All language subtitles for Rookie.Truckers.S01E07-Trucking.Hell.1080p.WEB-DL.AAC2.0.H.264-Pr1M371M3_track3_[eng]

G'day. I'm Steve Grahame.

I've spent my life driving trucks
across Australia.

Bloody pain-in-the-arse camel.

It's a tough job.

This is a bastard of a bit of road.

Now we've got a big problem
in the industry.

Aussie trucking
is at a crisis point.

26,000 drivers are needed
to fill a huge labour market gap.

Australia relies on us.

Supermarket shelves
will be stripped bare.

They need our trucks.

But now,
after decades behind the wheel,

a generation of drivers
is about to retire.

Well, we have a massive crisis,
the driver shortage.

So me and my mates
are gonna do what we can

to pass the torch
and get the next generation ready.

He reckons he wants to be thrown
in the deep end.

I'm throwing him in
at 100 mile an hour.

HORN BLARES
Oh!

Go.

Don't throttle.
Oh!

Go on, you good thing.

I have faith in you.

GRUNTS

If the trucks stop,
the nation stops.

CLANKING,
HISSING

HORN BLARES

We're up in Cairns this week.

A bit of a first-time experience.

A bit of a big job going on
this week.

When I was up here
a couple of weeks ago,

I met a bloke, Jim Foody.

Just got talking and said,
"Oh, well, I'll put my hand up,

"go do a trip in his truck."

This job is, you know,
up the Cape York to Bamaga,

the northernmost part of Australia.

I've only been out there
in my youth.

This will be a first for a truck,
let alone a triple road train.

I've never done any dirt work,
you know,

but I'm bloody keen for getting
a bit dirty and a bit excited.

NARRATOR: In his first year
behind the wheel,

Roy proved he's no ordinary rookie.

Now it's go, go, go.

He's wrangled a full road train
across the open highway...

Get out of my way. Get on my level.

...hauled toxic waste
over state borders...

This is BLEEP scary.

...and conquered his first
long run north into Queensland.

The future's here,
and his name's Roy Murrell.

But now, he's heading
even further north,

to where the bitumen ends
and the red dirt begins.

Roy will be taking
a triple road train north

on behalf of his stand-in mentor
and a dirt-road trucking legend.

Thank you!
LAUGHTER

Jim Foody,
Outback trucker extraordinaire.

Bamaga Transport operates
between Cairns and Bamaga.

Bamaga is 1,000km north of here.

Oh, hey, look out.

Oh, BLEEP me.

We take cars, boats, freight,

cement powder
for building materials.

In other words, we take
everything you could think of,

we've carted it up there.

'Roy's come to give me
a bit of a hand.

'He's not got an easy trip.'

You've got about 500-600km of dirt.

It's gonna be bad,
there's no question.

Righto, mate.

Well, here we are here,
and up there is where we're going.

The run north spans 1,000km

from Cairns to Bamaga,

a distance most truckers could cover
in a day on sealed highways.

But this is Far North Queensland.

Half of the distance
will be on bitumen,

while the other will be
on dirt roads

where deep corrugations can rattle
a truck and driver to pieces.

When you get in through here,
past Crocodile,

you've got a little jump up in here
called Hell's Gate.

Now, it's a real shitshow.

This road just goes
straight up like this.

Hell's Gate lives up to its name.

It's caught out many a trucker
over the years, including Jim Foody.

Oh!

Oh, we're in the world of pain now.

You got a 90-degree right angle,

and then you got a 90-degree
right angle back the other way,

all over there,
with cars and caravans coming up.

So I just sort of think,
"Oh, well, is today the day?"

ROY LAUGHS
Yeah!

You got a pretty good run then,

all the way
through the section just north.

'Look, he walked me through it
three or four times.'

Straight through that. No clue.

I've lost...
Where are we going again?

Once you get up there, split her up.

Next morning, drag one across.
I'll be over the other side.

BLEEP A, good luck with it all.

LAUGHTER
Thanks, mate.

Have fun.
Yeah, I'm bringing on. Yeah.

If things went south, I could really
sink his business in a heartbeat,

and that's not what I'm here to do.

I'm here to do a successful job and
get a bit of experience out of it.

Adding to the challenge
is the truck that Roy will drive.

With his usual rig
on a job in New South Wales,

Roy will be climbing
into Foody's truck,

and this 1997 Western Star
is no ordinary ride.

Welcome to The Beast, mate.
There it is.

This is what it's gonna be.

Yeah, no, she's a lively old bit
of gear, that one.

Bring it on.
Yeah?

A bit of old-school trucking.
Yeah, that'll be it.

Little bit more.

Whoa!

Early next morning,
Roy and Foody are loading up

for the big push north.

Yeah, it's the best
we're gonna get it.

You've got a whole mess
of different things in here.

You've got a multi-tyre roller,
you've got a car,

you've got a pallet of cement,
you've got some gas pallets,

and you've got
these dirty big gensets

sitting down the back.

So it's gonna have
to be watched closely,

this load, when you hit the dirt.

It'll be character building for him.

Character building,
I think, is the word.

A bit of a monstrosity of a load.

There's a bit of everything
going on.

Give me something to think about for
a couple of days, that's for sure.

GRUNTS

Let's go, boys.

Let's go. Let's oge! Hoo! Hoo!

The first 250km of the journey
restrict Roy to just two trailers.

Foody will drive a second truck
with the third trailer

as far as the town of Lakeland.

There, Roy will hook it on

and begin the long push north
to Bamaga.

Yeah, she's an old tractor,
this one.

Pretty cool.

Oh, like a bit of noise,
a bit of go about it.

No power windows in here.

Yeah, used to plodding
in clean trucks,

but, you know, a bit of old-school
to mix it in doesn't hurt.

It really,
really makes me appreciate

what I've got back at home.

First time coming up
to Kuranda Range with a trailer on.

Just weaving my way up.

There's a lot of traffic coming down
already, so just got to be mindful.

Yeah, you can feel the weight
a little bit.

The Beast is just pulling it up.

It's tight and windy.

Oh, no!

So, I've just touched down here
in Darwin.

The weather is scorching.
It's fantastic.

And I'm about to take on
another massive undertaking.

Probably one of the biggest trips
of my life.

I get the opportunity
to bring a community run

out to the rural communities.

Irish expat Eric Scully
isn't your typical truck driver.

BLEEP!

Hey, BLEEP!

Straight up that...
CRASH

Jesus Christ!

It's been an absolute pleasure.

Take care of yourself out there.
You too.

Under Steve Grahame's wing,

he faced one of the toughest
rookie runs imaginable,

hauling a super-quad of iron ore
through the Aussie Outback.

HORN BLARES

BLEEP!

And it pushed him to his limits.

We've gotten ourselves
into this bit of a mess.

Just might be enough.

Whoo!

So, now, I just need
a new challenge.

And I think
the Northern Territory is...

I think it's in its nature
to challenge you.

So that's why we're here.

Eric's next job is
what truckers call a community run,

heading deep into the Outback
to deliver vital supplies

to some of Australia's
most remote towns,

where trucks are a lifeline.

I've never been
to the Northern Territory before,

so it's going
to be completely different

than anything
I've actually taken on.

HORN BEEPS

How are you?
Eric.

Karloz, nice to meet you.
Nice to meet you. How are you?

I'm not too bad. I made it here
alive in one piece, anyway.

On this run, you'll be taking
an A trailer,

a fridge, and a tautliner.
Lovely.

Other than the likes
of the roads themselves,

what other, I suppose,
obstacles should I be expecting?

Potential buffalo,
potential cattle, cow.

Buffaloes can put you out of action
pretty quickly.

Once you leave Katherine
and you start heading out

into the communities,
into Urapunga,

then your nearest help
would be the wandering caravan

or truck that comes past
potentially every three days.

You're basically by yourself
when you're out there.

Right.
Should we go check out the rig?

Yeah, sweet.
100%. Let's go.

Right, this here would be your rig.

I see you have a nice...
nice steel roo bar up there.

Mate, in the Northern Territory,

if you don't have
anything but steel,

that bull bar is gonna be dented
in no time.

On this run, Eric will be hauling
three trailers.

Up front, a refrigerated unit

packed with frozen food
the community relies on.

Behind it, two more trailers

loaded with everyday essentials
they need to survive.

With these trailers, obviously,
you're carrying food.

You're carrying frozen goods
which have an expiry date.

They can only stay in the chiller
for so long.

So it's crucial and critical
to get this freight out to them

as quick as possible.

Yeah, I brought something from home.

Couldn't live without it.

So I've attached this
just so that everybody knows...

who we are
when we're going down the road.

Right, so we're pretty much ready
to roll out.

Nothing left to do than
to make a very quick phone call

to our mate Steve, see if he has
any bit of advice for us.

RINGING TONE

'G'day, Eric.'
Steve, how are you?

'I'm good, Eric, yeah.'

Yeah, so, I'm just about to gear up
here in Northern Territory

and do a community run.

'Right. This is a big job.

'If the road's badly corrugated,
go slow.

'If you have to, just walk them
literally at a walking speed,

'just climbing over
each bloody corrugation.'

Yeah.
'Is there any other trucks

'going with you,
or are you totally on your own?

Totally on my own.
Straight into the deep end.

'It's all on you, mate.

'You're out there,
you're doing the job.'

On that note, what's reception
going to be like

on that side of the country?

'Probably not good.

'This is a serious one
you're pulling on now, mate.

'Real serious.

'And I've got faith in you.
You'll do it, mate.'

Fantastic. I appreciate that.
'Right on, mate. Good luck.'

Thank you very much, Steve.
Mind yourself.

'Right on, mate. See ya.'
Bye-bye.

The vital cargo is bound for
the remote community of Urapunga,

600km southeast.

The first leg
is to the halfway mark,

the town of Katherine,
where Eric will stop for the night.

The adventure begins.

Deep in the Outback,
Eric will be on his own,

with no back-up
and no mobile reception -

just him and the road.

It's times like this where
it's hard to keep your mind active.

Your head can really play games
with you

when you're just sitting,
looking at nothing,

nothing to distract yourself
from the thoughts, the demons.

There's not a whole pile you can do
about it, other than be aware.

You gotta know when to stop.

If you need a break, take a break.

So, I have made it all the way
to Katherine.

And yeah, so far, so good.
It's looking well.

Pull up for the night now,
have a bit of tucker

and catch a few Zs.

So, today, we're gonna be hitting
the real Outback.

And we're pretty much
gonna be saying goodbye

to civilisation this morning.

Time to hit the road.

So, heading towards
a place called Mataranka,

where we'll be turning off
and beelining into the bush,

towards the community.

I'm excited
to experience everything.

It's the real Outback.

So, I just turned
onto the Roper Highway.

So, from here on,
I'm essentially on my own.

There's nobody out here,
there's no reception,

so you just have to...
do it yourself.

The next couple of challenges
will be, predominantly, the roads.

Just coming up
to this one-track lane.

And when you're pulling a unit
of this size and this weight,

if you drop a wheel,
it can be a very, very bad place.

If it's soft ground,
what will happen is

your steer tires will sink into it,

and it'll just drag you off
into the bush.

Oh, BLEEP.

HONKS HORN

Copy that.

So, I think
there's another one coming.

Whoa, you BLEEP!

First time coming up
the Kuranda Range with a trailer on.

The Beast is just pulling it up.

It's tight and windy.

Oh, no!

Just lugged out
half the traffic cones.

I launched it right over
the concrete barrier.

It's not a good start,
that's for sure.

After 250km on the road,
rookie Roy has hit Lakeland.

Here, the two-trailer restrictions
are lifted.

Just wants me to pull in
dead straight.

His third, loaded with
two demountable buildings,

can be hooked up.

That's very good.

From now on, Roy is on his own.

Yeah, well, mate,
we've made it up this far,

and you've now got
three trailers to go.

Of course,
Hell's Gate's 30km out there,

but it's like I said,
watch for the creeks.

Quartz Creek, start winding up.
Yeah.

Earls Creek,
be thundering through there, mate.

Give it every BLEEP thing
she's got.

And then, just leave it in that
and run to the top.

And then, just start jumping
heaps of gears up the top

as you go up around the corner.
No worries.

All right, mate, good luck with it.
Thank you.

You can have that for the truck.
Thanks, Foody.

All right. No worries.

See these dents?
Already there, so don't come at me.

Finally, in a triple.

This is the longest truck
I've driven to date.

It's just roughly around,
you know, 53-metres long,

and just around
that 80-, 85-tonne mark.

It's pretty bloody cool.

There was a couple of things
Foody mentioned that watch out for.

But the main one he was
concerned about was Hell's Gate.

It could really bring you
unstuck quickly, he said.

I don't need
any of that shit happening.

We've got a deadline to meet,
and I'm on a mission.

Hell's Gate is intimidating
for two reasons.

The truck needs a clean run up
to build enough speed

for the brutal climb.

Then, at the top,
a tight left turn demands

just the right pace -
fast enough to make it,

but not so fast that it tips.

This is it, Quartz Creek.

FOODY:
'Quartz Creek, start winding up.'

Start winding her up, he said.

'Earls Creek,
be thundering through there, mate.

'Give it everything she's got.'

BLEEP, mate.

This caravan better not BLEEP me up.

Oh, don't brake.

What are you doing?

Ah, BLEEP me.

Copy that.

Whoa, you BLEEP!

Jesus Christ, BLEEP!

My wheel fell off,
and it just dragged me in.

When it catches you,
you can't just pull out.

You kind of have to fight with it.

You can't leave your guard down
out here.

I haven't even reached the dirt yet,

and I'm already finding hiccups.

The truck up the road
that we just passed

kind of gave me a heads-up
that there was another fella coming.

Here we go.

Luckily, I just managed
to squeeze past him there

in a patch
where she wasn't that steep.

It's day two of rookie Eric's
600-kilometre community run,

hauling vital supplies
bound for a remote Outback town.

With frozen goods on board
and the clock ticking,

he has to get them
to Urapunga before they spoil.

Yeah, it's the one thing
about the bush, it's unpredictable.

You just never know what's coming
around the next corner.

Am I seeing things,
or is that a cow?

That is a cow.

HORN BLARES

HORN BLARES

That was a herd of cattle.

Luckily, we were on the straight
coming onto a bend.

The other direction,
you'd come off a bend,

and you're just on top of them.

All we're missing now
is a crocodile

to come and try and take a bite
out of my tyre.

The road's are going all right.

We're doing OK for time.

But that being said,
I don't have time to waste.

I just have to
keep the shoe planted.

Shit, it's tight.

Oh, Jesus.

Yeah, we've officially entered
the dirt and corrugations.

And probably bad timing my end,

cos I was just starting
to eat my protein bar,

and I ended up hitting the dirt,
and now I'm choking on it.

The corrugations mark the end
of any mobile phone reception

and any possible help
from mentor Steve Grahame.

Corrugations are... fairly bad.

They nearly remind me
of the back roads in Ireland.

This is BLEEP.

I'm down to fourth gear,
doing 20kmph.

I could probably walk faster.

If we keep going at this rate,

it's gonna be hard
to make the journey on time.

Unfortunately,
with the road conditions...

...there's not a whole pile I can do.

I'm now down to about 15-20.

I just cannot break that 20 barrier.

Yes, this has really put me behind.

BLEEP!

This caravan better not BLEEP me up.

Roy Murrell's hit the first big test
of his 1,000-kilometre run

from Cairns to Bamaga -

the brutal climb
known as Hell's Gate.

What are you doing?

The truck needs every bit of speed
to conquer the steep climb.

Oh, BLEEP.

Any obstacle could sap its momentum
and stall it before the summit.

Gotta go in there. Caravan?

Gotta go in there. Caravan?

Yeah, mate,
you'd want to wind her up,

there's a steep hill ahead of you.

I don't want to back off.
I need every bit of speed I can get.

Pull off, pull off, pull off.

Thanks, buddy. Appreciate that one.

Come on.

Come on, you good thing.

Whoo!

That wasn't too bad.

I can see how you can come unstuck
pretty quick.

It's going into it blind.

And, you know, for Foody to say,
"Make sure you're into it,"

so I was into it,
and, yeah, that was good.

We're through.

Yeah, it looks like the first
little bit of dirt as a triple.

So we've got a bit to think about.

HORN HONKS

Don't run out in front.

Oh!

They got away? Oh, good.

Must have blew the feathers
clean off his arse there.

Ah, you lucky...

Oh, yeah.

How good's corrugation, boys?

Oh, my godfather.
These roads are BLEEP!

This is ridiculous.

This is worse than what I expected.

Oh, thank BLEEP that's done.

Four o'clock, and, yeah,
been in the truck exactly 12 hours.

A normal day back at home, you know,
12-14 hours in the truck,

but been battling
some dirt roads today.

And I feel a little bit weathered,
but we're getting there.

Foody warned me about this range.

She's nice and steep and windy.

Come on, you Beast!

Yeah, just gotta watch
the temperature gauge

as we're coming up here.

Lift my foot a little bit
and let her breathe a bit.

She's getting a bit warm.

She's sitting on about 98, 97.

The old girl's feeling the...
feeling the pull.

Now we're at the top now,
just starting to cool down.

Oh, yeah, that's your...

Jesus!

Oh, BLEEP me!

HORN HONKS

I've just noticed that
the corrugation has shifted my load,

and there's a BLEEP bulge
in the curtain.

On brutal dirt roads
deep in the Northern Territory...

I'm down to 10kmph.

...Eric's load, including
time-critical refrigerated goods,

is tearing itself apart.

It's already unstable.

I can see it's unstable.
There's pressure on the curtain.

If that curtain goes, that's
game over for the rest of the load.

At this stage,
it's just take the time

to get it there slowly
and deal with it then.

I have a very distinct memory
as a kid,

watching an episode
of Outback Truckers,

where Steve was in
a similar position.

There was a bit of corrugation,

and there was a nice smooth patch
of sand on the edge of the road.

He went into it
and sank nearly immediately.

I've been thinking about it,
and I think, at this stage,

I really have no choice but to just
try and get some better progress.

Otherwise,
we're just not gonna make it.

Problem with this
is you're essentially...

You're driving on soft sand, so...

And you're literally hanging off
the edge of the road as well,

so I can slip.

If you lose traction, that's it,

it's over.

Oh, for BLEEP sake.

I now have a bulge
in my second trailer as well.

GROANS
I've had enough.

The whole lot
is just disintegrating.

If that rips through,

the whole lot of that's coming out
onto the ground.

From what I'm looking at
in front of me,

I'm gonna have to stop here
and have a look at my load.

Because... the hill.

I'm gonna to have to build up
a little bit of speed

over the last little bit
of corrugation

and try and jump up that hill.

That's the tyre,
so that's not too bad.

I can stay
and bounce that off the top.

That one's not good, though.

Water bottles have collapsed.

The good thing about it
is it's essentially just...

...that section has pressure on it.

There's nothing leaning here.

There's nothing leaning up here.

I don't think there's gonna be
anything I can do about that.

No, that's not moving.

I think, in this case...

...send it.

I'm thinking my best bet
is just bury it up there.

I'm already
two hours behind delivery.

It just needs to get done
at this point.

So, yeah.

If my revs start dropping

or my tyres start slipping,
I'm in trouble.

There's nothing else to be done.
Just do it.

Just drop the three low there,

cos she's just started
losing traction.

Go on, you good thing!

I essentially have it
foot to the floor, pinned.

We made it.

She did us proud,
she got us up there.

That's a relief.
That obstacle is over and done with.

It's on to the community now.

We're slowly getting there.

Aah!

Ugh.

Is that bitumen?

The most beautiful sight up ahead, bitumen.

Smooth surfaces.

Time to put the foot down.

HORN HONKS

We might just make it there on time
after all.

Here we are, just about to pull
into Urapunga.

Feels really good to be the person
able to drop off all these supplies

to these people -
it's an absolute lifeline to them.

Just be mindful of that back one.

It's after coming a bit loose.
All right, mate.

So, as you can see here,

as I suspected,

the pallet from the right-hand side
of the trailer has collapsed

and knocked the bottom one
up against the curtain.

That was... That was our issue.

So that's probably going to have
to be handballed off the top.

But that's where having a team of
people around really comes in handy.

Just finish doing this, and then
might head down to the river

to celebrate and enjoy the view.

This is a beautiful place down here.

Roper River.

This is what it's all about.
Have a look at this.

Absolutely beautiful.

Yeah, it's been
a long, long couple of days.

Long hours, hard driving,
hard roads.

But what an amazing experience,

to have had the opportunity
to come out to these communities.

I bet Steve's wondering how I went,

so I better give him a call
and let him know.

Steve, how are you?
'Hey, Eric. How are you, mate?

'I'm good, I'm good. I'm pleased
to see you're still standing up.

'Now, how did you go out there?'

Yeah, we got there in the end,

but we came across
a couple of hardship moments.

'Tell me about.'

Yeah, I got to experience
some of the Outback corrugation

that you're always talking about.

'Oh, well, you got your delivery in,
that's the main thing.

'You can stand tall and hold
your head up anywhere and say,

' "Well, I'm an Outback trucker." '
Yeah.

Thanks, Steve.
'No worries, mate.

'Well, anyway, look, Eric,
I'm proud of you.

'I'm pleased you've got
to where you got to.

'And let me know how it keeps on
going for you, Eric.'

Lovely. Thanks, Steve.
Appreciate it.

'All right, mate, good on you.
You have a good day.'

Cheers.
'See you, mate.'

Feels really nice to get a pat
on the back like that from Steve.

The past few months
have been amazing.

It's been like a dream, really,

would be the only way
to describe it.

It's had its fantastic moments
where you've achieved something

that you didn't think
you'd get into or get out of.

But the hardship then comes
with when you sit back in the truck,

and you're now facing
another 15-hour day down the road.

It's made me question whether or not
I can do it long-term.

So, that being said, we just have
to see which way the wind blows.

But for now,
we'll just enjoy the view.

Yeah, we're at...
we're at the top now.

She's starting to cool down.

Oh, yeah, that's...

Jesus!

Oh, BLEEP me!

HORN HONKS

Dumb BLEEP, mate, eh?

Behind me the whole way
up the range,

and now they've got to be somewhere.

What BLEEP.

Two cars behind me
coming up the range,

and they're both starting
to come around,

and then this other ute wanted
to double overtake,

and then there was
a single truck oncoming,

And, yeah, BLEEP, it was close.

The grey ute just made it back in.

BLEEP me, I nearly just watched
a fatality in front of me.

Roy's first taxing day on
North Queensland's rugged dirt roads

is nearly done.

We're doing all right.
We're travelling pretty good.

Pulling into the town of Coen,
he's knocked off just over half

of the 1,000km journey
to Bamaga in the far north.

Everything's holding up pretty good,
considering the conditions.

Roll the swag out and have
some dinner and that sort of thing,

and that'll do me for the night.

HORN TOOTS

That's us.

Ah!

That's what we want
the first thing in the morning (!)

Ah, I got a flat tyre on the truck.

You know, I can't really afford
to have this sort of issue all day,

cos I've got 385km to cover today,

and pretty well all of it's dirt,
so... it's gonna be fun.

Ah, yeah, Foody said, you know,
between Coen and Archer River,

you know, some of the worst roads
he's been on.

So, let's see
how rough she really is.

In order to reach
his destination of Bamaga,

Roy will need to cross
the Jardine River on the car ferry.

His plan was to catch it
tomorrow morning,

but he's tracking
well ahead of schedule.

The quicker I get to the ferry, the
better it's gonna work for everyone.

220km to cover,
and it's only midday.

I reckon I'll make the last ferry.

Just got to keep an eye on the load
and keep an eye on that tyre.

Just don't want it going doughy
during the day and popping on me.

Yeah, race to the ferry now.

We're setting about 80km along here,
and, you know,

it's bloody doing us
the world of good.

Imagine if we could cross today.

Just want to see the look
on Foody's face

when I roll into his yard
and just go,

"Ready for a cold one or what?"

Yeah, I think he's gonna blow out
and go,

"How did you get here so quick?"

I'm making this ferry.

Thank you, mate. Appreciate that.

Do you want to get a photo,
mate, out here?

Outback Truckers.
Outback Truckers.

LAUGHTER

Good luck.
Thank you, I appreciate that.

Oh, BLEEP.

Oh, BLEEP.

Cracked a housing.

That's blown apart.

There goes any chance
of crossing the ferry today.

What a piss-off.

I can't afford
to hang around and wait.

You wouldn't have any Sealastic
or sealant?

Nothing?

Oh, just gonna have to run it.

Everything that can go wrong
has gone wrong.

I've had enough. Let's get going.

Oh, hang on!

Oh, my BLEEP God!