Throng

Tuesday 9th February 8.00pm

The documentary series examining the dangerous job of driving trucks on Alaska’s Dalton Highway continues. This week, Hugh and Phil tackle another run up the Dalton. Alex travels the toughest part of the road with a flat tyre. Lisa transports 80ft pipes to an offshore platform. And rookie Tim struggles to keep his rig on the road.

In Fairbanks, Hugh Rowland is desperate to begin his next trip on the Dalton Highway – but his mentor, Phil Kromm, is late. It transpires that safety officer Phil has accidentally backed into a truck, damaging his bumper. Phil faces the embarrassment of having to write a report on himself. “It’s a $1,000 mistake – plus I get to hear about this for probably the next ten years,” he says ruefully.

Tuesday 26th January 8.00pm

The documentary series exploring one of the world’s most dangerous professions continues. In this episode, Hugh embarks on his first solo run up the Dalton Highway. Alex struggles to get going. Lisa faces a whiteout on a mountain pass. And Jack takes a trip over the Arctic Ocean.

This season, veteran Canadian drivers Alex Deborgorski and Hugh ‘The Polar Bear’ Rowland tackle the Dalton Highway in Alaska. The boys join six other truckers who hope to earn big money plying the 414-mile route across mountains and tundra to the oilfields of Deadhorse. This scenic highway, built in 1974 to service the Trans-Alaskan oil pipeline, has claimed countless lives over the years. Can the current crop of ice road truckers stay safe as they deliver vital supplies to the coast?

Tuesday 19th January 8.00pm

The documentary series exploring one of the world’s most dangerous professions continues. In this episode, Alex and Hugh get their first glimpse of the ice road. Lisa asks to haul the biggest load of her career to date. Rookie Tim finds himself lost in a blizzard on one of the road’s most treacherous slopes. And Jack helps a driver stuck in the snow.

This season, veteran Canadian drivers Alex Deborgorski and Hugh ‘The Polar Bear’ Rowland face a challenging new road – the Dalton Highway in Alaska. The boys join six other truckers who hope to earn big money plying the 414-mile route across mountains and tundra to the oilfields of Deadhorse. This historic highway, built in 1974 to service the Trans-Alaskan oil pipeline, has claimed countless lives over the years. Can the current crop of ice road truckers stay alive and safe as they deliver vital supplies to the coast?

Wednesday 1st April 8.00pm

The documentary series examining the dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways concludes. In the last episode of the series, the truckers complete their final journeys as the ice melts beneath their wheels. The leader of the pack is crowned and one driver is banished from the ice.

The final day of the ice-road season dawns with the last pieces of the Langley camp waiting to be moved to dry land. Safety officer Monte Gibb is acutely aware of the parlous state of the road, which has sprung numerous leaks and overflows. “Ice is supposed to be on top of the water, not the other way around,” he says.

The documentary series examining the dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. This week, the truckers launch a major effort to disassemble the base at Langley before the ice melts. The biggest load of the season gets stuck when a hole appears in the road; and Hugh sees a chance to overtake Eric.

The end of the ice-road season is approaching and the rapid melting of the ice has taken many by surprise. Every last piece of the Langley base must be dismantled and transported to land – but holes are already appearing in the ice nearby. Jerry Dusdal and Hugh Rowland do not like what they see. “The water’s warmer than the ice,” is Hugh’s evaluation.

“It’s time to go,” Jerry adds.Read more

The documentary series examining the dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. This week, as spring approaches, the truckers race to dismantle the Arctic bases before the ice melts. Hugh aims to overtake Eric in the total number of hauls. Rick puts his truck in the garage once again. And a rookie trucker faces a nerve-racking first drive on the ice.

Spring is just around the corner and the ice road is melting beneath the trucks’ wheels. The time has come to dismantle the Arctic drilling stations. Supervisor Jerry Dusdal has responsibility for ensuring that the base at Langely, erected earlier in the season, is disassembled quickly and safely. “It’s been a long winter. Got to try and keep it focused, keep it motivated so that we don’t have a screw up,” he says.Read more

The documentary series examining the lucrative but highly dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. In this episode, Eric and Hugh compete to haul the most loads. Rick comes to Bill’s aid, but his reckless driving gets the better of him. A snow plough falls through the ice and a convoy of truckers from the south meets a chilly welcome.

As the ice-road season enters its final stages, Eric Dufresne leads Hugh Rowland by just one load in the total number of hauls. Both truckers are finding the road increasingly battered by heavy usage. “The dangerous part is really the end of the season,” says Eric. One factor is the warm water that travels upriver from the south. “It starts melting the ice from underneath,” Eric explains.

Hugh is still busy transporting waste water up and down the ice road.Read more

The documentary series examining the lucrative but highly dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. In this episode, Hugh takes a novice trucker under his wing. Another rookie sets out with a difficult load; Rick is part of a convoy in trouble; Drew heads back onto the ice; and Eric races to be leader of the pack.

This week, ice-road veteran Hugh Rowland is called upon to impart his wisdom to an up-and-coming trucker. He must partner 18-year-old Isaac Lennie on his first trip up the ice road. Their mission is to pick up waste water from the Wurmlinger barge. Hugh drives the rig onto the ice road then lets Isaac take the controls, only for the young trucker to stall the engine several times.

The documentary series examining the lucrative but highly dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. In this episode, the rig move is finally completed. Hugh continues to ply the highways while Rick complains of poor health. Alex faces the end of his season.

The rig move from Aput to Langley enters its last stages this week. Bear Swenson is tasked with one of the final loads when he is ordered to transport a P-tank to the new site. The P-tank is an important piece of kit used to separate gas from liquid – but if the wrong gases are present, it can explode. Setting off on his journey, Bear is conscious of the fact that the ice road is getting worn down from so many heavy loads. “[It’s] a world of extremes in winter,” he muses. “Extreme everything. Extreme dead... You just can’t piss around.”

The documentary series examining the lucrative but highly dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. In this episode, the truckers have to be on guard as a polar bear stalks the ice. An ice-road legend goes down after more than 25 years on the job. Rick’s run of bad luck continues, forcing him to consider his future on the ice road.

This week, as the ice-road season reaches the halfway point, the big rig move from Aput to Langley continues apace. So far, the truckers have been plagued with storms, mechanical failures and accidents – and things are about to get even worse. With some $20million at stake, Jerry Dusdal needs all of his men at the top of their game. “We’ve still got a lot of loads to haul,” he explains. But veteran driver Alex Debogorski is not well.

The documentary series examining the lucrative but highly dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. In this episode, Alex must overcome poor health to haul the biggest load of his career. The rig move reaches a crucial stage. Rick decides to confront his boss and Hugh is stuck with a less than glamorous job.

Another Arctic day dawns to temperatures of –40 degrees Fahrenheit. Alex Deborgorski arrives at Aput to assist in moving the drilling station to its new site at Langley. The 26-year ice-road veteran is not in the best shape. After getting lost on the ice, Alex has arrived over six hours late – and he is not feeling well. “I got a lot of problems. I’m falling apart,” he says. “I really should go and see the doctor because I’ve been having trouble with shortage of breath.”
Read more

The documentary series examining the lucrative but highly dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. In this episode, a pair of trucks transport a 135ft-high derrick to a new drilling site. Rick rails against his employers; Hugh and Drew are confined to base; and a rookie error sees Alex lost on the ice.

The rig move continues apace this week as supervisor Jerry Dusdal prepares to transport a vast derrick from Aput to Langley. This $1.5million metal tower is a key element of the oil drilling station. Attempts to move it were thwarted by a storm (see last week’s episode), but now the weather has cleared and the operation is underway. Time is of the essence, as the company loses thousands of dollars for every hour the derrick is out of service.

The documentary series examining the lucrative but highly dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. In this episode, the truckers are called upon to help dismantle and move a massive drilling station. Rick is stuck waiting for repairs to his truck while Drew takes his first ride on the ocean ice.

Ice-road supervisor Jerry Dusdal faces his biggest job of the season this week when he is asked to oversee the transportation of a huge drilling rig. The station at Aput has failed to find any oil, so owner MGM plans to move the entire base 50 miles north to a site at Langley. It is estimated that up to a quarter of the world’s untapped gas reserves lie in the Arctic, and MGM hopes to find a new source. Hundreds of tons of valuable equipment must be shifted by truck and time is of the essence, as the company loses $250,000 for each day the rig is out of commission. “Am I nervous? Yeah, a little bit,” says Jerry.

The documentary series examining the lucrative but highly dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. In the third episode, a huge storm hits the Arctic coast, forcing authorities to close the ice road. As the drivers hurry to reach safety, Alex risks being caught in a whiteout, and another trucker finds himself in a ditch. Elsewhere, Drew is given his first truckload to drive while Rick faces further delays.

The truckers and engineers of the Inuvik- Tuktoyaktuk route are on edge this week as a major storm is forecast for the region. With strong winds and snow approaching, the drivers scramble to complete one more run before the road is put out of action. Hugh Rowland delivers a vacuum tank he fixed himself to a gas drilling station in Aput, while Alex Deborgorski sets off to pick up a load from the same destination – after first seeing to a flat tyre.

The documentary series examining the lucrative but highly dangerous job of driving trucks on Canada’s ice highways continues. In the second episode, Drew finds work as a forklift truck driver; Rick suffers a mishap on the ice; Alex encounters an overturned van on the road; and Hugh is given an urgent mission to an ice-bound barge.

In the frozen Arctic town of Inuvik, trucker Drew Sherwood is ruing his hasty decision to quit work on only his second day. Frustrated at being made to wait around by his boss, Drew rashly decided to hand in his notice. “I’m not overly impressed with what I did,” he says. “I’m not a guy that quits.”