will drive right off the road.

You'll tend to just drive whichever way the wind's

blowing, you'll just steer it off the roads.

Mother Nature does that to you.

It tricks you.

You've got to ignore the headlights, look through them

and find the road back to the highway.

NARRATOR: 160 miles south that cold foot, more than 50

truckers including George Spears, Tim Freeman and Lisa

Kelly, have taken refuge from the storm.

It's a heavy financial setback for all, as they wait for news

about a break in the weather.

Blowing snow, drifting snow, icy patches.

That part we knew.

Driving conditions, difficult. That was a big help.

NARRATOR: 500 miles to the south,

at the Carlisle Fairbanks Terminal,

Hugh Roland arrives before his rival, Alex Devogorski.

I'll probably have to pass him like usual couple of times

a day, while he's napping.

NARRATOR: This will be Hugh's first solo trip over the ice.

His first run north ended before it began.

Hugh was demoted to the passenger seat

after taking a corner too fast.

Now he's given one more shot to drive it.

He'll be following 12 year veteran Phil Krom.

OFF-CAMERA: If everybody'sready, we can head on up there.

Yeah, you bet.

Everybody's ready to roll.

You ever think he's turning?

Make way, the polar bear is coming through.

Near the entrance to the ice road,

you and Phil get the last chanceto fill their tanks for 175

miles.

Yeah, there's no service stations up there now.

And I need full tanks to get up.

375 gallons, I guess?

Yeah.

This one's about 375.

NARRATOR: Topping off a big rig costs upwards of $1,000.

OFF-CAMERA RADIO VOICE: OK, everybody ready?

Big 10-4.

Here we are.

We're full of motion lotion and we're

ready to rock and roll down the dome.

NARRATOR: A few miles later, the pavement

gives way to solid ice.

Hugh has met Alaska's ice road on his own for the first time.

I love rocking and rolling down these dangerous roads.

I think it's pretty cool.

Not everybody gets to do this and I'm doing it.

These highways here are known all over the world.

All over the world.

I make it [inaudible] every [bleep] trip I make here.

NARRATOR: On the other end of the road,

it's taking all of Jack's concentration

just to stay on the ice.

JACK: I can still feel the windtrying to blow the truck over

to the right.

I'm going to have to fight the wheel a little bit just

to keep it in the center of the road.

NARRATOR: He has just 10 miles left to go.

As he nears Dead Horse, the storm begins to clear.

Just 50 miles.

50 miles just take me eight hours.

NARRATOR: Jack finally arrives at the Carlisle Yard.

Once more, the ace has succeededdown a road few dare to tread.

JACK: I think we're here, we're there,

we're done for the night.

I look forward to getting into bed and taking a big long nap.

NARRATOR: As a new day begins, the storm has cleared,

but the dangers have increased.

An army of DOT employees work furiously

to clear the aftermath before excess snow and ice put

another trucker over the edge.

Higher!

NARRATOR: An avalanche crew blast snow

off the mountainside.

You holler at me, Mark?

NARRATOR: And Ken Bear is first over the ice

to clear a path with a high speed plow.

The whole reason for the Dalton highway

was a supply line to the Rudabay oil fields.

It's our job to keep it maintained.

We clean up the center of the road first.

That's where all the traffic drives.

We don't want to over plow it, because when traffic passes

each other, if they get overtoo far, they'll catch the edge

and end up in a snow bank.

And that's not a good thing.

At the Cold Foot truck stop, the stranded drivers

begin to move out.

The break in weather means finally catching up

on lost cash.

The sun is creeping out.

Good snowing.

It's not blowing as hard up on the pass.

Towards the pass, it's still blowing a little bit.

Nothing like it was before.

So we're going to get up thereand see if we can get ourselves

all the way from [inaudible].

NARRATOR: Rookie Tim Freemanis taking his second load north

on the ice.

During the first half of this trip,

he survived a harrowing whiteout.

Still coming, George.

I can't see [bleep] thing now.

NARRATOR: Guiding him is 30 year Dalton veteran and family

friend, George Spears.

This year, George plans on retiring from the haul road.

But not before he's taught Tim enough to survive.

GEORGE: We're ready to go.

Get as much daylight as you can.

TIM: Back on 19, George?

GEORGE: Yes, I am.

TIM: OK.

A02 on the big one.

NARRATOR: They head north, each with nearly six tons

of construction supplies.

Up ahead, Attigan Pass, the steepest and most dangerous

part of the Dalton.

We'll be anticipating quite a few drifting areas

this morning.

The pass and the shelf will probably be hard to get over.

There will be a lot of snow up there.

And then, there'll be a lot of one lane places between here

and the Brutal Bay.

We'll have to be watchful for that.

NARRATOR: Back at Cold Foot, by mid-morning, most trucks

have left.

But Lisa Kelly has waited until last.

All the trucks are gone.

Hopefully all these guys will break the trail up there

for me.

And we'll just walk right up it.

That's the idea anyway, or else we're all

going to be stuck up the road.

[laughing]

LISA: All ready.

Are we rolling?

NARRATOR: After almost two years as a driver at Carlisle,

this is Lisa's first heavy haul load.

Six truck tires, 12 feet wide and 14 feet high.

Anything oversized or overweightbrings in bigger bucks.

LISA: This year's goal, the onlygoal I really have is doing,

like, oversized, bigger stuff.

Just because it's challenging.

And then, when you get all done, you're

like, yay, look what I just did.

So.

The load has got to get there.

And if I get stuck, there's somebody else

that's going to do it for me.

I'm the only one who's going to get it there.

So I better figure it out.

NARRATOR: Lisa's next challenge,Attigan Pass in a whiteout.

I can't see at all.

NARRATOR: 110 miles north of Fairbanks, Hugh and Phil

are treading down a steep two mile hill known as the Beaver

Slide.

Hugh's doing good.

Just kind of trucking along back there.

OFF-CAMERA RADIO VOICE: Hell, we know

the Polar Bear Can Handle It. - Yeah.

That's what they tell me.

NARRATOR: Every mile north brings more fresh snow

from last night's storm.

No matter what, if it's blowing snow,

that always makes the road ice-y.

Ice is ice.

But I mean, you're dealing with a 9% grade here,

two miles long.

That's the sticky part of this.

NARRATOR: Navigating slick downhill grades

is one of the biggest tests in mastering the Dalton.

Picking the right gear is vital to staying in control.

Sharp braking could cause the trailer to jackknife.

Hugh nears the bottom of the icy hill.

And his truck picks up speed.

He has to downshift before it's too late.

[honking]

NARRATOR: Finally, he gets it into gear

and his truck begins to slow.

I let it go too long.

My fault.

Yeah.

Yeah.

That's something.

I just wanted to get her into low range,

but I was going ttoo fast.

Yeah.

Yeah, you bet.

NARRATOR: Hugh, the old hand, has made a common rookie

mistake.

If you peek over a hill, and you're going too fast,

you'll have to do what I did back there.

Just get her into a low gear before you get to mass, right?

If you're not aware of this road,

and you don't respect this road, you're taking your life

into your hands.

Maybe not even your own life.

It could be somebody else's life.

NARRATOR: Back in Fairbanks.

ALEX: Just checking the oil.

Check the antifreeze.

NARRATOR: Alex Debagorsi gears up for his first solo

run up the Dalton.

Even though his truck was in the shop

yesterday for a full service.

We got Alex in when I threw those DieHard batteries

in there for him.

ALEX: Almost turned his truck into an electric car

with all of those cranking apps.

We won't need to start the engine, just turn the key

and drive down the road using all that battery power.

NARRATOR: Before he leaves, Alex does his own check.

Well I'm screwed anyway.

I've got a broken spring.

That's the start of the day.

Good morning, Fairbanks.

[laugh]

NARRATOR: So far, Alex's time in Alaska has been a bust.

He missed a gear on his first run

and spent most of the trip in the passenger seat.

If Alex is going to ever catch you,

he's got to get on the road.

TIM: Good morning, Alex.

How are you doing?

Well, a broken spring and a low tire.

OK.

They're doing the traders over in the new shop.

That spring is probably going to take a while.

Why don't we try and get you a different one.

And then I'll give you this other pipe that's

over in the mammoth yard.

We'll check it out, and if it's good,

we'll let you take off with that one.

That way we're not holding you up.

We're going to drop this trailer off where I found it.

Problems are part of the job.

You know, we get a truck load of problems.

When you buy a truck, you buy problems.

Then you go get the load, you goto pick up a load of problems.

Then we haul all our problems north to Prudhoe Bay.

Get another load of problems and haul them back.

NARRATOR: Halfway between Cold Foot and Attigan Pass, Lisa

Kelly is moving cautiously northwith her first ever wide load.

Her pilot car ahead is keeping a close eye

on southbound traffic.

Lisa, I'm going to try and stayout a little bit further ahead

of you through here so we don't get caught by surprise.

Let me know if I get out too far and you start losing me.

Oh, OK.

Yeah, that'd be great.

When you have an oversize load, it's a lot slower

going because it's so much heavier than normal loads.

And a lot more careful because of how wide you are.

You have to be careful to not go in the ditch trying

to move over.

NARRATOR: Lisa's goal is to getto a Dead Horse by nightfall.

But big loads take extra time to allow for oncoming traffic

to pass.

She can't stop for every southbound truck.

But she certainly doesn't want to end up in a ditch either.

You've got to be aware of what your load is doing.

Because it hangs so far over the trailer.

It's easier that it can, like, tip and stuff.

Especially, like, top heavy loads when they stick up high.

NARRATOR: She's already had one close call

with a pick-up truck, yesterday.

Holy crap.

Get over!

Jeez!

NARRATOR: Now, an oncoming 18 Wheeler.

OFF-CAMERA RADIO VOICE: Tanker coming your way.

Ace just coming up the hill now.

NARRATOR: She moves over just inches from the edge.

Try to stay out of the ditch here.

That first one, man.

He was flying.

Should I just pull over here?

If you can get down here on the straight,

that'd probably be the best place.

All righty.

I'll keep truckin'.

Thanks.

Let's see if you can hit me too there, Buddy.

Where did the road go?

That's where I was, like, that close.

NARRATOR: Just south of Attigan Pass, Tim and George

chain up to make sure they'll have

some extra bite in the dense snow pack over the 4,700 foot

Brooks Range.

OK.

Will, pull your pants up, buddy.

Your butt crack is showing.

Sorry, George.

You look like a plumber out here.

I didn't mean to give you a show.

NARRATOR: The convoy heads up the steep incline.

But the road has been reduced to a narrow single lane.

That place right in front of you is kind of narrow there.

NARRATOR: On this stretch, Tim takes his lead

from the veteran.

We're just starting up the pass.

We're going to check our visibility up through here,

make sure we're not meeting anybody.

NARRATOR: George gears down until he feels the chains grab

the ice.

GEORGE: Tim, are you still coming?

Still coming, George.

NARRATOR: After climbing Attiganliterally thousands of times,

George knows how to ward off the effects of altitude.

I always try to chew gum going over the path.

Because it keeps your ears from popping.

So that helps a little bit.

NARRATOR: After a slow, two mile climb,

they finally reached the top of the pass.

We successfully made it over the pass.

We actually did pretty good.

It was better visibility than what I anticipated.

NARRATOR: But the descent down the north slope

is even more treacherous.

The drivers must use the lower gears, and the power

of the engine, to keep the trucks under control.

One missed gear can be disastrous.

And braking can result in an uncontrollable jackknife.

As George and Tim reached the bottom of the slope,

they see the remains of just such an accident.

It reminds George of his own similar crash.

I look back in the mirror, and I saw my trailer

going off in the ditch.

Boom!

Boom, boom, boom!

Went bounding over the hill, rolled over twice.

I walked out the windshield.

I don't care how good a driver you are, if you don't have

a good respect for that road, sooner or later,

it will reach out and grab you.

NARRATOR: Eight miles behind George and Tim--

Brrrr!

NARRATOR: Lisa is next to take on the treacherous Attigan

pass.

The most challenging part ofmy job of being little and just

not being able to have the muscle that other people do,

chaining up takes everything I have.

NARRATOR: She throws her entire120 pounds into wrangling

the heavy chains.

I think they're, like, 65 pounds.

I think, I'm not sure.

And once again, I'm glad I changed

I haven't regretted it yet.

NARRATOR: As she heads for this summit,

the weather takes a turn for the worse.

I can't see.

At all.

NARRATOR: 314 miles north of Fairbanks, Lisa Kelly

is inching up the ice towards Attigan Pass.

CB RADIO: Visibility is bad up here.

Uh-oh.

All right, I just passed a pullout here in the canyon.

And it's starting to blow pretty good down here.

NARRATOR: With conditions growing worse by the minute,

she's forced to make an emergency

stop in the middle of the road.

I'll be putting on my big TRYGGs.

I'm putting on a second set, because it's

horrible out there.

When I'm getting out to chain up and stuff,

you can just sit in your truck and monitor the radio.

Make sure no one comes down around the corner and rear

ends me or something. - OK.

You betcha.

Not a problem

His job is hard.

He's got to stay in his truck.

Holy crap!

I can't even open the door.

NARRATOR: Lisa has already chained her front drive axle.

But now, she needs to change the rear one as well,

or else she'll never make it up the steep slope.

These are really heavy.

These are the ones that weigh more than I do, 150 pounds.

These things wear me out.

NARRATOR: With added traction, Lisa resumes her climb.

I haven't spun out on Attigan yet.

NARRATOR: But minutes later,she's warned of a new obstacle.

CB RADIO: Lisa, drag your feet, babe.

We gotta hang tight here.

We got one up on the hill that's stuck.

Yeah, Keith, this is Reid.

I just heard something on the CB about the truck over.

NARRATOR: Department of Transportation officials

are first on the scene.

Are you doing all right?

Yeah.

No injuries?

No, no.

Good, good.

I just kind of went snow-blind right on there.

He got too close to his edge, he got sucked in, you know?

That was the wrong place.

Yeah.

You're going to find that in a lot of places going

up there for the next few days.

I've hooked on to you here and I locked my lockers up.

I'm just going to drag him out.

NARRATOR: The small grader guns it,

trying to pull more than four times its weight

from the ditch.

The dense snow holds the rig like wet cement.

Inch by inch, they manage to drag it out of the snow bank.

Thanks, Don!

Hey, no problem, man.

I'm ready.

CB RADIO: All righty.

NARRATOR: With the road clear, Lisa starts up the steep grade

toward the summit.

I must say that this is the worst I've ever seen the pass.

I see a mountain up here, and I see a guardrail here,

and the rest is a guessing game.

NARRATOR: Even with chains on every drive wheel,

Lisa's truck barely clings to the ice.

The problem is, what do you do when you spin out fully?

I don't know.

NARRATOR: While Lisa's pilot car driver

scouts for oncoming traffic, shestruggles to stay on the road.

I already can hardly see, and I'm barely moving here.

So, yeah, I'm in the middle.

CB RADIO: OK. That's not a problem.

I ain't going to let nobody get around me.

Maybe if I can shift.

NARRATOR: Lisa considers shifting to a lower

gear for added traction.

But one wrong move can send her spinning over the edge.

I don't want to shift.

Oh wow.

It's deep.

NARRATOR: It's slow going all the way to the top.

OK.

We've made it over Attigan.

We're alive.

We didn't hit anything or anyone.

Lisa made the climb intact.

CB RADIO: Uh, Lisa, I've got a problem.

NARRATOR: But her pilot car was not so lucky.

Well, I lost the wheel bearing.

And, in the process of doing so, I took out

one of the brake calibers.

Because I've got a wheel that's now leaning.

So, unfortunately, she won't have a pilot from here on.

NARRATOR: For the remaining 240 miles,

Lisa will be completely on her own.

170 miles north, Jack Jesse is stranded in Dead Horse.

We're stuck in camp.

We can't go anywhere if we wanted to.

NARRATOR: Waiting for a break in the weather.

This is the safest place tobe right now until the wind dies

down.

Figure out when we can get out of here, when we get the pilot

cars back into town.

The Weather Service said it's not

going to last too much longer.

That way, we can all get back to our business

and get this stuff done.

NARRATOR: Every hour Jack is delayed

means lost money and fewer loads delivered for Carlisle.

Carlisle Trucking is a central player in oil production

in the state of Alaska.

This winter of 2008-2009 winter is shaping up

to probably be one of the busiest we've seen in the last

10 years.

My brother and I started Carlisle transportation

in 1980.

Both of us were driving trucks.

In about 1985, we started probably our first call

to Prudhoe Bay.

Carlisle, now, is operating about 100 class 8 tractors out

of Fairbanks here.

Routinely, a full-time Prudhoe Bay driver

is going to make well over $100,000 a year.

NARRATOR: At Carlisle headquarters in Fairbanks.

Cussing around back there.

NARRATOR: Alex is still trying to make his first buy.

He's picking up a new trailer to replace the one

with the broken spring.

Oh, lord.

Hi, Mr. McCann?

Hi, Jack McCann.

What's your name?

Alex Demogorski.

- Alex? - Yes, sir.

OK.

NARRATOR: Jack McCann is a veteran trucker

who will lead Alex on his first solo run up the haul

road with a 46,000 pound load of pipe.

This stuff is pretty dangerous to haul.

See how slick it is?

NARRATOR: 50 foot lengths of pipe

are commonly used on oil rigs.

But transporting them can be hazardous if they're not

properly anchored with straps.

If unsecured in a sudden stop, the pipes could pierce the cap

and kill the driver.

Let's tighten everything up.

We're ready to head north to Prudhoe Bay, now.

NARRATOR: OK, Alex.

I'll meet you up at the hilltop.- OK.

Good enough.

NARRATOR: Alex and Jack departfor the 500 mile journey, where

Alex will face the biggest challenge of his career.

You're always looking out for surprises.

So there are good surprises and that they

don't turn into bad surprises.

[chuckling]

NARRATOR: 100 miles from Fairbanks, Alex

is on his virgin run up the ice road.

We're the new guys, you know.

We've only been here for a couple of days.

This is only our second trip.

I mean, these guys have made 100, or hundreds of,

trips on this road.

I think we still have to prove ourselves.

NARRATOR: On this trip, Alex isbeing led by a true haul road

veteran.

I am following another truck, Jack McCann.

He's about 112 years old, and spent about 110 of those years

on this road.

: How are you doing, Alex?

Alex is doing lovely.

He calls about once an hour to see whether I'm still

breathing.

That's about the only thing I've heard from Jack.

The ice on this road is different than sea ice,

or river ice, or lake ice.

This is ice on a road, and it can

cause problems because of the steep greens,

and the mountainous conditions,and the ditches or cliffs

on the side of the road.

NARRATOR: Alex has navigated over the rollercoaster,

and down the long descent, known as the beaver slide.

But he's still nervous about his unfamiliar transmission.

Well, this transmission is called the super 10.

And the place I'm having trouble with it

is in coming from seventh back into sixth.

So the person has to be, actually,

a little extra cautious making that one.

NARRATOR: Missing a gear on the ice

could cause him to lose control of the truck.

It was a mistake he already made on his first trip,

and it landed him straight in the passenger seat.

I'm still moving.

So we're doing all right.

NARRATOR: 183 miles north, Hugh and Phil

have chained up for Hugh's first attempt at Attigan Pass.

Oh, if I've got chains on, you'll worry about nothing.

NARRATOR: But Attigan's long and narrow climb to 4,700 feet

is a challenge for even the most experienced drivers.

And it takes all of Hugh's concentration

to make the ascent.

As he crests the summit, he picks up speed

and finds himself just where he doesn't want to be.

Right on Jill's ass again.

I must have caught up to him there.

Because I cut around the corner and there

he is on the way down.

Well, dammit, just be careful.

NARRATOR: Braking on an icy downhill means possibly losing

all traction.

As he closes in on Phil's truck,he makes a desperate downshift.

The gear engages just in time.

If I had a mystic ear, then I'd probably start [bleep]

free-wheeling down the hills, though.

Didn't.

I got lucky.

[laughing]

NARRATOR: At the bottom of the pass,

Hugh and Phil pull over to remove their chains.

Yeah, I got right up on you there.

Yeah.

You'd have bragging rights, socking a fuel tanker

on the pass.

NARRATOR: In no time, Hugh is back on the road,

racing to dead horse.

People push hard, they can make three trips a week.

If you don't push hard, you'regoing to make two trips a week.

But you've got to get the load from point A

to point B in such and such a time,

or you're not going to make any money.

NARRATOR: 75 miles south, Alex and Jack pull into Cold Foot

to discuss their next move.

I don't know.

We got an awful late start out of town.

We usually get in a lot earlier.

I don't know.

What do you think about maybe just hanging out here tonight

and leaving here about 4:00 in the morning.

Because then, we leave here a couple hours,

it'll be getting daylight.

We're going to have to change from the big hill anyway.

NARRATOR: Alex has no choice but to follow Jack's lead,

even though staying in Cold Footmeans falling further behind.

240 miles north of Cold Foot, Lisa

is passing through the desolate arctic tundra known

as the Bluffs.

This is by far the most intense trip ever.

NARRATOR: Lisa is without a pilot car

and battling a fierce snowstorm, alone.

We lost the delineator for a sec.

This is intense.

This is freaking the mostintense trip I've ever taken up

here.

NARRATOR: The light from Lisa's powerful headlamps

is reflected back by the wall of snow.

Oh my gosh.

I can't see anything at all.

Oh, we're topping out at five.

NARRATOR: Any faster and she risks going off the road.

Finally, the lights of Dead Horse are in sight.

This has been a pretty wild trip.

Lots of chaining up.

Lots of getting stuck.

My first oversize, first pilot car, first everything.

I would say it's all downhill from here.

But I'm pretty sure it could get worse.

It's slow going, and it'spainful, and I have a headache,

and I just want to go to bed.

And it's been days since I talked to my sweetie

because I've been stuck out here.

But I made it.

NARRATOR: After a treacherous two days on the road.

It's all clear, Ken.

Put him around if you want.

NARRATOR: George and Tim are finally closing in

on Dead Horse.

We spent the night at Cold Foot

rather than coming up here.

So we're a good 12 hours, maybe a little more, behind.

It'll be nice when we're finally there

and I've got this load dropped.

It would be number two for me.

NARRATOR: Tim has survived the haul road once again,

and put an extra $1,300 in his pocket.

I get paid by the trip, of course,

not by the hour or the days.

So if it takes a little longer to make a trip, it costs me.

That's part of driving up here.

You can't just run through the stuff.

A lot of guys do it and a lot of guys make it,

but they get a lot more experience than I do.

NARRATOR: For George, this tripis more than just another job

well done.

GEORGE: I've known Tim's father for a long time.

And I've only known Tim herefor probably 10 years or better.

But I feel really responsible because it's

a friend of mine's boy.

And I'm a little more cautious and concerned

because it's somebody I know.

Oh, Georgie's great.

I couldn't think anybody else better to follow.

I've known him since I was a little kid.

So, I mean, it just makes it that much better.

It's like following my uncle around up here, you know?

NARRATOR: They pull into the Carlisle Terminal in Dead

Horse, half a day behind schedule, but in one piece.

I believe that Tim Freeman here

is going to do a great job.

He's got good common sense.

He was raised in a truck.

His dad taught him really well.

The biggest difference between me and Tim Freeman

is, I know this road.

Every inch of it.

Now, he has to learn it yet.

NARRATOR: Just after dawn.

But we're here in Prudhoe now.

NARRATOR: Hugh successfully completes his first solo trip

on the Dalton.

And he's already feeling like an old pro.

I think the ice scares a lot of people away.

That's the biggest factor in it.

You've got to love what you do.

If you don't love what you do, you're

not going to do this job, that's for damn sure.

We want to get out of here as soon as possible,

before we get snowed in up here.

We're going to try to get out of here as soon as we can.

NARRATOR: Hugh is not wasting any time.

He plans to turn and burn.

It says my load is waiting there for me.

There it is.

Ready to rock.

Polar bears got the right of way in the north.

Always.

No matter if they're in the Northwest Territories, Inuvik

and Alaska, polar bears got the right of way.

Here we go.

I have to wait for security.

NARRATOR: Jack Jesse was stranded in Dead Horse for 24

hours because of the storm.

Now that it's let up, he's been given one last mission

before heading back to Fairbanks.

Yeah, we went in and talked with dispatch.

And they called the people out in the oilfield

and they want this thing right away.

A load of 80 foot pipe needs to be delivered 30 miles west,

directly to an off shore oil rig in the Arctic Sea.

There's only so many days up here in the wintertime

to get things done.

There's a limited amount of timeto get everything with that oil

rig loaded up with things that they can't fly in

in the summer.

They make the road every winter.

And it's only open for a certain amount of time.

So that particular part of the road is more like those ice

road truckers in Canada.

NARRATOR: Over just a few inches of ice,

the speed limit is 10 miles per hour.

Any faster and you risk breaking through.

You're going slower.

Your heart beats a little bit faster.

But we've got it here now.

The guys are going to show me where they want me to drop it

at.

I'll probably be able to send this thing tomorrow.

I think the wind is supposed to die down.

And everybody will be happy.

After two weeks on the ice road, Jack and George

are tied with three loads apiece.

And Hugh Roland has made personal history in America.

CB RADIO: What do you think so far?

Well she's quite a haul road, that's for sure.

I've heard about this road since I was a little kid,

since I was a teenager.

I always wanted to come over and try it.

I made it to the Dalton game.

So I did pretty good.

I'm pretty proud of myself.

Pretty honored.