Original subtitles

Narrator: Now...

Todd: Hold on.

Narrator: on "Ice Road Truckers"...

[Chain snaps] Todd: Whoa!

Narrator: the roads break apart...

Alex: Saint Theresa Point closed.

[Bleep].

Narrator: and so does the ice.

Darrell: Look at the ice cracking right there.

We'll go swimming with the fish.

Narrator: As the season takes a turn...

[Horn honks] Art: Whoa!

There's a [bleep] truck.

Narrator: ...for the worst.

Art: Hang on.

♪♪♪♪♪

♪♪♪♪♪

♪♪♪♪♪

[Wind gusts]

Narrator: In remote northern Manitoba...

[Chains clink]

Todd: The ice crossing into Shamattawa is closed.

We are not getting across the ice.

- Uh, no way.

Todd: They have barricaded it as unsafe.

Narrator: A Polar convoy is stuck dead in its tracks.

- We're too far up the winter road

to turn around and go back.

Narrator: Rookie, Steph Custance,

headed out with veteran, Todd Dewey,

for her first trip on the ice roads.

[Truck smashes] - Holy [bleep].

- Welcome to the ice road, baby.

Narrator: A 500 mile journey to distant Shamattawa

to retrieve two abandoned trailers.

- Yeah, I'm nervous.

You can hear the ice flexing

and I wanna get off.

Narrator: Along the way...

- I just made it to land, I think.

Narrator: she conquered her first ice crossing.

Steph: I'm so excited.

Thank you so much.

Todd: I'm proud of ya. Good job, junior.

Steph: Oh, I'm so proud of myself.

Narrator: But now only 50 miles from their destination

the final crossing's been shut down

after a truck broke through the ice.

[Wind gusts]

- There's no turning around and going back now.

If it stays cold as it is right now all night long

they should open it in it the morning.

We're just gonna have to bunker down for the night

and then try it in the morning.

Narrator: The convoy's got no choice but to wait

as crews attempt to flood the crossing

in an effort to refreeze it.

[Wind gusts]

As dawn breaks...

Todd: So obviously they've opened it.

So you can see where this barricade is

this is where whoever went in fell through right here.

Right in the middle of the ice crossing.

[Ice cracking]

We're taking a chance on, on getting across it.

It's just, it's just dangerous.

I want to get our load's and try to get out of here

before this ends up getting barricaded again

and we get locked in here for who knows how long again.

Steph: We can get locked in tre?

- Oh yeah. Oh yeah.

If they barricade it off then we're stuck on that side.

Then we ain't going anywhere again.

There's only one thing left to do.

- Hammer down.

Todd: That's to suck it up and get across it.

Narrator: With the threat of another shut down looming

and an important mission at hand,

the team rolls the dice.

[Truck doors slam]

♪♪♪♪♪

- Remember, we go 15, 15K max speed.

- Sounds good.

I'll make sure I uh, make sure I watch your tracks

and know, know which route you're taking

and then I'll, I'll follow suit when you're ready.

- Yep, 10-4.

I still get nervous to this day crossing the ice.

A little worried about what the ice conditions are gonna be like

and if it's strong enough to hold a truck up.

So here we go.

[Shifts gear]

♪♪♪♪♪

[Ice cracking]

[Wind gusts]

- So far so good.

- Coming across now.

Narrator: With Todd at least a football field out in front,

Steph cautiously adds more weight

onto the newly frozen ice.

Todd: [on radio] Pay attention, keep your window rolled down.

Stay right, on my same tracks.

[Wind gusts]

Just kind of building a path there for Steph.

I want her to take the exact path

that I'm taking across the ice.

[Wind gusts]

[Water gurgling, ice cracking]

♪♪♪♪♪

- Definitely hear some fresh cracking in there though

on that fresh ice they flooded it with.

[Ice cracking]

[Wind gusts]

It's just spooky going across something

that someone just fell through with about 12 hours

before you're crossing it.

Steph: It's dodgy for sure.

There's weak spots all over this ice

and you can even see it.

[Ice cracking]

[Bleep].

[Ice cracking]

Narrator: The morning sun beats down on the crossing

and it's quickly taking a toll.

[Ice cracking]

- Well, that was a loud crack.

[Wind gusts, ice cracking]

Pretty damn spooky.

[Ice cracking]

- Todd?

Todd: [on radio] Yeah, what's up?

Steph: [on radio] Just this little break in the ice here.

Todd: [on radio] Yep, just follow my path.

You'll hear cracking and you're gonna hear it popping.

That's just part of crossing the ice, Steph.

Just stay right on my path.

Keep your speed steady and keep your window down.

[Ice cracking]

- I wanna just hurry up and get the [bleep] off the ice, man.

[Ice cracking]

[Wind gusts]

[Engine hums]

♪♪♪♪♪

- Okay, I'm off the ice.

Narrator: Todd makes it across...

- Just keep it steady and follow my path.

Narrator: ...leaving the rookie all alone on the ice.

[Ice cracking]

[Shuts door]

♪♪♪♪♪

- Come on, Steph.

[Ice cracking]

♪♪♪♪♪

- Woo! Number two baby, I got number two down.

I'm coming up, Papa Todd.

- Thatta girl, junior. Good job.

Steph: [on radio] Thank you.

[Laughing]

I feel great.

♪♪♪♪♪

- That's how you make money up here is by taking chances.

If you don't take chances and just ain't getting the job done

you ain't makin' a paycheck.

- I feel great. I feel good.

- Okay, girl here we go!

Narrator: With the convoy safely to the other side...

Todd: We got a lot of miles to put on today.

Narrator: ...it's time to bear down the final stretch,

get the trailers and head back as fast as they can.

- Just got to follow Papa Todd.

♪♪♪♪♪

Narrator: 200 miles to the south...

Darrell: This is the start of the adventure.

[Truck rattles]

But it's rough starting out.

Narrator: a renegade business owner

is facing his toughest test of the season.

♪♪♪♪♪

[Truck rattles] - Oh [bleep].

Hang on, it's the [bleep] rodeo.

Narrator: Darrell Ward's hauling a massive

37 ton load of heating oil...

300 miles along the newly opened route

to remote Elk Island Lodge.

But this trail is private

and completely un-maintained by road crews.

So truckers must drive at their own risk.

- I don't even know what I'm up against.

This road I have never been on before.

Narrator: Any ordinary winter

the narrow and rocky road would be a challenge...

- But the road's awfully narrow.

I keep dragging my trailer through the corners.

They didn't make it for semis.

Narrator: ...but in this record warm season

it's an outright disaster.

[Truck rattles] - Oogh. Oogh. Oogh.

This road is not maintained by MIT.

It's been warm all day.

Incoming.

[Truck rattles]

Whoa!

That is rough as [bleep].

Narrator: As Darrell blazes his own trail,

back at Polar headquarters in Winnipeg...

Mark: Hey, guys.

Okay, let's kick this one out and get Alex on the road.

We're in crunch time here.

Narrator: The competition's got a time sensitive mission

and they're entrusting it to an ice roads legend...

Alex: Good morning.

Mark: Alex, how you doing?

Narrator: Alex Debogorski.

- We got uh, I think we got everything all ready to go.

- Perfect.

- The weather right now is really uh,

putting everybody's stress levels at an all time high.

We've gotta get these supplies into these communities.

I mean, we're their life line.

So uh, you're gonna go out to Saint Theresa's Point.

We've got these building supplies

that are gonna go into the community.

Just keep an eye on the weather.

Anything above -6° shut her down.

We don't want to damage the road.

Alex: Okay. Appreciate it.

- Okay. Safe travels. - Thank you.

Narrator: The 22 ton load of construction supplies

is due at Saint Theresa Point by 9:00 a.m. tomorrow

and it's a grueling 400 mile journey

over one of Manitoba's toughest rds.

[Engine hums]

Alex: I'm loaded and I'm ready to go on down the road

if we're gonna try to get to Saint Theresa Point today

barring temperature.

Narrator: But El Nino's warming weather

is making this a race against the clock to pull it off.

Alex: Hopefully the road is open.

It's still, I think it's still cool enough to go right now

but depending how much it warms up today.

Narrator: If temperatures rise above -6 degrees

authorities will shut down the trail

and force drivers to wait until it cools down.

- The concern is that I might not be able

to go on the road if it's too warm

because then it's, we could wreck the road

and we're right there at the edge.

It's been a very iffy year.

We've got a lot less winter left.

[Truck rattles]

♪♪♪♪♪

I'm almost at the winter road.

I'm really hoping it's cold enough.

It looks pretty soft though.

But um, I haven't said my prayers.

"Our Father who art in heaven, hallowed be thy name.

Thy kingdom come, thy will be done

on earth as it is in heaven.

Give us this day our daily bread

and forgive us our trespasses

as we forgive those who trespass against us.

Amen."

We got our fingers and our toes crossed.

There's the winter road right here.

Saint Theresa Point closed.

[Bleep].

Ohhh. I guess we can't go anywhere.

Ohhh.

I guess we can't go anywhere.

Narrator: The temperatures crept above -6°

and authorities have closed the road for travel.

Alex: I don't get paid for waiting I get paid by the trip.

So waiting's not to my advantage

and of course it's not to the community's advantage.

Narrator: With the load due by 9:00 a.m.

and 200 miles still to go

Alex, Polar and the village could be out of luck.

[Wind gusts]

Alex: Well, this is not a good thing, you know,

this day is gonna be wasted

because it's gonna take until midnight

if it cools down before the roads good enough to drive on.

Narrator: The veterans forced to wait

with the vital haul sitting and time quickly slipping away.

Alex: Hopefully it cools down for everybody's sake.

Narrator: Meanwhile...

back at headquarters.

Mark's looking to get another truck out fast.

Mark: I've got a new community that's um,

taking a chance on Polar uh, it's Summer Beaver Ontario.

- Okay.

Narrator: And he's calling on his wild card

to break new ground for the company.

- And uh, they've actually requested you specifically.

- What, they want, they want me to take it, like?

- They want you to take the first load that,

that Polar does for the community.

- I'm honored, b'y. - Represent us well.

- Oh yeah. I'll enjoy this. - All right. Okay.

- Right on, buddy. - Thanks, Art.

- Okay. - Okay, we'll talk to you soon.

- Right on, buddy. - Be safe.

- Take care.

Narrator: When Art first joined Polar...

- Can you start right away?

- Right away.

- I'll uh, officially welcome you aboard.

Art: I jack knifed the truck, buddy.

Narrator: It took him awhile to find his footing.

Mark: What am I supposed to do with this?

[Siren wails] Art: Did you hear that?

[Siren wails] The DOT is behind us

with the lights on and everything.

Alex: Well, Art we just ran out of road, so we're [bleep].

- It never [bleep] ends.

Narrator: But over the years his reputation's grown

and he's become one of the most respected drivers

in the winter roads community.

Art: Yeah, we made her, buddy.

Ah, you're making me look good again.

Man: I know, it's unreal. - [Laughs]

- I got a new position now, b'y.

I went from the wild card

to the ambassador overnight.

That's good I can handle that.

Narrator: For Polar's maiden voyage to the remote village,

Art will have to grind out nearly 500 miles

over a narrow trail notorious for its twists and turns.

- I'm heading into Summer Beaver here this morning.

I have never been in here before.

So I don't know what's gonna happen up ahead.

I don't know what the road's like or anything like this.

So we're just gonna mosey along here and hope for the best.

[Truck rattles]

[Bleep].

It's really warm and the roads are coming apart.

[Truck rattling]

Not to mention this

I'm getting the [bleep] pounded out of me here.

The road is not much wider than my hips.

[Truck rattles]

Bang, bang, crash, bang, bang, smash, crash, bang

all day long.

But we gotta get her done.

Narrator: While a Polar driver's just hitting the trail...

500 miles to the north...

Todd: Welcome to your first time ever in Shamattawa.

- I'm in Shamattawa! Yeah!

Narrator: ...Polar's rookie

finally makes it to her first destination.

Narrator: But the next phase of the job,

hauling two abandoned trailers back to Winnipeg,

means the hard work is just beginning.

When the melt comes each season

equipment that can't make it out

is forced to be left behind.

And as the muskeg thaws and refreezes

it becomes a challenge to recover.

♪♪♪♪♪

- Oh, I see a bunch of trailers up here.

Let's get out.

- Copy that.

[Engine hums, airbrakes hiss]

- Well, we found our trailers.

Now we're gonna analyze to see what it's gonna take

to get them out of here.

That's gonna be the big one.

Get your [bleep] out here, junior.

We got work to do.

[Truck door slams]

So...

those are our trailers.

The two white ones.

There's almost not enough room to even get hooked up to it.

Steph: Are you serious? Todd: I'm dead serious.

Yeah, we got some work cut out for us,

I'm gonna tell you that right now.

Narrator: To get the trailers out

the team will have to get their hands dirty.

Todd: Just around the tires and in between the tires.

[Snow crunches]

♪♪♪♪♪

Todd: Okay. I'll get my truck back here.

We'll see if we can't get hooked up to this one first

and get it moved.

[Engine hums]

[Chains clink]

[Engine roars, clank]

- Okay, trailer's rolling.

Narrator: Todd gets his trailer out with ease.

- Believe it or not.

Narrator: Now it's the rookies turn.

Todd: We don't got all day to do this.

We need to get hooked up and get out of here.

Steph: Okay, heads up, I've never hooked up

onto a 53 footer.

So I might need you to just spot me as I back.

- Okay. - And that's all, that should be good.

- Okay.

Keep going.

And hit it.

Yeah.

Keep going.

'Kay, stop.

Give it just a little touch forward.

[Engine hums]

- It's a little hard to turn this wheel

with little old arms like mine.

Todd: 'Kay, hit it again in reverse.

Now you're locked.

- Ha, Ha.

- Okay, one part of the mission down.

We got it locked it's in. She's locked up.

Narrator: Steph may be hooked up to the trailer...

- Good to go, buddy.

Todd: [on radio] Okay, go ahead and start backing up.

Narrator: ...but now she's got to free it

from the grip of the snow and ice.

[Engine revs, chains clink]

- 'Kay, hit it.

[Engine revs, chains clink]

Okay, hit it again.

[Engine revs, chains clink]

Okay, stop.

It might be stuck.

I'm gonna have to hook up to the back of ya and pull ya.

Narrator: In an effort to get moving,

Todd will hook up a chain from Steph's truck to his rig

and try to use his pulling power to break the trailer free.

Todd: It's always a pain in the [bleep],

there's always complications.

[Truck door slams]

[on radio] You ready, Steph?

You got it in reverse, brake's all released?

- Good to go, buddy.

- Okay, go ahead and start backing up.

[Engine hums]

[Engine roars]

[Truck creaking]

[Truck creaking]

[Chains clink]

[Tires spin]

[Truck creaking]

[Tires spinning]

[Chains clink]

- You just spinning out?

- Yep.

Narrator: Todd's first attempt can't cut it.

- Hold on.

Narrator: So he'll kick the rig into overdrive.

[Engine roars]

[Chain snaps] Todd: Whoa!

Todd: [on radio] Hold on.

[Engine roars]

[Chain snapping] Whoa!

There it goes.

Narrator: Trying to pull the second abandoned trailer free.

The clutches of the ice and frozen muskeg

is proving too much.

Todd: The brakes are froze up.

That's the problem.

Let's see if we can't get all the tires rolling.

Just a matter of getting the pads loose from the wheels.

We can hit it with the hammer

and see if we can get it to pop free.

Narrator: After sitting in the cold for weeks,

the brake pads have frozen to the wheels.

So the team will use a little manpower

to try and loosen them up.

[Hammering]

Todd: Starting to get a little taste of what it's like on the ice roads?

- Starting to, yep.

[Hammering]

- It's not just about sitting in the truck.

It's about having to get outside

and do what we're doing right now.

The cold temperatures freezing you to death.

It is one of the toughest jobs in the world.

It's absolutely no rest for the wicked, I'll tell ya.

[Hammering] Yep, that's it right there.

That's it.

Narrator: After some pounding

it's time for the rookie to give it a go.

[Wind gusts]

- Come on, you can do it, you can do it.

[Engine revs]

Todd: Come on, you son of a bitch.

Push it!

[Engine revs, chains clink]

Todd: Okay, okay!

Steph: Yeah! [Bleep] yeah!

Holy [bleep].

- Come on over here.

♪♪♪♪♪

Nice job.

Here we go.

Two trailers hooked and loaded.

Steph: We did it.

Todd: Can't tell me that wasn't a son of a bitch.

[Door slams]

[Todd and Steph laugh]

- Now we're making money. - Ha. Ha.

- 'Cause we got our load.

There's only one thing left to do now.

- Hit the road.

- Hit the winter road and get out of Dodge.

Narrator: As the convoy readies for the long haul back...

300 miles to the south...

[Engine hums]

- Taking a bit of a [bleep] kicking, eh.

Narrator: ...on a new trail for Polar

Art Burke's got his hands full.

- Just beam me up, Scottie, for [bleep] sake.

Narrator: The 500 mile path to remote Summer Beaver

is notoriously narrow...

- If we were just sitting somewhere level

and an earthquake was causing all this going on

there wouldn't be a [bleep] thing left.

Narrator: ...and flanked with soft snow on the trails edges,

it's giving Art and his 20 ton load of food

all he can handle.

- I hope when I get up there with this

it doesn't look like mashed potatoes back there.

[Truck rattles]

[Truck smashes]

[Engine groans]

[Tires spinning]

Narrator: Art veered too far from the middle of the path.

- That's it.

Narrator: And got stuck in the soft shoulder of the road.

- Try this again.

[Engine roars]

♪♪♪♪♪

- Now there's an example of getting too close to the edge, eh.

'Cause if it goes over towards the bank

we sink right down over there, eh.

So you got to stay in the middle.

And the road is really narrow.

Narrator: To try and stay out of the banks

Art will drive the rig down the centre of the road.

Art: There's a lot of turns in this road, man.

Narrator: But with the upcoming patch of blind turns

it won't be without risk.

Art: That could be uh, disastrous

'cause you wouldn't be able to pass here

that's for [bleep] sure.

[Wind gusts]

[Truck rattles]

Just gotta be very careful.

♪♪♪♪♪

[Truck rattles]

[Engine hums]

♪♪♪♪♪

[Truck rattles]

Whoa!

[Bleep] there's a [bleep] truck.

[Horn honks]

[Horn honks]

[Skids to a halt]

♪♪♪♪♪

Well, that was [bleep] close.

[Engine hums]

I'll tell ya, that was an eye opener.

[Engine roars]

[Truck rattles]

[Engine hums]

First rush of the day. b'y.

It's nice to get one every now and then.

Gets the adrenaline going, eh.

Narrator: Pushing through the final ten miles...

[Engine hums]

Art: Summer Beaver.

Narrator: Art finally makes it to the community of Summer Beaver.

[Horn honks]

Art: Okay, boys and girls.

[Door shuts]

Little screwing around but we got here.

Hey, buddy. - I'm Joe.

- Pleasure to meet you, Joe. - This is Morris.

- Hello Morris, buddy.

Pleasure to meet you, my friend.

I know, buddy. What's your name again?

Geldof: Geldof.

Art: Geldof, pleased to meet you.

Narrator: Art was handpicked for this mission...

Mark: And they want you to take the first load

that, that Polar does for the community.

- I'm honored, b'y. - Represent us well.

Art: All right, buddy, nice to meet ya.

Narrator: ...and for Polar's new ambassador

it's a gratifying moment.

Art: Darren. Pleased to meet you, Darren.

Yeah, we got her done, man, and it's, it's great.

I met all kinds of new people

and they got their stuff in there.

Yeah, it makes all the [bleep] worthwhile.

Have a good day and we'll see you later.

Am I proud to do what I do?

Right from the heart, yeah, I am.

Narrator: The veteran's made his mark

and hits the long road back to Winnipeg.

- When they get their material then everybody's happy.

And that's what this whole [bleep] thing is all about.

[Engine roars]

Narrator: Meanwhile, 300 miles away...

deep in Manitoba...

Darrell: It's dead ahead.

[Truck rattles]

Knock the bottom right out of that [bleep] hole.

Narrator: ...the competitions barreling down the route

to Elk Island Lodge.

Darrell: I don't know what I'm in for.

Narrator: An un-maintained private trail

that's been obliterated by the warm season.

Darrell: I guarantee the road here is only made for four wheelers.

You can tell it's not maintained.

[Truck rattles]

That's kind of scary.

[Wind gusts]

Narrator: But as the sun begins to set over the north...

Darrell: Holy [bleep],

I see a lake here on my left though out my window.

Narrator: ...things are about to get a whole lot tougher

as a four mile ice crossing looms ahead.

Darrell: Here I am 75,000 pounds

coming up to an ice crossing

just as it's starting to turn nighttime.

I don't even know if anyone's out here.

I don't even have a clue what's going on.

[Airbrakes hiss]

Darrell: I haven't seen any monitoring holes

where they've even tested the ice out here at all.

Think I'm gonna walk out here and check this ice out.

Darrell: Right now it's getting dark and I don't have much time

but I want to look at what I'm driving on.

[Footsteps crunch]

I wanna get out here to this dark stuff

and see what it's looking like.

Yeah, I don't see any,

I don't see any marks where anyone's wore any tire chains out here.

Boy, I look down and I can't tell how thick it is but,

boy, I don't know.

[Ice cracking]

[Wind gusts]

I see no sign that there's been any trucks on this crossing

and I know the ice isn't maintained.

I know they haven't been checking it for thickness.

It's private road.

[Ice cracking]

But I'm going for it.

I got the load. I'm going across it.

No need to hesitate.

The quicker I go through

the quicker I go through and get it over with.

[Wind gusts]

Darrell: I don't know how far across this it is.

You know, I haven't seen ice this clear all year.

I guess if I'm the first truck across this

and it's not that thick I guess I'll find out, won't I?

[Ice cracking]

Narrator: The first big rig to test the private crossing,

it's a guessing game whether the ice can support

Darrell Ward's heavy 37 ton load of heating oil.

[Ice cracking]

- I'll go swimming with the fish.

[Engine hums]

I want to listen for... [Ice popping]

[Engine hums]

[Ice cracking]

You definitely hear it cracking.

I don't think it's had this kind of load test on it.

Get my speed set right.

Wow.

[Ice cracking]

[Water gurgles]

[Ice cracking]

♪♪♪♪♪

[Loud ice pop] Whoa! Did you see that one crack?

Holy [bleep]. I saw it crack.

Dude, look at the water.

What the [bleep].

Dude, this ice is [bleep] cracking.

[Ice cracking]

It's thin ice.

I can see to the bottom of the cracks.

It's clear ice.

I can see this deep as the cracks go down

and then they stop.

This ice is only 14 inches thick maybe.

[Ice cracking]

Look at the ice cracking right there.

This has gotta be the thinnest ice I have ever gone across.

If this was an MIT crossing it would not be open.

And I have no end in sight.

I cannot see where the road goes.

It goes around through these islands

and just keeps right on going.

[Engine hums, ice cracking]

I hope I make it across here.

This is [bleep] up.

This ice is not thick at all.

And I'm out in the middle of this lake

and I'm a long way to anywhere.

Let's [bleep] keep a steady speed.

Keep a steady speed, Darrell.

[Ice cracking]

Uh-oh.

Right here coming off the ice

is usually where the ice is thinnest and the weakest.

[Ice cracking]

I'm off, I'm off the ice crossing.

Narrator: Once across...

Darrell rolls into the tiny village...

Darrell: Just arrived in the old Elk Island Lodge.

Narrator: ...and delivers big for his young company.

- Hey, good enough. Thanks.

Right on.

Just met up with the boys that'll unload me in the morning

and I'm gonna kick back tonight, kick my feet up,

get this trailer unloaded in the morning

and get out of here.

Narrator: While Darrell calls it a night...

in the Manitoba wilderness...

[Engine hums]

[Truck rattles]

Narrator: Steph Custance and Todd Dewy,

are on the rocky home stretch of their marathon journey.

- Finally this adventure is just about coming to an end.

We got our loads, we got to rescue the trailers.

Narrator: But even the last few miles aren't coming easy.

[Truck rattles] - Oh, [bleep].

- Man, you can't take your eyes off this road

for like one second, like actually.

Like I can't even look out my window

to do it up or down or whatever

without [bleep] coming to the next bump or curb or tree or...

- This is the end of the road right here.

Narrator: Finally...

the team reaches the end of the winter road.

- You made your first full ice road in and out.

Narrator: And the rookies first trip

a 1000 mile, 45 hour odyssey is in the books.

- [emotional] I really can't even describe this feeling.

Thank you so much, Todd.

- You actually drove a big rig for the first time

in places where a lot of guys don't even begin

to even try to drive trucks.

- [Happy crying]

- She's got a lot of drive, she's got a lot of heart

and she really strived really hard to prove to me

that she's got what it takes.

- I'm a real ice road trucker. [Laughs]

[Elated laugh]

- But you still got a lot to learn.

There's a long road ahead of ya.

Narrator: Throughout the north

all the drivers are off the road...

[Wind gusts]

except for one.

[Snoring]

Alex: Hopefully the road is open.

I might not be able to go on the road if it's too warm.

Narrator: On a time sensitive mission...

Alex: Saint Theresa Point closed.

[Bleep].

Narrator: ...the road to Saint Theresa Point was closed

due to warming temperatures.

- Ohhh, I guess we can't go anywhere.

Narrator: Since then

Alex's been shut down for over 10 hours.

[Snoring]

[Phone rings]

- Oh, that must be Mark.

Hello?

- Hey Alex.

Yeah, I just checked everything out uh, you're good to go now.

- No kidding. Great.

- Yep, thanks. Bye-bye.

- I can go.

Thank goodness for that.

Narrator: The good news,

temperatures have finally dipped low enough

to open the road.

The bad news, with the haul due at 9:00 a.m.

Alex will have to drive over 200 miles through the night

to deliver on time.

Alex: I don't have any choice but to drive all night.

[Truck rattles]

One of the priorities of making this trip,

was keeping the load on the truck.

It looks a little chewed up.

Looks like it's been taking some sun

and it's been getting beat up.

Narrator: The days warm weather has melted the road

exposing the rocky muskeg below.

- Made the road rougher than when it's ice on it.

Narrator: ...making for a brutal ride.

[Truck rattles] - Whoa.

It is rough.

Up and down, side to side,

big moguls, potholes, ruts,

you get to bounce through all of it.

[Truck rattles]

It hurts when it hits you.

I have a miscellaneous load uh,

something that could be easy to shake apart.

[Truck rattles] Whoa!

I'm gonna have to keep an eye on it

make sure it doesn't come apart.

I'll have a big mess back there and probably on the road too.

And I'll be spending the night picking everything up.

[Engine hums]

Narrator: As night turns to day...

[Wind gusts]

Alex: Well, I've driven through the night

and I'm really tired.

Narrator: Alex is still pushing forward...

[Chains clink, truck rattles]

- Owie, owie, owie, owie, owie.

Narrator: ...determined to deliver the load

by the 9:00 a.m. deadline

and the clock's a-ticking.

- It's not over yet.

Sucker for punishment.

It's warming up.

It's close to where we can't drive

but I'm determined to get over there

and get this load delivered.

♪♪♪♪♪

[Truck rattles] - Whoa! It's rough.

[Truck rattles]

Whoa!

This is a nightmare.

Narrator: Finally...

Alex: Here we are Saint eresa Point.

Narrator: ...Alex arrives at the small village

just in time.

- I'm relieved to be here.

That's quite the job getting here this time.

Narrator: And despite the challenges of the warmest season in years,

the legend comes through

for Polar and for the community.

Alex: I was worried about the load but it held together.

[Beeping, clank]

An eventful journey but this trip's taken way too long.

When I'm sitting waiting due to weather

it's always to do with patience.

And there's some things I don't have control over

I have to hand off to God.

But it's always a sense of satisfaction

once that load is off the truck I'm done.

That in itself is like winning a prize.

[Laughing]

Narrator: Next time on "Ice Road Truckers"...

[Truck rattles] Todd: Hang on.

[Thud] - Whoa!

Narrator: ...the trails are packed with surprises...

Art: Holy [bleep], man, look down there.

I think we're on an ice crossing here.

When I say bail, you [bleep] well bail.

Narrator: ...as the drivers dive into the melt.

- Hear the ice cracking and popping.

Narrator: ...feet first.

Alex: See a little bit of water on-

Whoa! Oh!