All language subtitles for Ice.Road.Truckers.S03E13.Arctic.Thaw.1080p.AMZN.WEB-DL.DDP2.0.H.264-NTb_track3_[eng]

NARRATOR: On the season finale
of "Ice Road Truckers--"

This job never stops.

This road never lets up.

NARRATOR: Anything can happen.

Anybody can lose it all.

Everything's about as
[bleep] as it can get,

unless everything falls apart.

NARRATOR: And
everything imaginable

gets in the way of
delivering that final load.

There is a bear in the way,and it has the ice road closed.

It's a hell of a road.

It's a good ride.

[theme music]

NARRATOR: In the last days
of this ice road season,

winter is giving way to spring.

And while brutal
snowstorms batter drivers

and their trucks,
higher temperatures

attack the road itself.

The sun's coming out.

It's staying out
longer, and it's

starting to make any ice or
snow that's left a whole lot

slicker.

Spent my tires just like
that, it's so slick out here.

NARRATOR: The ice
roads of the far north

are about to disappear,
making ocean crossings

impossible until the
next deep freeze.

For now, truckers
have just two days

left to squeeze in one
last lucrative run.

90 miles north of
Fairbanks is Jack Jessee.

Pulling onto the icy
surface of the Dalton

with 8,000 gallons
of diesel fuel.

Last run.

NARRATOR: Jack's last run willalso be the last ocean crossing

of the season.

We'll actually get to drive
this thing across the ocean.

NARRATOR: He's
bound for an oil rig

off Alaska's northern
coast, and to get there,

he must cross a rapidly
melting ice road.

You know, when they hear that
Fairbanks is starting to thaw

out a little bit, they all get
in a little bit of a panic.

Put their last orders for
fuel, or freight, or anything

that they haven't gotten yet.

NARRATOR: One of Carlile's stardrivers, Jack's run the biggest

loads of the year through the
harshest winter in memory.

It's almost indescribable
how this winter's went.

I can call it rough.

I could call it difficult
and challenging,

but until you've driven
in this kind of stuff,

it's just really
hard to explain.

Driving in it blows.

Couldn't see past
the end of the hood.

NARRATOR: Through white
outs on the north slope

and avalanches on Atigun Pass,
Jack steered his giant rigs

without a wreck.

Other truckers
were not so lucky.

The way the winter went, itwas more like Russian roulette.

You never knew who
was going to be next.

One, I didn't die.

Two, I made it home every trip.

And three, I made a
little money doing it.

NARRATOR: 270 miles
up the Dalton,

Lisa Kelly is southbound.

This is my final run of
this season of the year,

of the-- whatever--
until next winter.

NARRATOR: She's on a
backhaul from Prudhoe Bay,

pulling a trailer
of hazardous waste.

NARRATOR: Lisa's second
season on the Dalton

has been full of
personal achievements.

I had a lot of
firsts this year.

First time I've ever
lost the road completely.

Crap.

First time I've been through
avalanches on the pass.

First time I've seen buzzcocks.

Right there!

That is so cool.

It was my first time
on the ocean ice.

We are on the ocean right now.

So intense, dude.

NARRATOR: By safely moving
challenging loads all winter,

she's positioned for the
biggest first of all.

I think she'd like to be
the first heavy haul woman

that we've got here at Carlile.

What she's going to
have to prove everyone

is that she's capable of
running the haul road safely,

and with challenging loads.

NARRATOR: Now she's just 350
miles from the finish line

in Fairbanks.

So far it's been
uneventful, but that

doesn't mean it can't get a
whole lot worse really quick.

Dammit.

Oh, man.

[bleep]

Come on, what the [bleep]?

NARRATOR: Suddenly, Lisarealizes her trailer brakes are

shot.

Had nearly got into
Prudhoe with this trailer.

I thought it was,
like, something small.

It's turning out to
get bigger and bigger.

NARRATOR: In Lisa's
trailer brake system,

air began leaking out of
a pinhole gap in a well.

But because metal
expands as it warms up,

the slow leak becomes a
torrent as she moves south.

Now she's in danger of
losing her brakes completely.

And it could drain all myair completely out of my truck.

And my truck, and my
trailer would just lock up,

and it would really suck to beclimbing a hill when everything

decides to just stop and lock.

NARRATOR: Lisa
slowly pushes south,

hoping her brakes will hold.

The road never lets up,
and I can't let up, you know?

You can't just quit
in the middle of it.

I'm done with this road.

I'm taken a plane out of here.

Oh, there are no planes here.

NARRATOR: In the Fairbanksyards of Carlile Transportation,

haul road veteran George Spears
begins his last run ever.

It's not only the end of the
season, it's the end of me.

I'm done.

[laughter] If somebody
told me when I was a kid,

you're going to be spending
35 years in Alaska,

30 years driving trucks up here,I'd have said, you're crazy.

NARRATOR: As many can attest,
his 30th winter season

has been one of the toughest.

We had extremely
cold weather, then

we had extremely warm weather.

Then we had windy weather,
and a lot of snow.

It was just a tough winter
all the way around, so--

NARRATOR: When he
does walk away,

he'll leave no regrets behind.

I spent all my money
on beer and women.

The rest of it I just waste.

NARRATOR: Running in
convoy with George

is Alex Debogorski, who's on
his 12th load of the season.

Well, here we go.

The last trip of the season.

The last trip this
year on the Dalton.

I've got, actually, a
real real nice load.

I have an air ride trailer,
which is the first air ride

trailer I've got, and
it's riding real nice.

I've got three
pickups on the back.

A payload of just
under 20,000 pounds.

NARRATOR: Air suspension is abig advantage in the final days

of the ice road, when the
driving surface is pitted

and potholed.

Well, it's spring.

The trucks pound on the road
out, and they keep grading it,

and the trucks keep
pounding it out.

NARRATOR: Alex is just half
a run behind his rival, Hugh

Rowland.

And he'd like nothing better
than to beat the polar bear

at his own game.

Suppose if I could have
more loads than Hugh,

that would be good,
because it'd irritate him.

NARRATOR: But for
now, Alex's pace

is set by lead
driver George Spears.

Georgie is not known
for being a speed demon.

And he hasn't disappointed us.

He's going as slow as ever.

NARRATOR: And he's leaving the
outcome of the race in someone

else's hands.

God.

The Oscar goes to God
for writing the script.

It's God writing the script,
and man trying to mess it up.

[laughter]

NARRATOR: 50 miles ahead of
Alex is Hugh Rowland, heading

southbound to Fairbanks
to pick up his 14th load.

If he arrives early enough
to score one more run,

he'll almost certainly top
Alex in the load count.

In his final days on the Dalton,Hugh is hitting his stride.

[horn]

I've heard about this
road since I was a kid.

I never, ever dreamed I'd
be here, but I am here.

And I enjoy the
[bleep] out of it.

I've met lots of good people,
and they treated me like gold.

NARRATOR: Hugh and Alex have
overcome the double stigma

of being newcomers and Canadianson the American ice road.

Pretty easy to weed the
[bleep] out of this on this

road.

You can weed a [bleep] out
real quick on a good road.

Now, me and Alex aren't [bleep].

We've been doing
this all our lives.

NARRATOR: The polar bear's finalrun looks like a victory lap.

Until--

[hissing]

I got a brake that
fell right off the truck.

NARRATOR: With one brake
gone and smoke pouring off

the others, Hugh's
season could end here.

I lost the [inaudible].

Everything's about as
[bleep] as it can get,

unless everything flies apart.

NARRATOR: Hugh Rowland was
closing in on Fairbanks

and hoping to pick up one morerun this season when his brakes

literally went up in smoke.

I got a brake that
fell right off the truck.

It just fell right off.

Yeah.

[bleep]

NARRATOR: Hugh and his running
partner, Phil [inaudible],,

assess the damage.

- It's smoking up front.
- That's nothing.

This is what's wrong here.

NARRATOR: When one of the four
brake assemblies dropped off,

it left a huge breach
in the air system.

The remaining brakes locked,
and quickly overheated.

Brake can fell off
of Hugh's truck there.

This time of year the road's
getting rough, and vibrating

things.

It's unfortunate we
didn't catch it before it

had come completely off.

It's an old truck,
and it just rotted off.

That's all that happened.

Broke right off.

NARRATOR: With his
truck in lockdown,

Hugh is going nowhere.

His season ends here, unless
he can somehow patch together

the brake system.

140 miles up the Dalton
is Alex Debogorski,

and now that Hugh
has broken down,

he might finally have a
chance to take the lead.

If only he wasn't following
the most cautious driver

on the Dalton, George Spears.

He says he's never
broke anybody's windshield

with a rock, because at
the speed he's going,

the rocks don't even
leave the ground.

NARRATOR: And George is
even slower than usual, due

to the deep potholes
in the decaying road.

Good way to break
your front springs.

Break your shocks, or something.

Oh, there's another one.

[horn]

I'm really excited.

George just got up
to 30 miles an hour.

Springtime in Alaska.

You're going to have potholes.

We got passed by two
gophers back there.

They didn't seem to be too
worried about the potholes.

They probably made 'em.

It's pretty daggone rough.

We're going to have to go slow.

That's all there is to it.

Oh, goodness grief.

NARRATOR: Back in Fairbanks, TimFreeman looks up the final load

of his rookie season.

On his first 10 runs, he was
guided by his mentor, George

Spears.

For this trip, management hasfinally cleared him to go solo.

I believe Tim is ready
to go out there by himself.

We're going to
have to watch him.

The haul road is a very
dangerous place to be.

The thought of me driving theDalton highway before I went up

there scared the [bleep] out
of me, to be honest with you.

My first trip, my second
trip, and my third trip

were just about as bad
as I envisioned that.

NARRATOR: On his first run--

This sucks!

I know it.

NARRATOR: He was forced to turnback with mechanical trouble

before he even
reached the ice road.

His next trip took him
straight into a whiteout

on one of the most
treacherous stretches of road

in North America.

Holy [bleep].

NARRATOR: With his third load,
his truck broke down again,

and was burglarized.

Some [bleep] weed stole
the tire chains off my truck.

NARRATOR: But he toughed
out the rough stretches

until he finally hit his stride.

I made it up there,
kept her out of the ditch.

Didn't get stuck in too
many bad storms, so yeah,

it was a good season.

I think I did good up there.

This is something I've
been looking forward

to since I started at Carlile.

NARRATOR: His first solo run
is also his first major load.

[horn]

50 foot lengths of oversized
pipe, totaling 45,000 pounds.

Headed due north to Prudhoe Bay.

We're nearing a town.

For the first 260 miles, it's
one steep grade after another.

Windy, curvy.

You need to learn the road
before you're sent out here

by yourself.

NARRATOR: The road is scarcelyrecognizable from earlier runs.

It's become an obstacle
course of mud, frost heaves,

and deep potholes.

I knew the road was
going to get rough,

but I didn't think it was goingto get as rough as it really

did.

It's rough as [bleep].

NARRATOR: Just 70 miles north
is Hugh Rowland and Phil

[inaudible].

Trying to patch together
Hugh's brakes for the run

back to Fairbanks.

You're knocking
dirt in my ear.

Oh, sorry.

Wanting to break up.

It's not gonna.

NARRATOR: They strip off
parts of the damaged brake.

There.

I got it.

Yeah.

NARRATOR: Using an
old bungie, Phil

secures what's left of the
brake to the undercarriage

of the truck.

With the broken line
sealed off, the system

might hold air long enough to
get Hugh back to Fairbanks.

I'll see if I can get air.

We're building air pressure.

Yeah, we're good.

NARRATOR: Hugh and Phil havemanaged to bring the truck back

from the dead.

All right, let's try and
get this operation to town.

Yeah.

We'd better get going.

That's why they call
us the dream team.

Well that's part
of the reason.

NARRATOR: Hugh's hoping to pickup one last run this season,

but for now he's fortunate
to have avoided disaster.

We'd have ended up [bleep]
everything when it came flying

apart.
We'd have had a wreck.

First off, I'd have run
right out of air immediately,

and then everything
would have locked up,

and we'd have been
over the bank.

NARRATOR: 240 miles up the
Dalton, going southbound, Lisa

Kelly powers over the
top of Atigun Pass.

On the descent, she faces a
series of steep, sharp turns,

with no trailer brakes.

Switcback in for a
mountain pass, and gotta

be careful on it,
because it's real tight.

It was kind of scary to discoverI didn't have brakees all

of a sudden, and I didn't
know what to do about it.

When you just can't
get a stop fast enough.

NARRATOR: She still
has truck brakes,

but she could quickly burn
through them trying to stop

both tractor and trailer.

So I'm just going to drive
where I don't need my brakes.

NARRATOR: Lisa attempts
to make the downhill run

without touching
her brake pedal.

We have the Jake
brake, and we can

downshift to help slow us down.

So I'm not completely
without, but I

don't want to be going so fast
that I need to stop suddenly.

I'll just drive real slow.

Try not to come up
on anything too fast,

where I'd have to use my brakes.

MAN [ON RADIO]: Coming
at you there, Lisa.

What's coming at me?

[horn] Whoa!

Holy crap.

NARRATOR: Nursing the
gear shift and the Jake,

Lisa makes it safely to
the bottom of the pass

without touching
her brakes once.

I mean, if you're using
your brakes all the time,

you're probably going too fast.

NARRATOR: But with
250 miles left to go,

Lisa is a long way
from being home free.

I'm not there until
I'm pulling in the yard.

NARRATOR: With less than
two days left in the season,

Lisa Kelly nurses a damagedtruck down a decaying ice road.

That's a really scary
feeling, when you just

can't get stopped fast enough.

NARRATOR: She's 240
miles from Fairbanks,

and her trailer brakes are gone.

Lisa is afraid to
risk it any further.

Hey, [inaudible],,
you got a copy there?

NARRATOR: A familiar voice
responds to her radio call.

Way to go, Lisa.

NARRATOR: Tim Freeman
pulls into Coldfoot

to help Lisa with her brakes.

Where are they coming from?

Right here.

Oh.

Can we-- I have a plug that we
could just thread in the end,

maybe?

OK.

Toss it in here.

NARRATOR: With a rubber
plug and some Teflon tape,

Tim tries to stop the
leak in Lisa's brake line.

Now I'm gonna be
your cheerleader.

Go, Tim!

Go, Tim!

Go, go!

OK, go-- go
charge your trailer.

LISA: OK.

Don't let it shoot
you in the forehead.

Are you ready for the test?

NARRATOR: Lisa
charges up the system.

And the air tank on
the trailer holds.

Lisa, you
[inaudible] big time.

- Why?
- Why?

What do you mean, why?

Because I'm sitting on my
ass in mud, probably is why.

Why?

Thanks.

I was gonna give you a nice,
warm, friendly you're welcome.

Thanks for doing that, though.

No problem.

It was awesome.

Appreciate it.

It's actually kind of a goodending to the season, you know?

I mean, it kind of sucks that
we're, like, all breaking down

and stuff, but it's cool thatwe can all help each other out.

Keep on truckin'.

LISA: All righty.

We're going to make it back.

Bungee cords, and
duct tape, and all.

NARRATOR: 300 miles south--

You always get your load back.

NARRATOR: Running with his
own jerry-rigged brake system,

Hugh Rowland pulls into the
Carlile yard in Fairbanks.

Got her fixed up, and haywiredup, and we made her to town.

Got the load delivered, anyway.

These good guys in
the shop here are

going to work on her tonight,
and try and get her out

tomorrow, and we'll
make that last load.

NARRATOR: If he can
sneak in one last run,

he'll secure his
win against Alex

and come in first
among all road rookies.

But he can't get
back on the road

until his mangled
brakes are rebuilt.

How long can it take?

These guys could have itdone in a couple hours tonight,

or they could have it done
in half a day tomorrow.

Or we might have to order
parts from Kentucky.

NARRATOR: Meanwhile, 160
miles up the ice road--

Alex will be lucky to
just pull even with Hugh

in the dash for the cash.

We could have people die
of old age on this trip.

[laughter]

NARRATOR: Until George
lets him take the lead.

He's letting me lead because
he figures I can do the job.

Just makes me really excited.

Proud.

I've got her.

That'll be my opportunity
to get out of the dust,

and get to show
George some dust.

NARRATOR: Back in
Fairbanks, Lisa Kelly

pulls across the finish line
with a big sigh of relief.

Last load of the season.

Going home.

Going to play all summer, and
get back to work next winter.

Yay!

I love this part.

NARRATOR: All winter long, she'sdefied the stereotypes of being

a woman driver, and
a lightweight freight

hauler by carrying the
most challenging loads

of the season.

I would like to
do more big stuff.

So that way, people
can't make fun of me.

NARRATOR: To top it all off--

I am on the ocean ice.

Kinda feel the waves.

NARRATOR: She navigated
the frozen Arctic Ocean

for the first time
in her career.

This was a big season for me.

I'm glad I survived it.

It's over.

Going home.

NARRATOR: Lisa ends her second
ice road season with 15 loads

in the books, and one of the
strongest showings of any ice

road trucker this year.

I am really proud
of myself this year.

For all the accidents
there's been,

and all the storms there's
been, I've survived it.

I made it through.

Kept it on the road.

Didn't crash anything.

Stuff broke, but I fixed it.

I made it.

I'm alive.

NARRATOR: 170 miles up
the road in Coldfoot,

it's the final
day of the season.

And Jack Jessee is fueling
up for the long haul ahead.

They're gonna take us out on
the sea ice, about 75 miles.

There's an island out there.

This is where they need thisfuel, before the sea ice breaks

up.

NARRATOR: After the top
layer of the Dalton melted

during the day, it iced
over again last night.

Man, it is slick out here.

Heading north out of Coldfoot.

The last time for a while.

Northbound, Atigun Pass.

NARRATOR: Jack
begins his last trip

up Atigun Pass, where conditionsare the slickest of the season.

We're really on the
slick side right now.

Light dusting
happened last night.

Going around a lot
of these curves,

I have to actually slow
down before I get to them,

because you know, you
turn could the wheel,

and nothing will happen.

And that's not a
very fun feeling.

You gotta do everything
nice and slow, and smooth.

Nothing fast, nothing jerky.

It can be pretty mean up here.

NARRATOR: Jack navigates histanker through the switchbacks.

Come on.

I'm almost to the top.

NARRATOR: And safely
over the pass.

His last run of the
season is trouble free--

so far.

As the sun climbs
in the morning sky,

the ice road season reaches
the point of no return.

Up in Dead Horse, Alex
Debogorski already

has the finish line in sight.

No kidding, we
made it to Prudhoe.

Yes, sir, this is Dead Horse.

We're just coming in.

Dead Horse Camp.

Could put us back on
the chase with Huey.

NARRATOR: As Alex pulls
in with his 13th run,

he ties Hugh in the load count.

But win or lose, he's managedto finish a tough rookie season

in Alaska--

a huge accomplishment
after serious heart trouble

cut his last season short.

I am worried.

You have-- your heart going sofast, your shortness of breath,

and the blood that
you've been coughing up--

[coughing]

The doctor says
I'm not supposed

to back to work driving.

As far as I know, my heart's
still beating properly,

and I'm not sure what the futureholds for Alex Debogorski.

I mean-- I'm not into
reading tea leaves.

I'm working at this
one day at a time.

I'll let God do the planning,
and I'll just sort of

follow in the wake.

NARRATOR: Back in Fairbanks,mechanics have worked all night

rebuilding Hugh's brakes.

We lost the brake
part in [inaudible],,

and all the airlines,
and everything were gone.

But them boys in the shop there,they got out here last night,

and got her [bleep] fixed
right up for this morning.

So we're ready to rock and roll.

Gonna go find my load.

NARRATOR: At the
final hour, Hugh

scores one last
load of the season,

thanks to his mechanics.

Them guys in the shop did
a hell of a good job on them

brakes [inaudible].

Feels like a million bucks.

Just like a brand new
[bleep] brake system.

NARRATOR: But as Hugh
merges onto the ice,

it's clear that the
conditions of the road

will make his last run
one of the toughest.

It's getting rough,
and muddy, and [bleep]..

Blech!

NARRATOR: Up in Dead
Horse, the next driver

to pull into the yard
is George Spears.

We made to Prudhoe Bay.

NARRATOR: After 30
years on the ice,

George delivers his very last
load before finally calling

it quits.

Though his fellow
drivers aren't so sure.

George, you've been
thinking about quitting now

for the last 20
years, that I know of.

But I don't think you
could run him away

from this job with a big stick.

And it'd be a damn big one, too.

But I don't know--

he seems pretty adamant aboutit right now, but I don't know.

Once you get truck
driving in your blood,

it's hard to get it out.

NARRATOR: On his return
trip to Fairbanks,

the old adrenaline junkie is
already feeling withdrawals.

It's hard to quit
this deal cold turkey.

I've been doing
this for 30 years.

You'd miss the adventure.

I had a friend of mine
me a long time ago,

veterans seek out something likethis that's right on the edge.

This is a dangerous occupation,and I'll miss that part of it.

But I am really glad
this season is over,

and now it's time to go home.

NARRATOR: While
George heads south,

his rookie protege, Tim Freeman,prepares to make his first solo

run over 4,700 foot Atigun Pass.

How's that pass look
there, southbound?

All righty.

Thank you.

NARRATOR: This time, Tim will
need to make his own decision

on whether or not to chain up.

I've had three guys in
a row that all told me

it was good to go.

So we're going to
give her a shot.

Northbound on the pass.

Northbound, Atigun Pass.

NARRATOR: He decides to
run the pass barefoot,

or without chains.

I'd rather spin out
going up than slide

down, because you know,
you spin out going up,

you're at least
stopped for a second.

You're going down,
and you start sliding,

there ain't no stopping.

It's a long way to the
bottom of this here hill.

NARRATOR: Tim has no
trouble making the climb.

But on the way down,
conditions are much worse.

Black ice down here at
the bottom, so be careful.

NARRATOR: Black ice
is nearly invisible.

If Tim hits it without chains,
he could go over the cliff.

Black ice.

Watch the black ice
on the switchback.

NARRATOR: Dodging
the ice patches--

he finally hits the north slope,and the home stretch of a very

respectable rookie season.

90 miles left on
my first solo run.

Holy [bleep].

NARRATOR: 90 miles north, Jack
Jessee pulls into Dead Horse.

Well, we're here.

Let's go find out my
further instructions.

Hey, Chuck.

Jackson.

NARRATOR: Jack is booked to go
even further north, to Point

Thomson--

an island in the Beaufort Sea.

But the ice road has one more
obstacle to throw at him.

Let's go to Point Thomson.

Where am I going?

I can't-- what do
you mean, I can't go?

Why?
- There's a bear on the road.

- There's a bear on the road?
- Polar bear.

A polar bear on the road?

Say, can you imagine that?

A polar bear out on the ice?

On the sea ice.

Supposedly, it's a den.

Oh, there's a den?

A polar bear den?

Yeah.

The bears came out
of the den today

and started roaming around.

And that means you
shut down the road.

Had a lot of delays this year.

Weather.

Equipment.

Why not wait on a bear?

NARRATOR: But the ice
road closes within hours,

and if it's not bear free
soon, Jack will never

deliver his last load.

The final hours of
the ice road season.

Most drivers have
delivered their loads

and called it a year.

Only a few diehards are still
battling it out, including

Jack Jessee and Hugh Rowland.

Hugh stands to come in first
among all rookie drivers

if he delivers his 14th
load to Dead Horse.

Looks like I'm gonna
win the dash for the cash

again this year.

NARRATOR: But suddenly--

[horn]

He hits a huge traffic jam.

MAN [ON RADIO]: Pretty
much a standstill here.

Holy [bleep]!

Holy [bleep].

A couple of trucks
tried to get through there

and got stuck, so now we've
got the road all blocked up

with 14 wides.

NARRATOR: The convoy
ahead tried to drift slam,

busting their way through
snow that had piled up

across the road.

But they spun out and wound
up sideways across the road,

blocking both lanes of traffic.

It's a bad drift
spot that we've

been dealing with all year,
and now it's springtime.

So the snow is
all wet and heavy.

Now here we're
sitting for an hour.

Everybody.

NARRATOR: While the man they
call the polar bear sits idle,

real polar bears are
blocking the ocean road

in front of Jack Jessee.

Well, it's kind of poetic,
with the season ending

on a bear.

Everything else
has slown me down.

Why not a bear?

NARRATOR: But just as he's
ready to abandon his trailer--

MAN [ON RADIO]: Hey, Jack,
looks like they cleared off.

You're good to go.

All right, good deal.

NARRATOR: He gets word that thebears have moved off the ice

road.

It's now or never.

Let's get moving.

75 or 80 miles on the sea
ice to get out to this island

I've got to go to.

That's going to end
up taking a while.

You know, how often do you
get to drive on the ocean?

NARRATOR: Jack is headed to oneof the most remote settlements

in the world--

Point Thomson, a tiny island offthe coast of the Beaufort Sea.

MAN [ON RADIO]: Where
you headed, Jack?

I've got to go to Point
Thomson out here today.

I know.

I know it is.

I'm more worried a whale
will come up and eat me.

Yeah.

I don't think they're gentle.

NARRATOR: With spring
arriving, the ice road

is at its thinnest and most
dangerous point this season.

The ice bends and buckles underthe weight of jack's 50,000

pound load.

70 nerve-wracking miles
over the frozen arctic sea.

Jack pushes into the unknown.

You could easily
die out there.

Can't get anybody on the radios.

What do you do, you know?

NARRATOR: Back in Dead Horse--

Here we are.

We made her.

NARRATOR: Tim Freeman pulls
into the Carlile yard,

completing his first solo run.

I just needed to prove to
myself that I could do it.

NARRATOR: He started this seasonas the kid from Minnesota.

Now he's left the Lower
48 in the rear view.

Alaska's my home now.

Fairbanks is my home now.

I'm proud of my
accomplishments this year.

I didn't have too
many big problems.

Kept her out of the ditch.

Stayed off my roof.

Made a little money.

Get a lot of future
in front of me.

Let's see what happens.

[horn]

NARRATOR: 30 miles south--

after nearly two hours, the
Dalton is finally clear.

Right on.

NARRATOR: And Hugh
hits the home stretch

to complete his final run.

[horn]

Next stop, Prudhoe Bay.

NARRATOR: The polar bear came
to the Dalton as an outsider.

Yee-haw!

Fairbanks, Alaska.

NARRATOR: With a reputation
for being a loose cannon.

Get back!

NARRATOR: But at the
end of his first season,

he's gained respect for
his ability to conquer

North America's deadliest road.

Good working with
you this winter.

Enjoyed the [bleep] out of it.Thanks for having me.

You betcha.

Had a lot of fun.

Inaugurated into
the Dalton gang.

Mission accomplished.

We made it!

I'm officially a member
of the Dalton gang.

Dalton Highway gang.

Honorary member.

So I'm pretty honored,
and pretty proud of that.

When the ice is gone, it's timefor the polar bear to go home.

NARRATOR: 60 miles
to the northeast,

all ice road truckers have
cashed it in for this season--

except for one.

Jack Jessee forges
ahead over the ocean,

hauling a 50,000 pound
big rig over a few inches

of melting ice.

It can get a little iffy.

It'll make your heart
skip a little faster.

Beat a little faster.

I think we're going
to be OK, but I'm

gonna need to keep my fingers
crossed on this one, too.

NARRATOR: Until finally, he
reaches his destination--

a remote island in the
middle of the Beaufort Sea.

Well, we're here.

NARRATOR: He pumps out
8,000 gallons of diesel fuel

and calls it a. seaso.

Well, this winter
season is finally over.

Need to get a couple
week vacation going on,

is what I need now.

NARRATOR: In the
final standings,

Jack Jessee tops out with 20loads, the most runs of any ice

road trucker this season.

And once again, Hugh
Rowland has managed

to beat out his Canadian
rival, Alex Debogorski.

Only this time, it
was on American soil.

[inaudible].

On the Dalton highway.

That was a lot of fun.

Maybe we'll get to come
back again some time.

That's right.

To being alive.

Yep.

And never even had an incident.

No incidents.

No incidents, yeah.

[inaudible] not an incident?

[laughter]

NARRATOR: But next year, when
temperatures drop below zero,

and the Arctic falls back
into a deep freeze, the north

slope of Alaska will
be transformed again

by roads made of ice.

And truckers will return
for one more adventure

at the top of the world.

We've got a name for
the last frontier up here.

It's called the haul road.

Yee-haw!