1 00:00:06,551 --> 00:00:09,896 NARRATOR: On this episode of "Ice Road Truckers--" 2 00:00:10,000 --> 00:00:11,586 She's ready to go. 3 00:00:11,689 --> 00:00:13,724 NARRATOR: --the Canadians hit the ice. 4 00:00:13,827 --> 00:00:18,137 Everybody knows polar bears have the right of way. 5 00:00:18,241 --> 00:00:19,620 [chuckling] 6 00:00:19,724 --> 00:00:21,551 Watch out, woman driver coming through. 7 00:00:21,655 --> 00:00:24,758 NARRATOR: Lisa attempts to run with the big boys. 8 00:00:24,931 --> 00:00:27,965 LISA KELLY: This is my first oversized load. 9 00:00:28,068 --> 00:00:32,000 NARRATOR: And a rookie trucker gets lost in an arctic blow. 10 00:00:32,103 --> 00:00:35,206 Can't see a [bleep] thing now. 11 00:00:35,310 --> 00:00:37,655 Timmy, how we doing? 12 00:00:37,758 --> 00:00:39,620 Timmy, you doing all right? 13 00:00:44,068 --> 00:00:51,586 NARRATOR: At the top of theworld, there's a job only a few 14 00:00:51,689 --> 00:00:52,379 would dare. 15 00:00:55,482 --> 00:00:59,344 Just when you thought extreme trucking couldn't get more 16 00:00:59,517 --> 00:01:03,482 dangerous, ice road truckers take on Alaska. 17 00:01:09,275 --> 00:01:12,137 [theme music] 18 00:01:42,379 --> 00:01:45,827 Three weeks into the winter season on the Dalton, 19 00:01:45,931 --> 00:01:48,586 of the 2,000 loads that Carlile needs 20 00:01:48,689 --> 00:01:55,275 to move north to the oilfields,only 500 have been delivered. 21 00:01:55,379 --> 00:01:58,275 And the clock is ticking. 22 00:01:58,379 --> 00:02:01,862 375 miles from Fairbanks is a hill so 23 00:02:01,965 --> 00:02:05,931 slick they call it Oil Spill. 24 00:02:06,103 --> 00:02:10,344 It's an ice-covered slope that has ended careers and lives. 25 00:02:15,379 --> 00:02:18,793 Tonight, Jack Jessee, one of Carlile's most dependable 26 00:02:18,896 --> 00:02:21,137 heavy haulers, is rounding the top 27 00:02:21,241 --> 00:02:26,379 of Oil Spill with a highpriority load of 130-foot pipe. 28 00:02:26,482 --> 00:02:29,482 As Jack and his convoy use down the hill, 29 00:02:29,586 --> 00:02:30,965 they spot trouble ahead. 30 00:02:34,482 --> 00:02:36,000 NARRATOR: There's a pickup truck stuck 31 00:02:36,103 --> 00:02:38,896 in the ditch with no movement from inside the cab. 32 00:02:44,896 --> 00:02:46,103 Wow! 33 00:02:46,206 --> 00:02:50,206 NARRATOR: There are no emergencyservices on the haul road. 34 00:02:50,310 --> 00:02:51,724 Jack is their only hope. 35 00:03:02,275 --> 00:03:04,137 How are you feeling? 36 00:03:04,241 --> 00:03:08,000 PASSENGER: We're all right. 37 00:03:08,103 --> 00:03:10,655 NARRATOR: Luckily, the passengers are unharmed. 38 00:03:10,827 --> 00:03:12,000 Huh? 39 00:03:12,103 --> 00:03:14,137 NARRATOR: But if left stranded, they will certainly 40 00:03:14,241 --> 00:03:16,000 freeze in the subzero cold. 41 00:03:16,103 --> 00:03:17,793 PASSENGER: Can you pull me out? 42 00:03:17,896 --> 00:03:18,586 JACK JESSEE: Yeah. 43 00:03:18,689 --> 00:03:19,862 Well, let me take a look. 44 00:03:19,965 --> 00:03:22,206 It's about 30 below, so we can't really leave them. 45 00:03:22,310 --> 00:03:24,310 I mean, if you were to do something like that you, 46 00:03:24,413 --> 00:03:27,758 could actually sign their death warrant by doing it. 47 00:03:27,862 --> 00:03:30,448 NARRATOR: Jack rigs a tow strap and chains 48 00:03:30,551 --> 00:03:33,344 from the stranded vehicle to his truck. 49 00:03:33,448 --> 00:03:37,586 But his truck is meant for heavy haul, not towing. 50 00:03:37,689 --> 00:03:39,448 JACK JESSEE: If you get a steering tire off 51 00:03:39,551 --> 00:03:40,862 into that snow or whatever, it'll 52 00:03:40,965 --> 00:03:42,965 suck you right off the road. 53 00:03:43,068 --> 00:03:46,103 NARRATOR: In order to pull the vehicle out safely and keep 54 00:03:46,275 --> 00:03:50,793 his load of 130-foot pipe from going in the ditch, 55 00:03:50,896 --> 00:03:54,344 Jack angles the nose of his truck towards the accident, 56 00:03:54,448 --> 00:03:58,275 while keeping his trailer parallel to the road. 57 00:03:58,379 --> 00:04:02,724 Put him in reverse, and tell him just real, real, easy. 58 00:04:02,827 --> 00:04:05,413 Real easy. 59 00:04:05,517 --> 00:04:08,827 Move the tire a little Come on. 60 00:04:08,931 --> 00:04:10,275 Come on. 61 00:04:10,379 --> 00:04:12,241 Come on. 62 00:04:12,344 --> 00:04:13,758 Oh, almost, come on. 63 00:04:18,000 --> 00:04:18,689 All right! 64 00:04:18,793 --> 00:04:21,655 Whoa, whoa! 65 00:04:21,758 --> 00:04:25,896 NARRATOR: He slides dangerously close to the edge. 66 00:04:26,000 --> 00:04:27,689 JACK JESSEE: Right now my strap's too long. 67 00:04:27,793 --> 00:04:30,241 I can't get close enough to pull him 68 00:04:30,344 --> 00:04:33,241 up without getting me too close to the ditch. 69 00:04:33,344 --> 00:04:35,344 The problem is my front end literally doesn't have 70 00:04:35,448 --> 00:04:37,172 enough friction on the ice. 71 00:04:37,275 --> 00:04:40,241 NARRATOR: Jack shortens the tow strap and tries again. 72 00:04:48,172 --> 00:04:49,413 Have him rev it a little more. 73 00:04:49,517 --> 00:04:51,448 I need to try to get that wheel to spin if I can. 74 00:05:05,758 --> 00:05:07,103 Come on. 75 00:05:07,206 --> 00:05:10,034 Come on. 76 00:05:10,137 --> 00:05:11,241 Come on. 77 00:05:11,344 --> 00:05:12,034 Come on. 78 00:05:12,137 --> 00:05:15,344 There we go! 79 00:05:15,448 --> 00:05:17,862 Got him out. 80 00:05:17,965 --> 00:05:19,344 Let's get him unhooked. 81 00:05:22,931 --> 00:05:25,275 You guys have a good night. 82 00:05:25,448 --> 00:05:29,724 All right, truck must go on, let's go. 83 00:05:29,827 --> 00:05:34,862 NARRATOR: Back on the road, Jackhopes to make up for lost time, 84 00:05:34,965 --> 00:05:38,103 forging ahead through the last windswept icy stretch 85 00:05:38,206 --> 00:05:39,344 to Deadhorse. 86 00:05:46,689 --> 00:05:51,655 After 414 miles, finally, lights on the horizon. 87 00:05:51,758 --> 00:05:53,551 Well, we finally got to Deadhorse. 88 00:05:53,655 --> 00:05:57,413 Here's the Carlile Yard, up here in Prudhoe. 89 00:05:57,586 --> 00:06:02,827 We'll get in there, unhook thistrailer, and I'm going to bed. 90 00:06:02,931 --> 00:06:06,344 It's been a long day, and I'm tired. 91 00:06:06,448 --> 00:06:09,896 It's about 30 below, with a 15-mile mile an hour wind. 92 00:06:10,000 --> 00:06:12,758 It's going to be a cold one in the truck tonight. 93 00:06:12,862 --> 00:06:17,000 Another day in paradise up here. 94 00:06:17,103 --> 00:06:22,344 NARRATOR: As one epic run comes to an end, 95 00:06:22,448 --> 00:06:25,586 two more are about to begin. 96 00:06:25,689 --> 00:06:27,172 ALEX DEBOGORSKI: 5:30 in the morning, 97 00:06:27,275 --> 00:06:30,724 we're in Carlile's yard in Fairbanks. 98 00:06:30,827 --> 00:06:34,448 And we're preparing to leave onour first trip to Prudhoe Bay. 99 00:06:44,000 --> 00:06:44,862 Great. 100 00:06:44,965 --> 00:06:46,310 She's ready go go. 101 00:06:46,413 --> 00:06:49,137 ALEX DEBOGORSKI: I'm turning the key. 102 00:06:49,241 --> 00:06:51,862 I don't believe it. 103 00:06:51,965 --> 00:06:54,068 NARRATOR: Hugh Rowland and Alex Debogorski 104 00:06:54,172 --> 00:06:58,068 have made it through a week-longhaul road boot camp just 105 00:06:58,172 --> 00:07:02,103 to get a crack at the legendary Dalton. 106 00:07:02,206 --> 00:07:04,655 They've passed the bar at Carlile. 107 00:07:04,827 --> 00:07:07,172 But even so, their maiden voyage will 108 00:07:07,275 --> 00:07:10,793 be closely supervised by safety instructors. 109 00:07:10,896 --> 00:07:14,586 Good morning, now. 110 00:07:14,689 --> 00:07:18,482 NARRATOR: They're hauling 48,000pounds of drill pipe bound 111 00:07:18,586 --> 00:07:23,896 for Deadhorse, the gateway to the Prudhoe Bay oil fields. 112 00:07:24,000 --> 00:07:27,241 As usual, the Polar Bear is eager to get a move on. 113 00:07:32,655 --> 00:07:36,103 But Alex gives his truck one final inspection. 114 00:07:41,862 --> 00:07:43,517 NARRATOR: Hugh makes a break for it-- 115 00:07:43,620 --> 00:07:45,275 [truck horn] 116 00:07:45,379 --> 00:07:47,206 NARRATOR: Confident as ever. 117 00:07:47,310 --> 00:07:49,586 HUGH ROWLANDS: Everybody says they've got a bad road, all 118 00:07:49,689 --> 00:07:50,413 over the world. 119 00:07:50,517 --> 00:07:51,620 Well, I'd like to try 'em. 120 00:07:51,724 --> 00:07:53,586 And this is one that I've always wanted to drive, 121 00:07:53,689 --> 00:07:55,965 and I'm ready to get at her. 122 00:07:56,068 --> 00:07:58,517 I have all the confidence inthe world I'm going to succeed. 123 00:07:58,620 --> 00:08:00,793 Everybody knows polar bears have the right of way. 124 00:08:00,896 --> 00:08:01,724 [chuckling] 125 00:08:01,827 --> 00:08:03,103 [truck horn] 126 00:08:03,206 --> 00:08:05,344 NARRATOR: Back in the yard-- 127 00:08:05,448 --> 00:08:10,068 Well, we're going to put some more straps on this load. 128 00:08:10,172 --> 00:08:13,827 I don't feel there's enough straps on it to make it safe. 129 00:08:14,000 --> 00:08:16,793 At this stage in life, I don't need to wreck nothing or have 130 00:08:16,896 --> 00:08:18,482 an accident. 131 00:08:18,586 --> 00:08:20,413 I don't need that kind of excitement. 132 00:08:20,517 --> 00:08:22,172 I've gotten past that point in life 133 00:08:22,275 --> 00:08:25,275 where a person acts as if he wants to get it over 134 00:08:25,379 --> 00:08:27,586 with as fast as possible. 135 00:08:27,689 --> 00:08:30,517 I'm at a point in life now wherewe're trying to stretch it out. 136 00:08:30,620 --> 00:08:32,344 [chuckling] 137 00:08:32,448 --> 00:08:37,103 NARRATOR: Last season, Alex's run on the Canadian ice roads 138 00:08:37,206 --> 00:08:39,931 was cut short because of critical heart trouble. 139 00:08:42,724 --> 00:08:45,482 This season, he's out to prove he can make a comeback. 140 00:08:45,655 --> 00:08:48,620 I'd kind of like to go do the job and get it done, 141 00:08:48,724 --> 00:08:53,206 and go home healthy without going home on a stretcher. 142 00:08:53,310 --> 00:08:57,724 NARRATOR: To make it home alive,Alex isn't taking any chances. 143 00:08:57,827 --> 00:08:59,586 It's a load of pipe. 144 00:08:59,689 --> 00:09:02,413 It's 50,000 pounds, roughly. 145 00:09:02,517 --> 00:09:05,000 The worst that can happen is thetruck hits another truck head 146 00:09:05,103 --> 00:09:07,586 on, or hits something, goes in a ditch and stops, 147 00:09:07,689 --> 00:09:10,689 and the pipe comes off and cuts the top off the truck, 148 00:09:10,793 --> 00:09:12,034 goes into the cab. 149 00:09:12,137 --> 00:09:14,482 That's pretty well the worst that can happen. 150 00:09:14,586 --> 00:09:16,413 Being dead is about the worst that can happen. 151 00:09:20,310 --> 00:09:23,413 NARRATOR: Alex departs forthat great unknown with Carlile 152 00:09:23,517 --> 00:09:27,172 safety instructor Phil Kromm, headed for an ice road 153 00:09:27,275 --> 00:09:30,586 up steep hills and sharp curves unlike anything he's 154 00:09:30,689 --> 00:09:33,448 driven in his 37-year career. 155 00:09:33,551 --> 00:09:35,620 This is like another driver's test, 156 00:09:35,724 --> 00:09:40,103 except it's going to be 500 miles north. 157 00:09:40,206 --> 00:09:42,413 The biggest challenge, I guess, is to impress him 158 00:09:42,517 --> 00:09:45,620 that I can drive the truck bymyself without having him there 159 00:09:45,724 --> 00:09:47,103 to help me. 160 00:09:47,206 --> 00:09:49,793 Hopefully, he will laugh at my jokes. 161 00:09:49,896 --> 00:09:54,413 [chuckling] 162 00:09:54,586 --> 00:09:59,379 NARRATOR: Back at Carlile, nextup, 28-year-old Lisa Kelly. 163 00:10:02,275 --> 00:10:10,724 While her truck gets a service,she attempts to up the stakes. 164 00:10:10,827 --> 00:10:11,620 [phone ringing] 165 00:10:11,724 --> 00:10:13,000 Dispatch, this is Tim. 166 00:10:13,103 --> 00:10:14,206 It's Lisa. 167 00:10:14,310 --> 00:10:15,896 I need something going north. 168 00:10:16,000 --> 00:10:18,827 I need something a little bit more difficult. 169 00:10:18,931 --> 00:10:20,551 Only because I'm tired of getting teased. 170 00:10:20,655 --> 00:10:21,862 Uh-huh? 171 00:10:21,965 --> 00:10:23,655 LISA KELLY [ON PHONE]: Well, there's these 6-foot tires 172 00:10:23,758 --> 00:10:24,965 here. They're pretty cool. 173 00:10:25,137 --> 00:10:27,758 NARRATOR: With bigger loads comes a bigger paycheck-- 174 00:10:27,862 --> 00:10:31,758 $1,300 and up for a successful haul. 175 00:10:31,862 --> 00:10:33,620 For Lisa to make it into heavy haul, 176 00:10:33,724 --> 00:10:35,931 probably, what she's going to have to prove to everyone 177 00:10:36,034 --> 00:10:38,517 is that she's capable of running the haul road safely, 178 00:10:38,620 --> 00:10:40,000 and with challenging loads. 179 00:10:40,103 --> 00:10:42,310 We've got a lot of oversized loads out here in the yard. 180 00:10:42,413 --> 00:10:43,793 So she makes it through this winter 181 00:10:43,896 --> 00:10:45,137 and does well, I think it's gonna 182 00:10:45,241 --> 00:10:46,724 be a real feather in her cap for her. 183 00:10:46,827 --> 00:10:50,965 NARRATOR: Lisa gets her bigchance with a 42,000-pound load 184 00:10:51,068 --> 00:10:51,758 of truck tires. 185 00:10:54,620 --> 00:10:55,482 LISA KELLY: Oops. 186 00:10:59,068 --> 00:11:02,448 Air lines and my lights. 187 00:11:02,551 --> 00:11:03,482 We got six? 188 00:11:03,586 --> 00:11:05,241 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. 189 00:11:05,344 --> 00:11:07,000 Six whole tires. 190 00:11:07,103 --> 00:11:08,137 I'm feeling good right now. 191 00:11:08,241 --> 00:11:10,034 I just took some caffeine, so we're 192 00:11:10,137 --> 00:11:11,206 going to shoot for the moon. 193 00:11:17,724 --> 00:11:21,896 NARRATOR: Lisa's mission-- to run with the big boys, 194 00:11:22,000 --> 00:11:24,827 and let them know she's on the rise. 195 00:11:24,931 --> 00:11:27,034 You like my load? 196 00:11:27,137 --> 00:11:29,724 TRUCKER: I'm pretty impressed. 197 00:11:29,827 --> 00:11:30,896 Big trucking now. 198 00:11:31,000 --> 00:11:32,068 Oh yeah, yeah. 199 00:11:32,241 --> 00:11:33,241 I'm glad you're impressed. 200 00:11:33,344 --> 00:11:35,586 That's why I did it. 201 00:11:35,689 --> 00:11:37,034 NARRATOR: But hauling heavier loads 202 00:11:37,137 --> 00:11:42,206 could prove to be more than she bargained for. 203 00:11:42,310 --> 00:11:45,379 74 miles from Fairbanks, Lisa approaches 204 00:11:45,482 --> 00:11:49,344 the Dalton's first major challenge, the Taps, 205 00:11:49,448 --> 00:11:54,103 a terrifying 56 miles of steep and twisted curves 206 00:11:54,206 --> 00:11:56,896 that tests the skills of every driver, 207 00:11:57,000 --> 00:11:59,206 especially heavy haulers. 208 00:11:59,310 --> 00:12:01,206 Man, this thing is so heavy. 209 00:12:01,310 --> 00:12:03,793 I'm so used to putting my foot into it, 210 00:12:03,896 --> 00:12:05,517 and it actually like, picks up speed. 211 00:12:05,689 --> 00:12:07,413 TIM RICHARDS: Speed coming back to 25 miles-- 212 00:12:07,517 --> 00:12:10,793 All righty, we're just hitting the Dalton now. 213 00:12:10,896 --> 00:12:11,862 There we are. 214 00:12:11,965 --> 00:12:14,758 I zeroed out. 215 00:12:14,862 --> 00:12:16,551 TIM RICHARDS: And the fun begins. 216 00:12:16,655 --> 00:12:19,517 You know it. 217 00:12:19,620 --> 00:12:22,517 NARRATOR: Lisa's pilot car driver leads the way. 218 00:12:22,620 --> 00:12:24,000 OK, great. 219 00:12:24,103 --> 00:12:25,517 Our job is to stay ahead of the load, 220 00:12:25,620 --> 00:12:27,275 stay out far enough in front of the driver 221 00:12:27,379 --> 00:12:30,241 so that we can get traffic pulled over off of the road. 222 00:12:30,344 --> 00:12:33,482 NARRATOR: And today a sudden spike in temperature 223 00:12:33,586 --> 00:12:35,758 has made the road dangerously slick. 224 00:12:35,862 --> 00:12:38,586 Well, it's like 29 right now. 225 00:12:38,758 --> 00:12:40,482 All winter, it's like 40 below, and it's 226 00:12:40,586 --> 00:12:42,068 nice and icy and frozen, and they 227 00:12:42,172 --> 00:12:43,275 water the roads, and stuff. 228 00:12:43,379 --> 00:12:47,344 Then it warms up, and then it gets really slippery. 229 00:12:47,448 --> 00:12:50,862 This temperature is always real fun, especially 230 00:12:50,965 --> 00:12:53,448 for a first-time heavy load like this. 231 00:12:53,551 --> 00:12:55,827 I'm going up 2 and 1/2. 232 00:12:55,931 --> 00:12:57,241 CARL REYNOLDS: OK. 233 00:12:57,344 --> 00:12:58,620 Lisa, hug the curve. 234 00:12:58,724 --> 00:12:59,413 It's real slick. 235 00:13:02,206 --> 00:13:05,586 Ooh, this is kind of slick. 236 00:13:05,689 --> 00:13:07,482 Where's some traction? 237 00:13:12,586 --> 00:13:13,482 Holy crap! 238 00:13:24,931 --> 00:13:27,241 NARRATOR: On the Dalton's first icy stretch 239 00:13:27,344 --> 00:13:30,724 of steep and twisted curves, Lisa Kelly 240 00:13:30,827 --> 00:13:33,862 has lost all traction. 241 00:13:33,965 --> 00:13:35,310 LISA KELLY: Where's the traction? 242 00:13:35,413 --> 00:13:37,275 Come on, honey. 243 00:13:37,379 --> 00:13:38,275 You can do it. 244 00:13:43,310 --> 00:13:45,172 Oh-- Oh, [bleep]. 245 00:13:53,206 --> 00:13:56,689 NARRATOR: As she struggles for control on the ice, 246 00:13:56,793 --> 00:14:01,482 a southbound pickup truck comes barreling towards her. 247 00:14:01,586 --> 00:14:02,275 No! 248 00:14:06,068 --> 00:14:06,724 Uh-oh. 249 00:14:11,724 --> 00:14:13,068 Holy crap. 250 00:14:13,172 --> 00:14:14,034 Oh, get over! 251 00:14:14,137 --> 00:14:15,000 [truck horn] 252 00:14:15,103 --> 00:14:18,448 Jesus! 253 00:14:18,551 --> 00:14:19,931 Whew! 254 00:14:20,103 --> 00:14:21,965 This is not good. 255 00:14:22,068 --> 00:14:24,379 This is road is scary today. 256 00:14:24,482 --> 00:14:27,275 OK, we got traction now. 257 00:14:27,379 --> 00:14:29,896 There we go, we survived that one. 258 00:14:32,862 --> 00:14:35,241 I'm going to chain up, because I slid pretty much all the way 259 00:14:35,344 --> 00:14:36,310 up that. 260 00:14:36,413 --> 00:14:37,379 CARL REYNOLDS: Yeah, I thought you might 261 00:14:37,482 --> 00:14:38,517 have a problem on that one. 262 00:14:38,620 --> 00:14:41,517 NARRATOR: Throwing a set of 65-pound chains 263 00:14:41,620 --> 00:14:45,310 in the bitter cold is not everyone's idea of fun. 264 00:14:45,413 --> 00:14:47,689 Yay, I love this part! 265 00:14:47,793 --> 00:14:51,241 NARRATOR: But then again, Lisa is not your average ice road 266 00:14:51,344 --> 00:14:52,586 trucker. 267 00:14:52,758 --> 00:14:55,965 If the chains are too loose and they get slapping stuff, 268 00:14:56,068 --> 00:14:58,000 they tend to break links. 269 00:14:58,103 --> 00:15:00,517 I try to keep them snugged up pretty good. 270 00:15:00,620 --> 00:15:02,482 You don't want them too snug, because then they 271 00:15:02,586 --> 00:15:03,620 start wearing on the tires. 272 00:15:06,310 --> 00:15:08,655 NARRATOR: Lisa rigs two sets of chains 273 00:15:08,758 --> 00:15:12,000 to the tires of the truck's front drive axle, which 274 00:15:12,103 --> 00:15:14,758 does all the work and requires the extra traction. 275 00:15:17,517 --> 00:15:20,241 OK, good to go. 276 00:15:20,344 --> 00:15:24,275 NARRATOR: Chains on, Lisa gearsup for the big hills ahead. 277 00:15:28,241 --> 00:15:30,689 LISA KELLY: It looks like it's blowing now the wind's picking 278 00:15:30,793 --> 00:15:31,482 up. 279 00:15:31,586 --> 00:15:32,655 That's not a good sign. 280 00:15:37,655 --> 00:15:40,655 NARRATOR: 70 miles north of Fairbanks-- 281 00:15:40,758 --> 00:15:42,586 [truck horn] 282 00:15:42,689 --> 00:15:44,517 --Hugh "the Polar Bear" Roland is 283 00:15:44,620 --> 00:15:47,310 poised to be the first of the two Canadians 284 00:15:47,413 --> 00:15:50,344 to make it onto the ice road. 285 00:15:50,448 --> 00:15:52,896 HUGH ROWLANDS: Oh, I think Alexis starting to slow down now, 286 00:15:53,000 --> 00:15:54,068 you know? 287 00:15:54,172 --> 00:15:55,827 He's getting up there, and he's getting pretty long 288 00:15:55,931 --> 00:15:57,000 in the tooth. 289 00:15:57,103 --> 00:16:00,137 [chuckling] But I'll probably have to pass him 290 00:16:00,310 --> 00:16:03,551 like usual a couple of times today, yeah. 291 00:16:03,655 --> 00:16:04,793 While he's napping. 292 00:16:04,896 --> 00:16:06,137 [chuckling] 293 00:16:06,241 --> 00:16:09,827 NARRATOR: But before he cantake on the deadly curves ahead, 294 00:16:09,931 --> 00:16:12,862 he's got to double check that his load is secure. 295 00:16:12,965 --> 00:16:16,068 Every time we stop, I'll check these straps. 296 00:16:16,172 --> 00:16:18,482 Every time. 297 00:16:18,586 --> 00:16:21,689 NARRATOR: While Hugh does his final check-- 298 00:16:21,793 --> 00:16:22,517 [truck horn] 299 00:16:22,620 --> 00:16:26,827 --his old rival passes him by. 300 00:16:26,931 --> 00:16:29,275 [laughter] 301 00:16:31,034 --> 00:16:32,000 [truck horn] 302 00:16:32,103 --> 00:16:33,689 I've been trying to look out for myself 303 00:16:33,862 --> 00:16:35,724 here, no time to look after Hugh. 304 00:16:35,827 --> 00:16:37,172 [chuckling] 305 00:16:37,275 --> 00:16:39,241 NARRATOR: Hugh is left in the dust, 306 00:16:39,344 --> 00:16:42,862 as Alex blazes on towards the most important test 307 00:16:42,965 --> 00:16:46,827 of his career, where one mistake could end in disaster. 308 00:16:46,931 --> 00:16:50,000 There's been a lot of deaths over the last 30 years 309 00:16:50,103 --> 00:16:51,206 on this road. 310 00:16:51,310 --> 00:16:54,241 Yeah, a little cross there just to remind you. 311 00:16:54,344 --> 00:16:56,586 TONY MOLESKY: Yeah, there's several of them up and down 312 00:16:56,689 --> 00:16:59,034 the road. 313 00:16:59,137 --> 00:17:02,689 Driver coming north, they come out that corner too fast 314 00:17:02,793 --> 00:17:05,137 and flopped over in the road and went through the guardrail 315 00:17:05,241 --> 00:17:07,206 and over the edge. 316 00:17:07,379 --> 00:17:09,862 You know, there's so much to contend with all the time 317 00:17:09,965 --> 00:17:10,655 out here. 318 00:17:13,620 --> 00:17:16,137 NARRATOR: Alex approaches the final stretch 319 00:17:16,241 --> 00:17:19,413 before the Dalton begins. 320 00:17:19,517 --> 00:17:26,310 Up ahead, 414 miles of the world's most extreme trucking. 321 00:17:26,413 --> 00:17:30,689 And Alex is still getting used to an unfamiliar transmission. 322 00:17:30,793 --> 00:17:34,000 He normally drives an 18-speed gearbox. 323 00:17:34,103 --> 00:17:38,172 Now he's using a Super 10, whichrequires shifting with a hand 324 00:17:38,275 --> 00:17:39,586 splitter. 325 00:17:39,758 --> 00:17:43,275 And if you don't get it right, you could easily miss a gear. 326 00:17:43,379 --> 00:17:46,137 ALEX DEBOGORSKI: Got to getused to using that transmission, 327 00:17:46,241 --> 00:17:47,379 that Super 10. 328 00:17:47,482 --> 00:17:51,758 To me, that's my biggest challenge. 329 00:17:51,862 --> 00:17:53,310 Yeah, go ahead and wind her up. 330 00:17:53,413 --> 00:17:56,034 You got a short, but it's pretty steep pitch, you know? 331 00:18:04,137 --> 00:18:04,862 OK. 332 00:18:08,275 --> 00:18:11,655 NARRATOR: The 37-year veteran misses a gear, 333 00:18:11,758 --> 00:18:14,206 stalling the truck just three miles from the start 334 00:18:14,379 --> 00:18:17,310 of the haul road. 335 00:18:17,413 --> 00:18:19,241 All right, here we go again. 336 00:18:22,034 --> 00:18:24,206 NARRATOR: While Alex crawls up the hill-- 337 00:18:28,137 --> 00:18:33,793 [truck horn] 338 00:18:33,896 --> 00:18:35,724 [chuckling] 339 00:18:35,827 --> 00:18:37,931 --the Polar Bear takes back the lead 340 00:18:38,034 --> 00:18:41,034 and charges ahead to the ice. 341 00:18:41,137 --> 00:18:43,275 And that right there is one mile. 342 00:18:43,379 --> 00:18:45,103 That's the start of the Dalton, right there. 343 00:18:48,344 --> 00:18:51,241 This corner down here took out several trucks 344 00:18:51,344 --> 00:18:52,758 in the last couple of years. 345 00:18:52,862 --> 00:18:55,551 Bad wrecks, really bad wrecks. 346 00:18:55,655 --> 00:18:58,551 It's all you can do to keepyourself on the road, you know? 347 00:18:58,655 --> 00:19:01,206 Drive the truck and don't crash, and we'll be in good shape. 348 00:19:01,310 --> 00:19:02,034 Right on. 349 00:19:09,793 --> 00:19:11,931 And you want to be down to about, you know, 35 350 00:19:12,034 --> 00:19:13,206 when you go around this corner. 351 00:19:20,034 --> 00:19:21,344 Yeah. 352 00:19:21,448 --> 00:19:23,413 NARRATOR: Hugh doesn't heed the warning. 353 00:19:36,103 --> 00:19:38,034 NARRATOR: His tires lose traction 354 00:19:38,137 --> 00:19:39,172 around the sharp curve. 355 00:19:44,172 --> 00:19:45,758 HUGH ROWLANDS: I made it around that one. 356 00:19:45,862 --> 00:19:48,551 I don't know how I made it around that one. 357 00:19:48,655 --> 00:19:52,965 [chuckling] 358 00:19:53,068 --> 00:19:56,103 NARRATOR: Tony doesn't want to take anymore chances. 359 00:19:56,275 --> 00:19:59,068 Go ahead and peel off righthere, get on off the road here. 360 00:20:04,034 --> 00:20:07,206 NARRATOR: He orders Hugh topull over and into the passenger 361 00:20:07,310 --> 00:20:08,275 seat. 362 00:20:08,379 --> 00:20:10,275 He'll have to see the route before he'll 363 00:20:10,379 --> 00:20:13,965 be allowed to drive it. 364 00:20:14,068 --> 00:20:15,896 HUGH ROWLANDS: They want professional drivers, 365 00:20:16,000 --> 00:20:17,551 but what the [bleep] is going on here? 366 00:20:22,551 --> 00:20:27,000 NARRATOR: 110 miles up theroad, rookie driver Tim Freeman 367 00:20:27,172 --> 00:20:31,068 and his mentor, George Spears, prepare for the slick descent 368 00:20:31,172 --> 00:20:35,172 called Beaver Slide It's two miles at 11% grade, 369 00:20:35,275 --> 00:20:38,517 the equivalent of driving straight down a ski slope. 370 00:20:38,620 --> 00:20:41,034 And braking is not advised. 371 00:20:41,137 --> 00:20:42,965 GEORGE SPEARS: This is the first snow flurries 372 00:20:43,068 --> 00:20:44,344 we've come across today. 373 00:20:44,448 --> 00:20:46,862 Hopefully, from what everybody says, it shouldn't be too bad. 374 00:20:46,965 --> 00:20:49,413 I don't think we're going to have a real problem with it. 375 00:20:49,517 --> 00:20:53,931 NARRATOR: It's only Tim's second trip ever on the ice. 376 00:20:54,034 --> 00:20:57,551 On his first trip, Tim survived a brake failure, 377 00:20:57,655 --> 00:21:02,034 a near head-on collision, and a blinding whiteout. 378 00:21:05,137 --> 00:21:08,931 110 miles from Fairbanks is one of the Dalton's longest 379 00:21:09,034 --> 00:21:16,379 and steepest hills, two miles of 11% covered in ice known 380 00:21:16,482 --> 00:21:19,551 as the Beaver Slide. 381 00:21:19,655 --> 00:21:21,482 [truck horn] 382 00:21:21,586 --> 00:21:23,448 I'll get Tim gathered up, and we'll 383 00:21:23,551 --> 00:21:25,965 start easing down off here. 384 00:21:26,068 --> 00:21:29,724 NARRATOR: Veteran George Spearsand rookie driver Tim Freeman 385 00:21:29,827 --> 00:21:33,103 have just begun the long descent. 386 00:21:33,206 --> 00:21:37,586 It's enough to test atrucker's skill on a clear day, 387 00:21:37,758 --> 00:21:40,482 and today they're in a phase three blizzard. 388 00:21:45,068 --> 00:21:48,758 GEORGE SPEARS: Phase three is where you can't see [bleep].. 389 00:21:48,862 --> 00:21:50,206 OK. 390 00:21:50,310 --> 00:21:52,586 The visibility is not very good right now. 391 00:21:58,689 --> 00:22:00,413 Still coming, George. 392 00:22:00,517 --> 00:22:01,931 I can't see a [bleep] thing, though. 393 00:22:07,206 --> 00:22:10,275 GEORGE SPEARS: I wasn't expecting it to be this bad. 394 00:22:10,379 --> 00:22:13,275 These kind of conditions have put a lot of guys, period, 395 00:22:13,379 --> 00:22:14,241 in the ditch. 396 00:22:20,655 --> 00:22:23,965 [bleep] 397 00:22:24,068 --> 00:22:25,827 NARRATOR: With visibility this bad, 398 00:22:25,931 --> 00:22:28,344 Tim could drive off the road at any moment. 399 00:22:28,448 --> 00:22:33,137 [bleep] 400 00:22:33,241 --> 00:22:35,206 Timmy, just take it real easy. 401 00:22:35,310 --> 00:22:39,379 Watch for one delineator on one side, one on the other. 402 00:22:39,482 --> 00:22:44,103 NARRATOR: Delineators identify the edge of the road. 403 00:22:44,275 --> 00:22:48,068 They're generally staggered every 100 feet. 404 00:22:48,172 --> 00:22:50,517 GEORGE SPEARS: Don't stare too far either direction. 405 00:22:50,620 --> 00:22:52,068 Just stay right down the middle. 406 00:22:54,862 --> 00:22:56,241 I'm kind of slowed down here, Timmy. 407 00:22:56,344 --> 00:22:58,758 I got my backup lights on, and stuff. 408 00:23:01,689 --> 00:23:03,551 Tim, can you still see me all right? 409 00:23:13,344 --> 00:23:16,655 This is bad. 410 00:23:16,827 --> 00:23:17,724 [bleep] me! 411 00:23:23,517 --> 00:23:26,068 GEORGE SPEARS: We're stopping towait for Tim here so he can get 412 00:23:26,172 --> 00:23:26,896 caught up. 413 00:23:30,758 --> 00:23:31,482 Timmy, how we doing? 414 00:23:42,827 --> 00:23:47,241 NARRATOR: George loses radio contact with the rookie. 415 00:23:47,413 --> 00:23:50,620 Tim? 416 00:23:50,724 --> 00:23:53,000 Tim? 417 00:23:53,103 --> 00:23:55,551 Timmy? 418 00:23:55,655 --> 00:23:56,827 Timmy, did you go all right? 419 00:24:15,034 --> 00:24:16,517 GEORGE SPEARS: Yeah, that's me, Tim. 420 00:24:16,620 --> 00:24:18,103 I see you right there. 421 00:24:18,206 --> 00:24:20,310 Oh wow! 422 00:24:20,413 --> 00:24:22,793 You wanted some wind, you got it. 423 00:24:22,965 --> 00:24:32,517 [chuckling] I didn't think it was going to be that bad. 424 00:24:32,620 --> 00:24:34,172 TIM FREEMAN: Hell, we were dropping down 425 00:24:34,275 --> 00:24:37,965 one of the steepest,straightest grades on the road, 426 00:24:38,068 --> 00:24:41,068 couldn't see [bleep] nothing in front of us. 427 00:24:41,172 --> 00:24:45,275 I was shaking all the way down. 428 00:24:45,379 --> 00:24:50,172 I've never driven on flat land in visibility that poor where 429 00:24:50,275 --> 00:24:52,586 I didn't say [bleep] and found a spot to pull off. 430 00:24:52,689 --> 00:24:57,103 And not to mention the 11% grade downhill. 431 00:24:57,275 --> 00:25:00,000 NARRATOR: Once again, George's 30-year history 432 00:25:00,103 --> 00:25:03,034 on this road proved invaluable to the rookie. 433 00:25:03,137 --> 00:25:07,310 Man, he really kicked asscoaching me down through there. 434 00:25:07,413 --> 00:25:09,655 Kept his cool so I can keep mine. 435 00:25:09,758 --> 00:25:11,931 I'll owe him dinner at Coldfoot. 436 00:25:12,034 --> 00:25:12,724 Whew! 437 00:25:17,275 --> 00:25:19,482 NARRATOR: Back at the start of the Dalton, 438 00:25:19,586 --> 00:25:24,137 Hugh's hopes of driving the haul road have been shattered. 439 00:25:24,241 --> 00:25:28,310 After speeding around a slick curve, 440 00:25:28,482 --> 00:25:31,551 he must forfeit the wheel and ride shotgun. 441 00:25:31,655 --> 00:25:36,551 Carlile's safety instructor, Tony Molesky, is taking over. 442 00:25:36,655 --> 00:25:38,551 We just took off out of here, Phil. 443 00:25:44,068 --> 00:25:47,758 You can't bash your motor and go up the hill all the time. 444 00:25:47,862 --> 00:25:49,068 The guys really gotta watch it. 445 00:25:49,172 --> 00:25:51,655 You just ease it on up at, like, half throttle, right? 446 00:25:51,758 --> 00:25:53,241 You got something to play with there. 447 00:25:58,206 --> 00:26:04,068 NARRATOR: Five miles back, Alex struggles 448 00:26:04,241 --> 00:26:07,275 with the unfamiliar Super 10 transmission. 449 00:26:14,000 --> 00:26:15,379 It just takes time and miles. 450 00:26:19,413 --> 00:26:22,000 I'm going to get heckledwhether I do it right or wrong. 451 00:26:22,103 --> 00:26:24,103 But doing it wrong or having a problem, 452 00:26:24,206 --> 00:26:26,034 and I get heckled that much more. 453 00:26:26,137 --> 00:26:27,000 [chuckling] 454 00:26:27,103 --> 00:26:28,931 I would imagine. 455 00:26:29,034 --> 00:26:31,482 Well, our Qualcomm just went off, telling us 456 00:26:31,586 --> 00:26:32,724 there's a message to read. 457 00:26:32,827 --> 00:26:34,448 You're kidding? 458 00:26:34,620 --> 00:26:37,103 Am I in trouble? 459 00:26:37,206 --> 00:26:40,241 NARRATOR: Haul road trucks are equipped with an emergency 460 00:26:40,344 --> 00:26:43,241 bulletin system. 461 00:26:43,344 --> 00:26:47,275 The alert is for an arctic storm up ahead. 462 00:26:47,379 --> 00:26:50,000 PHIL KROMM: The weather can change in five miles 463 00:26:50,103 --> 00:26:53,827 or five minutes anywhere in the state of Alaska. 464 00:26:53,931 --> 00:26:56,310 Blowing snow is dangerous in a lot of ways, One, 465 00:26:56,413 --> 00:26:59,310 you can't see, you can run off the road, flop over. 466 00:26:59,413 --> 00:27:01,551 You can crash into the person in front of you 467 00:27:01,655 --> 00:27:04,000 that you're trying to follow because you can't see them. 468 00:27:04,103 --> 00:27:07,448 Potential for disaster. 469 00:27:07,551 --> 00:27:09,448 NARRATOR: With the storm closing in, 470 00:27:09,620 --> 00:27:12,965 Phil decides he can't risk it with a new driver. 471 00:27:13,068 --> 00:27:15,896 We'll switch places, I'll drive from here. 472 00:27:16,000 --> 00:27:18,344 I think you can get a better look at it, watching it first. 473 00:27:21,068 --> 00:27:24,448 NARRATOR: He's a legend on the ice roads of Canada. 474 00:27:24,551 --> 00:27:29,379 But in Alaska, Alex is treated just like any other rookie. 475 00:27:29,482 --> 00:27:32,000 Like Hugh, he's forced to ride shotgun 476 00:27:32,103 --> 00:27:35,586 for the rest of the trip. 477 00:27:35,689 --> 00:27:39,241 The legend of the Dalton is not only known among truckers. 478 00:27:39,344 --> 00:27:42,344 The road itself is a feat of engineering-- 479 00:27:42,517 --> 00:27:47,344 414 miles carved through the Alaskan wilderness. 480 00:27:47,448 --> 00:27:50,689 It was built in 1974 in just six months 481 00:27:50,793 --> 00:27:54,965 to aid the construction of the Trans Alaskan pipeline. 482 00:27:55,068 --> 00:28:00,931 Total cost of the road, over $150 million. 483 00:28:01,034 --> 00:28:03,896 Built on frozen soil and paved with ice, 484 00:28:04,000 --> 00:28:07,793 the Dalton is key to the world's oil supply. 485 00:28:07,896 --> 00:28:10,517 If the frozen ground stays frozen, 486 00:28:10,620 --> 00:28:12,862 then the road will remain passable. 487 00:28:12,965 --> 00:28:14,103 The oil will continue to flow. 488 00:28:20,103 --> 00:28:23,241 NARRATOR: Back from his last heavy haul up the ice road, 489 00:28:23,344 --> 00:28:27,068 Jack Jessee wastes no time getting to his next challenge, 490 00:28:27,172 --> 00:28:31,793 an oversized load bound for the500-mile journey to Deadhorse. 491 00:28:31,896 --> 00:28:35,103 This is a pipe rack that one of the oil companies 492 00:28:35,206 --> 00:28:39,379 have asked us to transport to Alpine. 493 00:28:39,482 --> 00:28:41,379 NARRATOR: The structural pipe rack 494 00:28:41,482 --> 00:28:44,068 is used for oil production. 495 00:28:44,172 --> 00:28:46,344 It attaches multiple oil wellheads 496 00:28:46,448 --> 00:28:48,931 to the Trans Alaskan pipeline system. 497 00:28:49,103 --> 00:28:52,724 One and two, and then one and two in the back. 498 00:28:52,827 --> 00:28:55,586 It is obviously very critical. 499 00:28:55,689 --> 00:28:57,896 Production will suffer if it's not there. 500 00:28:58,000 --> 00:28:59,931 What did you say the overhang on the inside? 501 00:29:00,034 --> 00:29:01,310 24. 502 00:29:01,413 --> 00:29:03,586 As long as we get it centered on the trailer, it'll be good. 503 00:29:03,689 --> 00:29:06,172 TIM RICHARDS: Yeah, we got to get this one on the road. 504 00:29:06,275 --> 00:29:07,551 The schedule is tight this year. 505 00:29:07,655 --> 00:29:11,000 We have a lot of loads to get to Prudhoe in a short window 506 00:29:11,103 --> 00:29:12,275 of time. 507 00:29:12,379 --> 00:29:13,965 It's 16 feet wide. 508 00:29:14,068 --> 00:29:16,206 We're right at 17 feet high. 509 00:29:16,310 --> 00:29:19,000 The center of gravity on this particular load 510 00:29:19,103 --> 00:29:24,103 is probably about 10 feet in the air, doing a lot of this. 511 00:29:24,275 --> 00:29:26,103 So we added more chains pulling straight 512 00:29:26,206 --> 00:29:28,206 down to get some good down pressure on it, 513 00:29:28,310 --> 00:29:30,379 so it stays on the trailer. 514 00:29:30,482 --> 00:29:32,655 NARRATOR: As dusk approaches, Jack 515 00:29:32,758 --> 00:29:36,000 makes the load legal for travel over the ice road. 516 00:29:36,103 --> 00:29:38,379 JACK JESSEE: We've met all the requirements of our permit, 517 00:29:38,482 --> 00:29:42,206 flags, oversize signs, reflective tape to run 518 00:29:42,310 --> 00:29:43,103 at night. 519 00:29:43,206 --> 00:29:46,448 So I'm getting in and let's go. 520 00:29:46,551 --> 00:29:49,344 [truck horn] 521 00:29:52,827 --> 00:29:57,275 NARRATOR: The 16-foot wide piperack takes up the entire length 522 00:29:57,448 --> 00:30:00,620 and over half of the oncoming lane. 523 00:30:00,724 --> 00:30:03,724 16 wide moving down the road, man. 524 00:30:03,827 --> 00:30:06,137 You can't get overconfident on this road. 525 00:30:06,241 --> 00:30:08,655 Because about the time you get overconfident and think 526 00:30:08,758 --> 00:30:11,068 you know everything there is to know about this road, 527 00:30:11,172 --> 00:30:13,310 they're going to be scraping you up out of the ditch. 528 00:30:15,655 --> 00:30:19,482 NARRATOR: Jack is making goodtime when suddenly, all traffic 529 00:30:19,586 --> 00:30:22,103 comes to a standstill. 530 00:30:22,206 --> 00:30:23,482 Copy that. 531 00:30:23,586 --> 00:30:25,310 [humming] 532 00:30:25,413 --> 00:30:27,000 OK, Debbie, so what's the story? 533 00:30:27,103 --> 00:30:30,000 Scott, whoever? 534 00:30:30,172 --> 00:30:32,206 NARRATOR: A spun out truck up ahead 535 00:30:32,310 --> 00:30:34,517 is blocking the northbound lane. 536 00:30:34,620 --> 00:30:35,965 JACK JESSEE: So there's plenty room 537 00:30:36,068 --> 00:30:39,827 on the other side of the road for a normal eight-six wide 538 00:30:39,931 --> 00:30:43,827 load, but not for my 16-feet wide load that I've got. 539 00:30:47,206 --> 00:30:49,965 NARRATOR: Jack has no choice but to wait, 540 00:30:50,068 --> 00:30:51,344 burning time and money. 541 00:31:01,068 --> 00:31:05,931 NARRATOR: 75 miles north of Fairbanks, Jack Jessee 542 00:31:06,103 --> 00:31:09,793 is stopped dead in his tracks. 543 00:31:09,896 --> 00:31:14,413 A spun out truck is blocking the road. 544 00:31:14,517 --> 00:31:17,758 I just lost my momentum coming up here. 545 00:31:17,862 --> 00:31:21,896 NARRATOR: And Jack's oversized load is too wide to pass. 546 00:31:22,000 --> 00:31:24,586 This guy is-- he's not in a very good spot. 547 00:31:24,689 --> 00:31:27,482 He's in a curve going uphill, and nobody can see him 548 00:31:27,586 --> 00:31:28,379 from either direction. 549 00:31:28,482 --> 00:31:30,068 So if two trucks, with another one 550 00:31:30,172 --> 00:31:32,034 going up the hill and one coming down the hill, 551 00:31:32,137 --> 00:31:33,551 and they all meet in the same place, 552 00:31:33,655 --> 00:31:35,724 there's going to be an horrendous crash. 553 00:31:35,896 --> 00:31:39,034 [truck horn] 554 00:31:39,137 --> 00:31:42,379 NARRATOR: The driver can't get enough traction on the ice 555 00:31:42,482 --> 00:31:44,413 to move out of the way. 556 00:31:44,517 --> 00:31:47,862 He doesn't have the proper chains to get himself 557 00:31:47,965 --> 00:31:48,896 up the hill. 558 00:31:49,000 --> 00:31:51,896 So I've gotta put some in a pilot car 559 00:31:52,000 --> 00:31:54,758 so we can take him up there, so he can get off the hill, 560 00:31:54,862 --> 00:31:56,344 so I can get by him. 561 00:31:56,448 --> 00:31:58,172 Yep. 562 00:31:58,275 --> 00:32:00,551 All right, let's move it up the hill. 563 00:32:00,655 --> 00:32:01,862 All right. 564 00:32:01,965 --> 00:32:02,655 Good luck, Scott. 565 00:32:07,310 --> 00:32:08,931 There's only three of them up there. 566 00:32:09,103 --> 00:32:11,724 Somebody ought to know how to put tire chains on. 567 00:32:11,827 --> 00:32:15,172 But everybody's got to get educated. 568 00:32:15,275 --> 00:32:17,758 Yeah, but they're doing it at my expense right now. 569 00:32:17,862 --> 00:32:19,000 - Yeah. - I don't like that. 570 00:32:19,103 --> 00:32:22,413 Thanks. 571 00:32:22,517 --> 00:32:25,827 NARRATOR: If the wheels aren't turning, nobody's earning. 572 00:32:25,931 --> 00:32:28,068 And if the truck can't clear the hill, 573 00:32:28,172 --> 00:32:32,448 Jack may be forced to return to Fairbanks. 574 00:32:32,551 --> 00:32:35,137 Frustrating, I guess. 575 00:32:35,241 --> 00:32:37,000 It's mostly frustrating for me. 576 00:32:37,103 --> 00:32:42,034 Because he didn't have what he needed to do the job. 577 00:32:42,206 --> 00:32:46,931 And he's only got single rail tire chains, which 578 00:32:47,034 --> 00:32:49,586 means his only chains that he can put on there goes over one 579 00:32:49,689 --> 00:32:51,000 tire. 580 00:32:51,103 --> 00:32:56,344 So when we put chains on, we putthem over a group of two tires. 581 00:32:56,448 --> 00:33:00,551 That may work fine down in the states, on the pavement. 582 00:33:00,655 --> 00:33:02,793 But up here, you've got to have three railers, 583 00:33:02,896 --> 00:33:06,103 and you got to have enough to go over every tire. 584 00:33:06,206 --> 00:33:08,793 We laugh if somebody says they've got singles to put on. 585 00:33:08,896 --> 00:33:11,000 I don't think I can get my arms in there any better 586 00:33:11,103 --> 00:33:13,517 than you can. 587 00:33:13,620 --> 00:33:18,103 This is definitely going to make for a long night. 588 00:33:18,275 --> 00:33:20,965 NARRATOR: After nearly three hours, the spun out truck 589 00:33:21,068 --> 00:33:22,482 is cleared from the road. 590 00:33:22,586 --> 00:33:27,620 And Jack is ready to blaze a trail north. 591 00:33:27,724 --> 00:33:29,931 OK, Debbie, we're ready to roll. 592 00:33:30,034 --> 00:33:30,965 Blow that smoke out. 593 00:33:31,068 --> 00:33:31,758 Let's go. 594 00:33:35,965 --> 00:33:41,413 NARRATOR: 253 miles up the ice road, Alex and Phil Kromm 595 00:33:41,517 --> 00:33:47,034 are heading north toward the Dalton's most epic challenge, 596 00:33:47,137 --> 00:33:49,655 Atigun Pass. 597 00:33:49,827 --> 00:33:53,379 PHIL KROMM: This is Atigun Pass that you're looking at. 598 00:33:53,482 --> 00:33:55,931 ALEX DEBOGORSKI: Well, that'sa pretty impressive climb right 599 00:33:56,034 --> 00:33:58,137 there. 600 00:33:58,241 --> 00:34:01,241 PHIL KROMM: It's 2 and 1/2miles up this side and 2 and 1/2 601 00:34:01,344 --> 00:34:02,448 down the other side. 602 00:34:02,551 --> 00:34:05,206 It's steep, and there's a drop off on the right. 603 00:34:05,310 --> 00:34:08,034 And a mountain on the left. 604 00:34:08,137 --> 00:34:11,068 Yeah, this time of year, one thing you got to to watch out 605 00:34:11,172 --> 00:34:13,551 for is avalanches. 606 00:34:13,655 --> 00:34:16,931 One of our guys here six or seven years ago was coming up 607 00:34:17,034 --> 00:34:18,275 and an avalanche hit him. 608 00:34:18,379 --> 00:34:20,586 It ripped the sleepers off the chassis, 609 00:34:20,689 --> 00:34:23,862 and twisted up and mangled the truck cab 610 00:34:24,034 --> 00:34:27,413 and buried it, picked him upand set him over the bank there 611 00:34:27,517 --> 00:34:28,931 and survived it. 612 00:34:29,034 --> 00:34:31,379 He must've been awful lucky, because it's a long ways down, 613 00:34:31,482 --> 00:34:33,068 and there's nothing down there but rocks. 614 00:34:33,172 --> 00:34:35,827 And I don't mean little ones, they're boulders. 615 00:34:39,034 --> 00:34:40,586 ALEX DEBOGORSKI: It's pretty impressive. 616 00:34:40,689 --> 00:34:42,241 It'll be a challenge to go up here now. 617 00:34:42,344 --> 00:34:46,275 And first of all, I gotta make that shift. 618 00:34:46,379 --> 00:34:49,551 [truck horn] 619 00:34:49,655 --> 00:34:51,413 See, somebody spun out here. 620 00:34:51,517 --> 00:34:54,551 We're going to get on their marks. 621 00:34:54,655 --> 00:34:56,793 Hang on a second, I gotta holler at Tony. 622 00:34:56,965 --> 00:34:58,551 You get below the pipe crossing, Tony-- 623 00:35:06,413 --> 00:35:07,586 Oh, OK. 624 00:35:07,689 --> 00:35:08,931 Thank you. 625 00:35:09,034 --> 00:35:11,310 NARRATOR: Just behind Phil and Alex 626 00:35:11,413 --> 00:35:14,551 are Hugh and driving instructor Tony Molesky. 627 00:35:14,655 --> 00:35:17,103 If you do break loose really bad, 628 00:35:17,206 --> 00:35:22,724 it'll want to take off on you, And down the hill you go. 629 00:35:22,827 --> 00:35:24,206 Like a toboggan, you know? 630 00:35:24,310 --> 00:35:26,137 HUGH ROWLANDS: If you go off one of them banks 631 00:35:26,241 --> 00:35:27,413 you're going to die. 632 00:35:27,517 --> 00:35:29,068 Your load's going to take the cab of the truck off. 633 00:35:31,586 --> 00:35:33,862 Well, looks like somebody run off the road right there. 634 00:35:37,862 --> 00:35:39,862 HUGH ROWLANDS: Somebody put it in the ditch there. 635 00:35:39,965 --> 00:35:43,241 TONY MOLESKY: It's a bad deal, a really bad wreck. 636 00:35:43,344 --> 00:35:47,448 It went down and rolled over twice. 637 00:35:47,551 --> 00:35:49,241 Totaled a brand new truck and tanker. 638 00:35:58,275 --> 00:36:00,517 After seeing that, it makes a guy kind of slow down, 639 00:36:00,620 --> 00:36:01,724 you know? - Oh, yeah. 640 00:36:01,827 --> 00:36:04,310 A guy just gets that feeling and he slows down, 641 00:36:04,482 --> 00:36:06,758 you know, just out of respect, or whatever. 642 00:36:06,862 --> 00:36:09,896 NARRATOR: It's a warning the rookies can't ignore. 643 00:36:10,000 --> 00:36:12,793 Nearly every mile of this rugged terrain 644 00:36:12,896 --> 00:36:14,517 has taken a trucker's life. 645 00:36:26,275 --> 00:36:29,137 The convoy pushes through the night to Deadhorse. 646 00:36:32,758 --> 00:36:36,655 Three hours later, they arrive at the Carlile terminal. 647 00:36:36,827 --> 00:36:40,689 Go around the end of the airport here in Prudhoe Bay. 648 00:36:40,793 --> 00:36:44,172 NARRATOR: Alex and Hugh may not have driven the full trip, 649 00:36:44,275 --> 00:36:47,896 but they experienced many of its perils firsthand. 650 00:36:48,000 --> 00:36:49,862 ALEX DEBOGORSKI: All it was was a load of pipe, 651 00:36:49,965 --> 00:36:51,379 but we'd never drove the road before. 652 00:36:51,482 --> 00:36:54,068 So the biggest challenge is just going down 653 00:36:54,172 --> 00:36:56,206 the road for the first time. 654 00:36:56,310 --> 00:36:58,620 HUGH ROWLANDS: And you don't know the road after one trip. 655 00:36:58,724 --> 00:37:01,931 But you know the potential of the road. 656 00:37:02,034 --> 00:37:04,275 Yeah, on this one, you're not going to go through the ice 657 00:37:04,379 --> 00:37:08,034 and drown, but you're going to go off a cliff and die. 658 00:37:08,137 --> 00:37:09,620 You'd better hurry up, because you're 659 00:37:09,793 --> 00:37:10,862 gonna be getting up the-- 660 00:37:10,965 --> 00:37:14,000 NARRATOR: Next time Hugh and Alex face the ice, 661 00:37:14,103 --> 00:37:15,586 they'll have to drive it alone. 662 00:37:19,379 --> 00:37:26,862 300 miles south of Deadhorse, Lisa Kelly slowly 663 00:37:26,965 --> 00:37:30,551 pushes ahead with their first ever oversized load. 664 00:37:30,655 --> 00:37:33,482 All these tires, these huge tires. 665 00:37:33,586 --> 00:37:36,206 NARRATOR: She's being tested at every turn. 666 00:37:36,310 --> 00:37:37,586 LISA KELLY: Where's the traction? 667 00:37:37,689 --> 00:37:40,344 NARRATOR: First she slipped clear across the ice. 668 00:37:40,448 --> 00:37:43,551 Oh, [bleep], we're spinning. 669 00:37:43,724 --> 00:37:46,689 NARRATOR: Now the unforgiving Alaskan weather 670 00:37:46,793 --> 00:37:48,931 is whipping up another storm. 671 00:37:49,034 --> 00:37:52,620 LISA KELLY: We got the wind blowing across the road. 672 00:37:52,724 --> 00:37:57,448 We got a few snow drifts on the southbound side. 673 00:37:57,551 --> 00:37:59,931 NARRATOR: Gusting at nearly 40 miles per hour, 674 00:38:00,034 --> 00:38:04,344 the wind hits Lisa's load with a terrifying force. 675 00:38:04,448 --> 00:38:06,827 LISA KELLY: I don't like those tires hanging out like that. 676 00:38:14,206 --> 00:38:16,275 I'm going, hm, worrying about it. 677 00:38:21,448 --> 00:38:22,862 I want it back on the trailer. 678 00:38:27,965 --> 00:38:29,827 Let me know when you got it hooked. 679 00:38:33,413 --> 00:38:34,310 Got it? 680 00:38:34,413 --> 00:38:35,103 Yep. 681 00:38:43,275 --> 00:38:45,206 NARRATOR: She tightens the straps to their limit. 682 00:38:45,310 --> 00:38:49,413 There, that's as tight as that one's going for me. 683 00:38:49,517 --> 00:38:53,448 I'm just too strong for this. 684 00:38:53,620 --> 00:38:58,379 NARRATOR: Hoping they'll hold up against the oncoming storm. 685 00:38:58,482 --> 00:39:02,172 The wind isn't making it any warmer. 686 00:39:02,275 --> 00:39:05,103 NARRATOR: But when she goes for the last strap-- 687 00:39:11,448 --> 00:39:14,241 [groaning] 688 00:39:17,275 --> 00:39:20,655 200 miles north of Fairbanks, there's a trucker down. 689 00:39:24,827 --> 00:39:28,965 A ratchet broke, hurtling Lisa Kelly to the frozen ground. 690 00:39:29,068 --> 00:39:29,758 CARL REYNOLDS: Oh! 691 00:39:29,862 --> 00:39:30,965 You all right? 692 00:39:31,068 --> 00:39:31,724 Lisa? 693 00:39:38,793 --> 00:39:39,758 What happened? 694 00:39:39,862 --> 00:39:44,172 Sorry, I had a little technical problem. 695 00:39:44,275 --> 00:39:47,758 [chuckling] Now, that was stupid. 696 00:39:47,862 --> 00:39:49,689 I don't know what happened. 697 00:39:49,793 --> 00:39:52,862 I was tightening it down, and that portable fell off the-- 698 00:39:52,965 --> 00:39:56,068 something, like, bent the metal,or something, and it came off. 699 00:39:56,172 --> 00:39:57,551 Yeah, they'll do that sometimes. 700 00:39:57,724 --> 00:40:00,551 They'll pop loose. 701 00:40:00,655 --> 00:40:02,000 LISA KELLY: So I got to roll around 702 00:40:02,103 --> 00:40:04,000 on the ground a little bit, you know? 703 00:40:04,103 --> 00:40:04,896 There you go. 704 00:40:05,000 --> 00:40:05,758 Let's go to Coldfoot. 705 00:40:05,862 --> 00:40:06,931 Show my true ballet-ness. 706 00:40:07,034 --> 00:40:09,034 There you go. 707 00:40:09,137 --> 00:40:12,689 NARRATOR: With her load secure,Lisa gets back on the ice. 708 00:40:24,068 --> 00:40:28,827 All I heard it was 50 mile an hour winds. 709 00:40:28,931 --> 00:40:32,241 NARRATOR: The storm is poundingthe road with snow and ice, 710 00:40:32,413 --> 00:40:36,068 forcing her to chain up again in the bitter cold. 711 00:40:36,172 --> 00:40:38,172 Next time you see me, my hair will be a disaster. 712 00:40:41,137 --> 00:40:42,517 [WAILING] So cold! 713 00:40:59,862 --> 00:41:03,655 OK, record time. 714 00:41:03,827 --> 00:41:05,068 All righty. 715 00:41:05,172 --> 00:41:07,586 Well, you're getting prettygood at flinging them chains on! 716 00:41:07,689 --> 00:41:08,724 Are you timing me? 717 00:41:08,827 --> 00:41:09,896 Are my times getting better? 718 00:41:10,000 --> 00:41:11,275 TIM RICHARDS: I'm not timing you, 719 00:41:11,379 --> 00:41:13,000 but it sure is taking a lot less time. 720 00:41:13,103 --> 00:41:16,000 You're getting really good at that. 721 00:41:16,103 --> 00:41:19,965 NARRATOR: With added traction, Lisa forges ahead. 722 00:41:20,068 --> 00:41:25,241 It's starting to snow more, it's starting to blow more. 723 00:41:25,344 --> 00:41:26,413 Yeah, good thing we chained. 724 00:41:26,517 --> 00:41:28,896 Whew, thank gosh! 725 00:41:32,965 --> 00:41:36,310 50 mile an hour winds. 726 00:41:36,413 --> 00:41:41,172 I remember when it was 30, it was blowing trailers over. 727 00:41:41,344 --> 00:41:44,862 NARRATOR: 50 mile per hour wind has put countless trucks 728 00:41:44,965 --> 00:41:47,275 in the ditch. 729 00:41:47,379 --> 00:41:52,827 In an instant, a sudden gust could send Lisa over the edge. 730 00:41:52,931 --> 00:41:56,241 LISA KELLY: Yeah, the wind's getting more aggressive. 731 00:42:06,137 --> 00:42:09,517 NARRATOR: As Lisa nearsColdfoot, she and her pilot car 732 00:42:09,620 --> 00:42:12,862 decide it's unsafe to push any further. 733 00:42:13,034 --> 00:42:15,344 Yeah, I doubt we're going to hit Atigun before midnight, 734 00:42:15,448 --> 00:42:16,137 anyway. 735 00:42:16,241 --> 00:42:17,241 Yeah, I agree. 736 00:42:17,344 --> 00:42:20,827 Coldfoot works for me. 737 00:42:20,931 --> 00:42:24,793 NARRATOR: They call it quitsand take shelter from the storm. 738 00:42:24,896 --> 00:42:30,241 The truck stop has the only phone on the 500-mile journey. 739 00:42:30,344 --> 00:42:31,241 [chatter] 740 00:42:31,344 --> 00:42:34,310 We're at Coldfoot right now. 741 00:42:34,413 --> 00:42:36,827 And we finally made it here, and there's a storm brewing 742 00:42:36,931 --> 00:42:38,000 up north. 743 00:42:38,103 --> 00:42:41,206 So it might not even clear till tomorrow night. 744 00:42:41,310 --> 00:42:43,586 So if you don't hear from me for a while, that's why. 745 00:42:43,689 --> 00:42:47,034 We're going to be stuck here at Coldfoot for a while. 746 00:42:47,206 --> 00:42:48,448 Yeah. 747 00:42:48,551 --> 00:42:50,344 So I just thought I'd let you know, so you don't worry. 748 00:42:53,931 --> 00:42:57,275 NARRATOR: After just one week of the ice road season, 749 00:42:57,379 --> 00:43:01,517 veteran George Spears and Jack Jessee have each completed two 750 00:43:01,620 --> 00:43:04,862 loads, and two Canadian recruits have yet 751 00:43:04,965 --> 00:43:06,482 to pull their weight in Alaska. 752 00:43:09,896 --> 00:43:13,482 Still on the road just 70 miles south of Deadhorse, 753 00:43:13,586 --> 00:43:18,310 a phase three storm has clearedall trucks off the Dalton-- 754 00:43:18,482 --> 00:43:21,379 except for one. 755 00:43:21,482 --> 00:43:23,724 Jack Jessee and his pilot cars are 756 00:43:23,827 --> 00:43:25,482 caught in the eye of the storm. 757 00:43:28,379 --> 00:43:29,896 So the storm's moving in really fast, 758 00:43:30,000 --> 00:43:33,310 so it can get pretty intense out here at night. 759 00:43:33,413 --> 00:43:37,068 NARRATOR: Visibility is near zero. 760 00:43:37,172 --> 00:43:40,517 Right now the problem is there are no delineators. 761 00:43:46,482 --> 00:43:51,241 So 50 miles is taking eight hours. 762 00:43:51,413 --> 00:43:56,000 NARRATOR: If Jack stops now, hecould be stranded in the storm. 763 00:43:56,103 --> 00:44:00,931 He has no choice but to push forward. 764 00:44:01,034 --> 00:44:02,413 I can't see anything. 765 00:44:02,517 --> 00:44:03,931 I can't see the road. 766 00:44:04,034 --> 00:44:07,379 I can't even see a set of headlights in front of me. 767 00:44:07,482 --> 00:44:10,241 And this ain't going to get any better.