Ice Road Truckers (2007) s08e07 Episode Script
Blazing the Trail
Now on Ice Road Truckers There's always some fucking thing going on, ain't there? the ice is crackin' This lake, right there just went pop, and then it hasn't stopped cracking since.
and the mud is slinging Polar is out, VP Express is in.
as war on the winter roads Get out of my shop.
spins out of control.
You're on my fucking turf here, bud, my fucking turf.
In Winnipeg, Manitoba I have a nice shop, I got a nice truck, I ought to be able to make it work.
All I got to do is get some nice loads.
It's a great feeling being on your own.
I'll make it work.
Always have, always will.
After Darrell Ward quit Polar - You're in, or you're out.
- Right on, I'm out the door.
the Montana Legend got his own company up and running.
Good, I'm back in business.
and quickly banked his first haul.
Thanks for the load, Mark! Hello? Yeah.
It's Darrell.
Now, with his own money on the line, he's looking to keep the loads coming and give Polar a run for the money.
Running for myself, I at least know what the bottom line is.
Yeah, I can be there shortly.
All right, yeah.
Thanks, bye.
And I have a generator going back to Wasagamack.
Fire this little thing up, get my load.
That was probably another one of Mark's loads.
I'm not sure, but I'm guessing it probably was.
Good luck, Mark.
At Polar headquarters Everybody's tired, everybody's burnt out, but I mean we gotta push here.
with the load count tightening up, boss Mark Kohaykewych is feeling the heat.
Okay, I'll call you back.
Bye.
You know what, Winnipeg's a big city, like why are these guys planting shops just down the road from me? What? They gotta keep an eye on what's going on, they can't think for themselves? I already saw Darrell going by with one of my loads that are going to Wasagamack with culverts.
He's kind of being a pain in my ass already, I wanna go see what he's up to down the road now that I know where his shop is.
Knock, knock! What are you doin', Mark? Come to check out the big, fancy shop of yours.
Yeah? What uh, what you got cooking here? Oh, you know, just servicing my truck.
- Huh.
- Something Polar don't do.
- Oh, it doesn't, eh? - Not usually.
Oh, okay.
How's things going? Good, be good if you didn't steal my shit.
Gotta do something, don't I? So you just decided you're gonna park in front of my shop, rub it in? Steal the culvert load? I don't know how you're saying it's your load when it was on my truck.
You know, if you were a little shorter and a little fatter, I could call you Hugh.
Get out of my shop.
You have no idea who you're fucking around here.
Remember, you're on my fucking turf here, bud.
My fucking turf.
It used to be yours.
Fuck you, Darrell.
Fuck off, Mark.
Mark coming and getting in my face, not a good fucking idea for him.
He wants to come out here and act like that, and get in my face, I'll stomp him into dirt.
No, I'm not gonna get intimidated by him.
You know, you wanna get me pissed off, I'm pissed off right now, I'm gonna definitely start hitting him hard.
But Darrell is not Mark's only concern - Hey Hugh, got a minute? - Yeah.
I just got a phone call, calling us looking for 150 loads going to Oxford House.
One of Polar's biggest contracts may have fallen into the hands of rival, VP Express.
Well I asked him if he called Polar first because Polar had all those loads going to Oxford House last year - Yeah.
- And he said, we don't want to see Polar on our property ever again.
And it could be the knock out punch they've been hoping for.
So we're talking about almost half a million dollars.
This'll give us a hell of a name.
I cannot promise something that I cannot keep.
We can keep it.
But let's do it.
I mean, holy fuck, that'll put us on the map.
That will.
Okay, so Polar is out, VP Express is in.
Yeah.
Way to go.
Two hours later, VP's got their top driver on the case.
I have a load of plastic septic tanks going to Oxford House.
We're basically going to the same place still, roughly the same places as last year.
With his experience on the trail, Alex Debogorski could be their ace in the hole.
Whatever's going on between Hugh, Vlad and Mark, has got nothing to do with me.
I'm pretty pleased.
If I can go another month and Hugh and Vlad are as happy with me as they are right now, then I'll really feel I accomplished something.
But 200 miles to the northeast Polar's aiming to get back on track.
Well, this should be fun.
After losing Oxford House, two of their best are blazing a trail on new route.
This is our first run to Poplar Hill, and I'm leading the charge.
Todd's right behind me.
Lisa Kelly and Todd Dewey, are trying to tame the wild path to Poplar Hill, one of the most remote destinations on the winter roads.
Frozen tundra that we're driving on.
You know what, I've heard a lot of shit from the locals-- you won't make it, the snow's too deep.
That kind of makes it even more of a challenge, huh, like I mean, I wanna get the load there, right.
If they say we can't do it, well, it's like oh, we've gotta try it, don't we? Ha ha, 10-4.
If they're successful, the route could become a new revenue stream for Polar.
But to get there You gotta be kidding me.
they'll have to pass through one of North America's longest ice crossings, stretching over two miles.
Let's stop right here.
Late in the season, temperatures are on the rise, and the ice is showing signs of weakening.
All right, here we go, let's give this a shot, here.
But with the new contract on the line, the Polar drivers forge ahead.
And I hope I make it.
I'll give you about a kilometre, and I'll head on out.
Oh my gosh.
Oh yeah, shit is crackin' all right.
It's definitely crackin'.
At 25 tonnes, Lisa's load is the heaviest the ice has sustained all winter.
Oh, wow.
Some of the loud ones, making a lot of noise.
All right, so, here I come.
And now Todd rolls forward, adding another 25 tonnes into the mix.
This road has the most ice crossings that I've ever been on, in my whole career as an ice road trucker.
You can tell by the road it's definitely warm out today.
It's really warm outside today.
You can feel the temperature change like you would not believe.
Kind of scary.
Todd, how you doin' back there? Get me out of here.
Todd, this lake right there just went pop, and then it hasn't stopped cracking.
Oh.
Definitely a lot louder than normal today.
Holy shit! On an two mile ice crossing Lisa Kelly and Todd Dewey, are trying to get Polar back in the game with a new route.
Todd, this lake right there just went pop, and then it hasn't stopped cracking since.
But rising temperatures are weakening the ice over one of North America's longest crossings.
Definitely a lot louder than normal today.
Fuck! Holy shit! Oh my gosh.
Scared the crap out of me.
That was straight up like fireworks like exploded and then made all that like residual sound.
Oh my goodness.
I weakened it for you there.
All right, I'm on the other side, safe and sound.
Don't go any faster than ten, though.
Lisa makes it to the crossing's edge.
But Todd's still got a mile to go, and he's gotta survive the damage to the ice left behind in Lisa's wake.
Holy smokes! This is making me really nervous! Holly, sweet Lord.
Lisa, right where you told me you heard that ice popping, I swear to God you spread the ice apart about three to four inches of a crack.
Are you serious? It was open three to four inches? It was like a big lightning bolt right down the centre of the ice.
Holy crap! I told you I left you a present on the ice, huh? I know, baby.
Off the ice, safe and sound! Lisa, I made 'er.
Yeah, 10-4 there, good buddy.
The convoy tamed the crossing, but they still have over 30 miles to go.
Back at Polar headquarters Morning, sir.
Let's go find out where the fuck we're going, boy.
finally getting back on the road.
On his last trip Art was grounded by authorities when his paperwork wasn't in order.
So that performance cost me $490 dollars, and they shut me down for three fucking days.
Now he's got a new load waiting for him in the yard.
But first - Art.
- How you doin' this morning, buddy? He'll have to get through a meeting with the boss.
Got a couple of issues that have occurred here in the last couple days, eh? Do you need some help with the log books? Do you need, like is there something that you're not understanding? No.
Just the biggest thing is, Art, is the company loses points, and our insurance rates go up.
That's a black mark on the company that I don't like to, I don't like to have.
Fined me $490 dollars.
So we'll be deducting that off your pay then.
- All right.
- All right.
I was hot, I was gonna fire him.
I decided that you know what, being that late in the season, I didn't really have too many other options.
I can't have this occur again.
Yes, I realize this, buddy.
Okay, let's move on.
While you were away, we got a defection here in the company.
Darrell Ward went out on his own.
Holy fuck! Yeah, turns out that he he was able to snag a truck down the road, and he's moving in, taking loads.
So now I've got VP on this side, and I got Darrell on this side.
Now we'll have to kick ass even more.
We're just gonna keep doing what we're doing.
Your load's gettin' delivered into the yard here, we'll get you hooked up.
We put brand new chains on for you, so you shouldn't have any issues.
Don't wreck my new chains.
All right? Okay, buddy.
Okay, so you're good to go.
- All set.
- Right on.
Thanks.
- I certainly am, buddy.
- Have a safe trip.
- Take care.
- Talk to you.
We'll see you again.
Well, another touch up.
Fuck! And Darrell moved on, eh? Fucking shit.
I was kind of wondering about that.
I heard they had a rile, but I didn't know it was that drastic, eh? So now Darrell is the competition.
Holy fuck.
We'll see how that turns out, eh? While Art heads for Cat Lake 270 miles to the northwest I'm headed into Wasagamack.
I've got an oversize load.
Darrell Ward's hauling a mammoth eight and a half tonne generator.
I don't wanna be late.
I depend on these people.
They've gave me a couple loads already, and I don't wanna let them down now.
The $100,000 dollar haul, could further cement Darrell's hold on Polar's former contact.
But this haul is no easy task.
The narrow road to Wasagamack is filled with tight corners and rugged terrain.
This road's pretty slick today.
You come into these corners and you-- you'll fly.
A deadly combination for the 9-foot high, 12-foot wide, oversize load.
Oversize load like this, pushing it hard, it's heavy, there's always something coming around the corner.
Like a loaded gun, you never know when it's gonna go off.
Whoa! Make room, I'm coming through.
Fucking corner's slick, dude.
Any load on any road.
I want as many as I can get.
Whoa! Whoa! Fuck! Oh! I'm betting somebody's gonna be in the ditch today.
In Ontario, Canada Not a sign, or a marker, or a fucking thing, bud.
Art Burke's gunning for Cat Lake.
Here we go, boys and girls.
The Polar driver's in desperate need of a smooth run.
We got the log book all dolled up again.
I paid my $490 dollars.
Hoping to make up for the mistake that nearly cost him his job.
They can stick the log book up their fucking ass.
Anyway, after having said that, I'm having a good fucking day.
Atta girl.
Atta girl! Around the bend Cat Lake.
Well, well, well, well, well, well, well.
Art makes it to his drop-off point.
How you doin'? And Polar banks a key load.
So far, the trip's gone off without a hitch.
You gonna go four kilometres in here, and it's pretty narrow, but you're gonna come around a right hand bend, and it's really tight.
So stay way up to your left.
That's the bridge that causes the most trouble.
That's the one they flip over on, is it? Yeah, some of the timber's are rotten, so if you drop one of your tires into there - That's it.
- You're hooped.
But the road back's been shut down, forcing Art to take a rarely travelled alternative route.
I should have stuck to my original plan in life Away we go, eh? As the sun sets over Ontario 100 miles to the northwest It's really rough going here.
Lisa Kelly and Todd Dewey are braving the brutal trail to remote Poplar Hill.
Jiminy Christmas! Ay, ay, ay, another one of these.
But the town's at the bottom of a steep grade nicknamed "Suicide Hill.
" Oh, this is gonna be interesting.
Oh, I love the excitement of not knowing if we're gonna make it, or not.
Holy shit, Todd, rock and freakin' roll.
This is what it all comes down to, right here.
If you're going too fast, you're gonna slide right off the road into the bank, and then you're just screwed.
Oh, shit! Holy, sweet Lord have mercy! The convoy conquers the hill.
Oh, my gosh, there is no power.
But they're not out of the woods yet.
Check engine light's come on, I might have to pull over here.
Yeah.
It's not sounding right at all.
I don't see anything initially wrong, but it sounds funny.
A leak is zapping Lisa's power supply crippling her ability to navigate the hilly terrain.
Dude, that thing's running off of four cylinders.
It's got six, it's only running off about four.
This is not a small problem.
I feel like I'm pushing pretty hard on the throttle.
With only 10 miles to go, the team tries to limp on to Poplar Hill.
It's not sounding right at all, so like, I'm trying to make it to Poplar Hill and make plans from there.
I have no idea what to do from there.
I don't know what I'm gonna do because it's a huge, huge deal, like broken truck.
I'm probably gonna have to get a different truck from here on out.
I'm still moving, but there's something seriously wrong with this truck.
Like, internally seriously wrong.
I've got faith in you, Lis, just keep 'er moving.
Yeah, I was going to tell you I see lights up ahead.
I'm hoping that's Poplar Hill, like really bad, right now.
Finally Lisa and Todd make it to the drop-off point.
While Polar adds two more loads What's that, Mark? Okay, limp it back to Winnipeg? That's a really long ways to limp a truck.
the more pressing matter is Lisa's truck.
The load got here but my truck's still broke, so I had to call Mark to find out what to do with it, and he said, limp it to Winnipeg.
I'm just worried about your truck and your motor.
I just wanna get going.
Yeah, me too.
That Suicide Hill all of a sudden got a lot larger.
Yes, it did.
Running the winter roads without full power would be a challenge for even the most seasoned trucker.
Stuff got real.
And with the steep incline of Suicide Hill looming, it may be impossible.
I'll just do my best to get this thing up this hill.
We got Suicide Hill coming up, I'm really concerned about it, due to the fact it's really steep, been a lot of people stuck on it.
The hill really leans to the right where it could really suck you into the snow bank.
You're gonna have to get it just right to get up over this hill empty.
I guess we're gonna find out if we've got what it takes or not up here.
Almost.
Son of a bitch, Lis, I made her to the top.
I'm at the top of the hill.
Oh, you made it? How was it? It's definitely rough and bumpy, and a lot steeper than we thought.
How do you think fifty percent power's gonna do? I don't know, that's what I'm worried about.
I'm gonna park up here at the top and wait for you to give me a holler.
Okay.
I'll give her a try then.
Thanks.
So I'm just gonna have to try to hit it hard.
Oh, my gosh! Oh, shit.
I'm not even gonna make it.
Uh-oh.
Oh, I'm spinning.
I'm totally spinning.
Todd I'm spinning, I'm spinning.
Uh, still moving, but I think I'm digging holes on it.
Oh my gosh.
On the remote trail from Poplar Hill I'm totally spinning.
Todd, I'm spinning, I'm spinning.
Lisa Kelly's facing an uphill battle Uh, I'm still moving, but I think I'm digging holes on it.
Her truck's operating at limited power making her unable to climb the steep incline of Suicide Hill.
Oh my gosh.
Fuck! This thing doesn't have any power.
Now she's stranded, just short of the top.
Lisa's having a little bit of issues on the hill.
She's powered out, she's getting stuck.
Oh, yeah.
But Todd may have found a solution See if it's got the key in it and if it'll fire up.
A grader left behind by a road maintenance crew.
Hell yeah.
God I hope this son of a bitch a cat runs.
Todd's plan, try to use the cat to tow Lisa the last quarter mile over the hill.
See if she's gonna fire.
Come on, girl.
We got power, boys! Woo! Gotta get the tow rope out.
Hook the chain right to your bumper.
Got it? Yeah.
Once I get it tight, just get your low gear.
- Low? - Let your clutch out, let it idle, and I'll do the rest.
Okay.
Cool, thanks.
With Lisa's rig hooked up, now the grader must be powerful enough to pull the 13 tonne rig.
He's having a hard time getting me going here.
It's in low and I'm giving as much power as I can get.
We're getting up this hill one way or another.
Woo! Made it! That's what I'm talkin' about, Lis! - All right! - Nice job, girl! - Thank you so much! - Woo! On the other side of the biggest hill on the trail We're ready to rock 'n roll! Let's get the hell out of here.
That was awesome, thank you so much.
Oh, I'm just stoked that that thing fired up.
Lisa and Todd head for home.
My power is fifty percent, but I made it and we're on our way.
150 miles to the southeast Oh yeah, here we are now, we're kickin' ass out of Cat Lake.
It's pitch dark out.
to get back on the boss' good side with a trouble free trip.
They tell me this was the worst road in Ontario.
It's a little rough, as you can tell, right.
But the battered road isn't making things easy.
I'll be fucking glad when we get out of here, if I don't slip off one of them damn bridges.
Now, a series of narrow bridges will put him and his eight and a half foot wide trailer to the test.
These fucking bridges are kind of a little over the top.
Some of them are very, very skinny, and they're rotten as a bastard.
You've got to line them up really, really straight.
Hang on here, for a second, we're gonna go down this here and upset the truck.
Holy fuck! Whoa.
Holy fuck, man, this is high.
Now that type of thing there, if you fuck up on that, I'll guarantee you, you'll turn upside down in that fucking swamp.
Has no rails or nothing on it.
You got about that much space on each side of the fucking wheels.
If I fuck up the inside, we'll keep 'er on, eh? Whoa.
Well, we made 'er in one piece.
Hey, hey, hey.
Chains held together, we never went off them skinny bridges or through the fucking things.
With the bridges behind him, Art's quest for the perfect trip could be within reach.
All right, boy, we're outta here.
Away we go again! On the rocky road to Oxford House I'll be in Oxford House in 13 kilometres.
Alex Debogorski's trying to score the first haul for VP's big new contract.
I kind of like to get these tanks there as quick as possible so we can go get some more.
Swiped from Polar, the deal could be a game changer for VP.
Well, I'm hoping I don't have to deal with any disasters.
But he has to make it over the ragged last seven miles.
Trying not to get caught by surprise in one of these corners.
He was going like heck.
I think some of these corners have been shined up a little bit.
Finally I'm hoping that the people I brought them for will come and unload me as quickly as possible.
Alex arrives at the destination.
There's nothing like gravity to do the job.
I mean I wanted 'em unloaded, they're unloaded, and we don't hurt those tanks.
Those tanks better be able to take that, they're going to be buried under six feet of fill.
I'm running behind an hour.
As the old pro heads back to Winnipeg, for VP it's one load down and 149 to go.
320 miles to the southeast Winnipeg, here we come.
Art Burke's in the home stretch of his run back from Cat Lake.
Coming back in the dark last night was kind of tricky.
And so far, so good for the Polar driver.
The bridges was really skinny, really skinny.
I had to get 'er lined up really good.
I went across them nice and slow, and here we are.
But as Art makes his final fuel stop outside of Winnipeg Fuck! Fucking motherfucker! Shit! Fuck! Fucking shit! Fuck! There's shit all going on boys, what's fucking going on.
There's always some fucking thing going on, ain't there? I lost a fucking chain is what's going on.
Now how in the fuck am I gonna explain that? We put brand new chains on for you, so you shouldn't have any issues.
Don't wreck my new chains.
Making time for stupid, fucking questions.
Despite his best efforts, Art may be on the ropes yet again.
Fucking near home last trip, busted at the fucking scales, eh? This trip, fucking near home, come to realize chain's gone.
And everything was going so good, man.
Couldn't lose one of the old chains, I had to lose the new one.
Fuck.
That's all I gotta fucking say about this.
Besides that, it would have been a perfect fucking trip.
Back at the Polar shop, Art's days may be numbered.
Just never you mind what I'm up to.
See what you're up the fuck to.
But with the boss gone he finds a creative way to cover his tracks.
You gotta keep punching through, boy.
No matter what life throws at you, you just got to keep coming, and let her fucking roll off, boy.
Fuck it.
I'll tell them about this in due time, eh? I'll work this in during a conversation.
But not tonight.
In the Manitoba wilderness Send me where no man dares to go.
I'm up for the adventure.
Darrell Ward's pushing his generator the final 15 miles to Wasagamack.
Fingers crossed I don't have far to go.
Road's been slick.
But hauling the oversize load over the narrow trail is proving a challenge for the renegade trucker.
Wider than normal, so hope for the best.
It's slick! This is gonna be rough.
Go get yourself a job driving a cab in the city if you can't handle it out here.
Well, I'm here at Wasagamack.
As Darrell heads to the drop-off point, the delivery marks another notch in the belt for the Montana Legend.
Wanna get off-loaded and get turned around and headed the other direction.
And there's a new player emerging in the battle on the winter roads.
Every one of these loads is up for grabs.
The faster I can move them, the more I can move.
It's like the dash for the cash.
Next stop, Winnipeg.
Don't stand in my way because you will get knocked down.
Into the night Oh, made it.
Lisa Kelly and her busted rig finally arrive in Winnipeg.
Limped the truck all the way back to Polar.
I'm dropping my trailer, truck's going to the shop.
Her long trip has come to an end, and now her truck will get much needed repairs.
I'm tired.
It's been one heck of a trip, it's been action packed, back to back.
My truck needs to be looked at.
I need a headlight and a filter, and a fucking engine.
So I'm gonna go sit on my hands until the truck's done, and then come in and get a load.
So, good night.
Later that night Wasn't even gonna stay on the road half the time.
I turned the wheel, it just keeps going The winter roads this year have been phenomical - compared to last year.
- Phenomical? You never heard that word? The Polar crew meets up to talk shop.
You guys are wearing these adorable matching Polar outfits.
Yeah, I'll get the fish.
Matching hoodies.
It's so cute.
Oh, we've been sweethearts since last year.
Oh yeah, because you were both from VP.
- Yeah.
- I've never worked at VP.
Fuck, you're lucky.
I can honestly say that that's the worst job I ever had in my entire life.
Well, they treated you like shit, Art.
I never worked with assholes like that before in my entire life.
Is that why you made the switch over to Polar this year? Yeah, you know when I got here I was like, I'm gonna go talk to Mark.
He was just so happy to get, to steal me from Hugh, he's like I'll pay you whatever you want just to take you from Hugh.
I said, then you just got yourself a new driver.
I just wanted to hear him say it because he was badmouthing me all year about how I couldn't drive, and I just wanted him to beg me for a job so I could tell him no.
Well, that goes to show you that the two-faced part, eh? That's what he is, big time.
Him and Vlad are very two-faced.
See that's what I like about Polar is we're more like a team, I feel like.
Oh way, way different.
- It's a whole way better.
- Totally different atmosphere.
You know what's a bummer though, is Darrell leaving.
Oh, well, I know that Darrell has been really pissed about the whole truck's being broke down and his truck hasn't been working, he hasn't been making any money.
We're here to make money not be sitting on our ass because our trucks don't work.
I'm so sad that he quit.
Me and Darrell are friends, like my first like real friend.
I love running with Darrell.
I learned through the years that sometimes the grass is not always greener.
Bingo.
Sometimes when you get on the other side of the fence you can't come back.
Yeah.
So we'll see, we'll see what happens.
And who knows what's gonna happen.
Next time on Ice Road Truckers This is gonna be rough! the roads go from bad We're not trucking anymore, we're moto-crossing.
to worse Tires are like fucking skis out there.
as the season Who likes to go this fast on ice? Frickin' nobody.
A little uglier there.
goes slip sliding away.
and the mud is slinging Polar is out, VP Express is in.
as war on the winter roads Get out of my shop.
spins out of control.
You're on my fucking turf here, bud, my fucking turf.
In Winnipeg, Manitoba I have a nice shop, I got a nice truck, I ought to be able to make it work.
All I got to do is get some nice loads.
It's a great feeling being on your own.
I'll make it work.
Always have, always will.
After Darrell Ward quit Polar - You're in, or you're out.
- Right on, I'm out the door.
the Montana Legend got his own company up and running.
Good, I'm back in business.
and quickly banked his first haul.
Thanks for the load, Mark! Hello? Yeah.
It's Darrell.
Now, with his own money on the line, he's looking to keep the loads coming and give Polar a run for the money.
Running for myself, I at least know what the bottom line is.
Yeah, I can be there shortly.
All right, yeah.
Thanks, bye.
And I have a generator going back to Wasagamack.
Fire this little thing up, get my load.
That was probably another one of Mark's loads.
I'm not sure, but I'm guessing it probably was.
Good luck, Mark.
At Polar headquarters Everybody's tired, everybody's burnt out, but I mean we gotta push here.
with the load count tightening up, boss Mark Kohaykewych is feeling the heat.
Okay, I'll call you back.
Bye.
You know what, Winnipeg's a big city, like why are these guys planting shops just down the road from me? What? They gotta keep an eye on what's going on, they can't think for themselves? I already saw Darrell going by with one of my loads that are going to Wasagamack with culverts.
He's kind of being a pain in my ass already, I wanna go see what he's up to down the road now that I know where his shop is.
Knock, knock! What are you doin', Mark? Come to check out the big, fancy shop of yours.
Yeah? What uh, what you got cooking here? Oh, you know, just servicing my truck.
- Huh.
- Something Polar don't do.
- Oh, it doesn't, eh? - Not usually.
Oh, okay.
How's things going? Good, be good if you didn't steal my shit.
Gotta do something, don't I? So you just decided you're gonna park in front of my shop, rub it in? Steal the culvert load? I don't know how you're saying it's your load when it was on my truck.
You know, if you were a little shorter and a little fatter, I could call you Hugh.
Get out of my shop.
You have no idea who you're fucking around here.
Remember, you're on my fucking turf here, bud.
My fucking turf.
It used to be yours.
Fuck you, Darrell.
Fuck off, Mark.
Mark coming and getting in my face, not a good fucking idea for him.
He wants to come out here and act like that, and get in my face, I'll stomp him into dirt.
No, I'm not gonna get intimidated by him.
You know, you wanna get me pissed off, I'm pissed off right now, I'm gonna definitely start hitting him hard.
But Darrell is not Mark's only concern - Hey Hugh, got a minute? - Yeah.
I just got a phone call, calling us looking for 150 loads going to Oxford House.
One of Polar's biggest contracts may have fallen into the hands of rival, VP Express.
Well I asked him if he called Polar first because Polar had all those loads going to Oxford House last year - Yeah.
- And he said, we don't want to see Polar on our property ever again.
And it could be the knock out punch they've been hoping for.
So we're talking about almost half a million dollars.
This'll give us a hell of a name.
I cannot promise something that I cannot keep.
We can keep it.
But let's do it.
I mean, holy fuck, that'll put us on the map.
That will.
Okay, so Polar is out, VP Express is in.
Yeah.
Way to go.
Two hours later, VP's got their top driver on the case.
I have a load of plastic septic tanks going to Oxford House.
We're basically going to the same place still, roughly the same places as last year.
With his experience on the trail, Alex Debogorski could be their ace in the hole.
Whatever's going on between Hugh, Vlad and Mark, has got nothing to do with me.
I'm pretty pleased.
If I can go another month and Hugh and Vlad are as happy with me as they are right now, then I'll really feel I accomplished something.
But 200 miles to the northeast Polar's aiming to get back on track.
Well, this should be fun.
After losing Oxford House, two of their best are blazing a trail on new route.
This is our first run to Poplar Hill, and I'm leading the charge.
Todd's right behind me.
Lisa Kelly and Todd Dewey, are trying to tame the wild path to Poplar Hill, one of the most remote destinations on the winter roads.
Frozen tundra that we're driving on.
You know what, I've heard a lot of shit from the locals-- you won't make it, the snow's too deep.
That kind of makes it even more of a challenge, huh, like I mean, I wanna get the load there, right.
If they say we can't do it, well, it's like oh, we've gotta try it, don't we? Ha ha, 10-4.
If they're successful, the route could become a new revenue stream for Polar.
But to get there You gotta be kidding me.
they'll have to pass through one of North America's longest ice crossings, stretching over two miles.
Let's stop right here.
Late in the season, temperatures are on the rise, and the ice is showing signs of weakening.
All right, here we go, let's give this a shot, here.
But with the new contract on the line, the Polar drivers forge ahead.
And I hope I make it.
I'll give you about a kilometre, and I'll head on out.
Oh my gosh.
Oh yeah, shit is crackin' all right.
It's definitely crackin'.
At 25 tonnes, Lisa's load is the heaviest the ice has sustained all winter.
Oh, wow.
Some of the loud ones, making a lot of noise.
All right, so, here I come.
And now Todd rolls forward, adding another 25 tonnes into the mix.
This road has the most ice crossings that I've ever been on, in my whole career as an ice road trucker.
You can tell by the road it's definitely warm out today.
It's really warm outside today.
You can feel the temperature change like you would not believe.
Kind of scary.
Todd, how you doin' back there? Get me out of here.
Todd, this lake right there just went pop, and then it hasn't stopped cracking.
Oh.
Definitely a lot louder than normal today.
Holy shit! On an two mile ice crossing Lisa Kelly and Todd Dewey, are trying to get Polar back in the game with a new route.
Todd, this lake right there just went pop, and then it hasn't stopped cracking since.
But rising temperatures are weakening the ice over one of North America's longest crossings.
Definitely a lot louder than normal today.
Fuck! Holy shit! Oh my gosh.
Scared the crap out of me.
That was straight up like fireworks like exploded and then made all that like residual sound.
Oh my goodness.
I weakened it for you there.
All right, I'm on the other side, safe and sound.
Don't go any faster than ten, though.
Lisa makes it to the crossing's edge.
But Todd's still got a mile to go, and he's gotta survive the damage to the ice left behind in Lisa's wake.
Holy smokes! This is making me really nervous! Holly, sweet Lord.
Lisa, right where you told me you heard that ice popping, I swear to God you spread the ice apart about three to four inches of a crack.
Are you serious? It was open three to four inches? It was like a big lightning bolt right down the centre of the ice.
Holy crap! I told you I left you a present on the ice, huh? I know, baby.
Off the ice, safe and sound! Lisa, I made 'er.
Yeah, 10-4 there, good buddy.
The convoy tamed the crossing, but they still have over 30 miles to go.
Back at Polar headquarters Morning, sir.
Let's go find out where the fuck we're going, boy.
finally getting back on the road.
On his last trip Art was grounded by authorities when his paperwork wasn't in order.
So that performance cost me $490 dollars, and they shut me down for three fucking days.
Now he's got a new load waiting for him in the yard.
But first - Art.
- How you doin' this morning, buddy? He'll have to get through a meeting with the boss.
Got a couple of issues that have occurred here in the last couple days, eh? Do you need some help with the log books? Do you need, like is there something that you're not understanding? No.
Just the biggest thing is, Art, is the company loses points, and our insurance rates go up.
That's a black mark on the company that I don't like to, I don't like to have.
Fined me $490 dollars.
So we'll be deducting that off your pay then.
- All right.
- All right.
I was hot, I was gonna fire him.
I decided that you know what, being that late in the season, I didn't really have too many other options.
I can't have this occur again.
Yes, I realize this, buddy.
Okay, let's move on.
While you were away, we got a defection here in the company.
Darrell Ward went out on his own.
Holy fuck! Yeah, turns out that he he was able to snag a truck down the road, and he's moving in, taking loads.
So now I've got VP on this side, and I got Darrell on this side.
Now we'll have to kick ass even more.
We're just gonna keep doing what we're doing.
Your load's gettin' delivered into the yard here, we'll get you hooked up.
We put brand new chains on for you, so you shouldn't have any issues.
Don't wreck my new chains.
All right? Okay, buddy.
Okay, so you're good to go.
- All set.
- Right on.
Thanks.
- I certainly am, buddy.
- Have a safe trip.
- Take care.
- Talk to you.
We'll see you again.
Well, another touch up.
Fuck! And Darrell moved on, eh? Fucking shit.
I was kind of wondering about that.
I heard they had a rile, but I didn't know it was that drastic, eh? So now Darrell is the competition.
Holy fuck.
We'll see how that turns out, eh? While Art heads for Cat Lake 270 miles to the northwest I'm headed into Wasagamack.
I've got an oversize load.
Darrell Ward's hauling a mammoth eight and a half tonne generator.
I don't wanna be late.
I depend on these people.
They've gave me a couple loads already, and I don't wanna let them down now.
The $100,000 dollar haul, could further cement Darrell's hold on Polar's former contact.
But this haul is no easy task.
The narrow road to Wasagamack is filled with tight corners and rugged terrain.
This road's pretty slick today.
You come into these corners and you-- you'll fly.
A deadly combination for the 9-foot high, 12-foot wide, oversize load.
Oversize load like this, pushing it hard, it's heavy, there's always something coming around the corner.
Like a loaded gun, you never know when it's gonna go off.
Whoa! Make room, I'm coming through.
Fucking corner's slick, dude.
Any load on any road.
I want as many as I can get.
Whoa! Whoa! Fuck! Oh! I'm betting somebody's gonna be in the ditch today.
In Ontario, Canada Not a sign, or a marker, or a fucking thing, bud.
Art Burke's gunning for Cat Lake.
Here we go, boys and girls.
The Polar driver's in desperate need of a smooth run.
We got the log book all dolled up again.
I paid my $490 dollars.
Hoping to make up for the mistake that nearly cost him his job.
They can stick the log book up their fucking ass.
Anyway, after having said that, I'm having a good fucking day.
Atta girl.
Atta girl! Around the bend Cat Lake.
Well, well, well, well, well, well, well.
Art makes it to his drop-off point.
How you doin'? And Polar banks a key load.
So far, the trip's gone off without a hitch.
You gonna go four kilometres in here, and it's pretty narrow, but you're gonna come around a right hand bend, and it's really tight.
So stay way up to your left.
That's the bridge that causes the most trouble.
That's the one they flip over on, is it? Yeah, some of the timber's are rotten, so if you drop one of your tires into there - That's it.
- You're hooped.
But the road back's been shut down, forcing Art to take a rarely travelled alternative route.
I should have stuck to my original plan in life Away we go, eh? As the sun sets over Ontario 100 miles to the northwest It's really rough going here.
Lisa Kelly and Todd Dewey are braving the brutal trail to remote Poplar Hill.
Jiminy Christmas! Ay, ay, ay, another one of these.
But the town's at the bottom of a steep grade nicknamed "Suicide Hill.
" Oh, this is gonna be interesting.
Oh, I love the excitement of not knowing if we're gonna make it, or not.
Holy shit, Todd, rock and freakin' roll.
This is what it all comes down to, right here.
If you're going too fast, you're gonna slide right off the road into the bank, and then you're just screwed.
Oh, shit! Holy, sweet Lord have mercy! The convoy conquers the hill.
Oh, my gosh, there is no power.
But they're not out of the woods yet.
Check engine light's come on, I might have to pull over here.
Yeah.
It's not sounding right at all.
I don't see anything initially wrong, but it sounds funny.
A leak is zapping Lisa's power supply crippling her ability to navigate the hilly terrain.
Dude, that thing's running off of four cylinders.
It's got six, it's only running off about four.
This is not a small problem.
I feel like I'm pushing pretty hard on the throttle.
With only 10 miles to go, the team tries to limp on to Poplar Hill.
It's not sounding right at all, so like, I'm trying to make it to Poplar Hill and make plans from there.
I have no idea what to do from there.
I don't know what I'm gonna do because it's a huge, huge deal, like broken truck.
I'm probably gonna have to get a different truck from here on out.
I'm still moving, but there's something seriously wrong with this truck.
Like, internally seriously wrong.
I've got faith in you, Lis, just keep 'er moving.
Yeah, I was going to tell you I see lights up ahead.
I'm hoping that's Poplar Hill, like really bad, right now.
Finally Lisa and Todd make it to the drop-off point.
While Polar adds two more loads What's that, Mark? Okay, limp it back to Winnipeg? That's a really long ways to limp a truck.
the more pressing matter is Lisa's truck.
The load got here but my truck's still broke, so I had to call Mark to find out what to do with it, and he said, limp it to Winnipeg.
I'm just worried about your truck and your motor.
I just wanna get going.
Yeah, me too.
That Suicide Hill all of a sudden got a lot larger.
Yes, it did.
Running the winter roads without full power would be a challenge for even the most seasoned trucker.
Stuff got real.
And with the steep incline of Suicide Hill looming, it may be impossible.
I'll just do my best to get this thing up this hill.
We got Suicide Hill coming up, I'm really concerned about it, due to the fact it's really steep, been a lot of people stuck on it.
The hill really leans to the right where it could really suck you into the snow bank.
You're gonna have to get it just right to get up over this hill empty.
I guess we're gonna find out if we've got what it takes or not up here.
Almost.
Son of a bitch, Lis, I made her to the top.
I'm at the top of the hill.
Oh, you made it? How was it? It's definitely rough and bumpy, and a lot steeper than we thought.
How do you think fifty percent power's gonna do? I don't know, that's what I'm worried about.
I'm gonna park up here at the top and wait for you to give me a holler.
Okay.
I'll give her a try then.
Thanks.
So I'm just gonna have to try to hit it hard.
Oh, my gosh! Oh, shit.
I'm not even gonna make it.
Uh-oh.
Oh, I'm spinning.
I'm totally spinning.
Todd I'm spinning, I'm spinning.
Uh, still moving, but I think I'm digging holes on it.
Oh my gosh.
On the remote trail from Poplar Hill I'm totally spinning.
Todd, I'm spinning, I'm spinning.
Lisa Kelly's facing an uphill battle Uh, I'm still moving, but I think I'm digging holes on it.
Her truck's operating at limited power making her unable to climb the steep incline of Suicide Hill.
Oh my gosh.
Fuck! This thing doesn't have any power.
Now she's stranded, just short of the top.
Lisa's having a little bit of issues on the hill.
She's powered out, she's getting stuck.
Oh, yeah.
But Todd may have found a solution See if it's got the key in it and if it'll fire up.
A grader left behind by a road maintenance crew.
Hell yeah.
God I hope this son of a bitch a cat runs.
Todd's plan, try to use the cat to tow Lisa the last quarter mile over the hill.
See if she's gonna fire.
Come on, girl.
We got power, boys! Woo! Gotta get the tow rope out.
Hook the chain right to your bumper.
Got it? Yeah.
Once I get it tight, just get your low gear.
- Low? - Let your clutch out, let it idle, and I'll do the rest.
Okay.
Cool, thanks.
With Lisa's rig hooked up, now the grader must be powerful enough to pull the 13 tonne rig.
He's having a hard time getting me going here.
It's in low and I'm giving as much power as I can get.
We're getting up this hill one way or another.
Woo! Made it! That's what I'm talkin' about, Lis! - All right! - Nice job, girl! - Thank you so much! - Woo! On the other side of the biggest hill on the trail We're ready to rock 'n roll! Let's get the hell out of here.
That was awesome, thank you so much.
Oh, I'm just stoked that that thing fired up.
Lisa and Todd head for home.
My power is fifty percent, but I made it and we're on our way.
150 miles to the southeast Oh yeah, here we are now, we're kickin' ass out of Cat Lake.
It's pitch dark out.
to get back on the boss' good side with a trouble free trip.
They tell me this was the worst road in Ontario.
It's a little rough, as you can tell, right.
But the battered road isn't making things easy.
I'll be fucking glad when we get out of here, if I don't slip off one of them damn bridges.
Now, a series of narrow bridges will put him and his eight and a half foot wide trailer to the test.
These fucking bridges are kind of a little over the top.
Some of them are very, very skinny, and they're rotten as a bastard.
You've got to line them up really, really straight.
Hang on here, for a second, we're gonna go down this here and upset the truck.
Holy fuck! Whoa.
Holy fuck, man, this is high.
Now that type of thing there, if you fuck up on that, I'll guarantee you, you'll turn upside down in that fucking swamp.
Has no rails or nothing on it.
You got about that much space on each side of the fucking wheels.
If I fuck up the inside, we'll keep 'er on, eh? Whoa.
Well, we made 'er in one piece.
Hey, hey, hey.
Chains held together, we never went off them skinny bridges or through the fucking things.
With the bridges behind him, Art's quest for the perfect trip could be within reach.
All right, boy, we're outta here.
Away we go again! On the rocky road to Oxford House I'll be in Oxford House in 13 kilometres.
Alex Debogorski's trying to score the first haul for VP's big new contract.
I kind of like to get these tanks there as quick as possible so we can go get some more.
Swiped from Polar, the deal could be a game changer for VP.
Well, I'm hoping I don't have to deal with any disasters.
But he has to make it over the ragged last seven miles.
Trying not to get caught by surprise in one of these corners.
He was going like heck.
I think some of these corners have been shined up a little bit.
Finally I'm hoping that the people I brought them for will come and unload me as quickly as possible.
Alex arrives at the destination.
There's nothing like gravity to do the job.
I mean I wanted 'em unloaded, they're unloaded, and we don't hurt those tanks.
Those tanks better be able to take that, they're going to be buried under six feet of fill.
I'm running behind an hour.
As the old pro heads back to Winnipeg, for VP it's one load down and 149 to go.
320 miles to the southeast Winnipeg, here we come.
Art Burke's in the home stretch of his run back from Cat Lake.
Coming back in the dark last night was kind of tricky.
And so far, so good for the Polar driver.
The bridges was really skinny, really skinny.
I had to get 'er lined up really good.
I went across them nice and slow, and here we are.
But as Art makes his final fuel stop outside of Winnipeg Fuck! Fucking motherfucker! Shit! Fuck! Fucking shit! Fuck! There's shit all going on boys, what's fucking going on.
There's always some fucking thing going on, ain't there? I lost a fucking chain is what's going on.
Now how in the fuck am I gonna explain that? We put brand new chains on for you, so you shouldn't have any issues.
Don't wreck my new chains.
Making time for stupid, fucking questions.
Despite his best efforts, Art may be on the ropes yet again.
Fucking near home last trip, busted at the fucking scales, eh? This trip, fucking near home, come to realize chain's gone.
And everything was going so good, man.
Couldn't lose one of the old chains, I had to lose the new one.
Fuck.
That's all I gotta fucking say about this.
Besides that, it would have been a perfect fucking trip.
Back at the Polar shop, Art's days may be numbered.
Just never you mind what I'm up to.
See what you're up the fuck to.
But with the boss gone he finds a creative way to cover his tracks.
You gotta keep punching through, boy.
No matter what life throws at you, you just got to keep coming, and let her fucking roll off, boy.
Fuck it.
I'll tell them about this in due time, eh? I'll work this in during a conversation.
But not tonight.
In the Manitoba wilderness Send me where no man dares to go.
I'm up for the adventure.
Darrell Ward's pushing his generator the final 15 miles to Wasagamack.
Fingers crossed I don't have far to go.
Road's been slick.
But hauling the oversize load over the narrow trail is proving a challenge for the renegade trucker.
Wider than normal, so hope for the best.
It's slick! This is gonna be rough.
Go get yourself a job driving a cab in the city if you can't handle it out here.
Well, I'm here at Wasagamack.
As Darrell heads to the drop-off point, the delivery marks another notch in the belt for the Montana Legend.
Wanna get off-loaded and get turned around and headed the other direction.
And there's a new player emerging in the battle on the winter roads.
Every one of these loads is up for grabs.
The faster I can move them, the more I can move.
It's like the dash for the cash.
Next stop, Winnipeg.
Don't stand in my way because you will get knocked down.
Into the night Oh, made it.
Lisa Kelly and her busted rig finally arrive in Winnipeg.
Limped the truck all the way back to Polar.
I'm dropping my trailer, truck's going to the shop.
Her long trip has come to an end, and now her truck will get much needed repairs.
I'm tired.
It's been one heck of a trip, it's been action packed, back to back.
My truck needs to be looked at.
I need a headlight and a filter, and a fucking engine.
So I'm gonna go sit on my hands until the truck's done, and then come in and get a load.
So, good night.
Later that night Wasn't even gonna stay on the road half the time.
I turned the wheel, it just keeps going The winter roads this year have been phenomical - compared to last year.
- Phenomical? You never heard that word? The Polar crew meets up to talk shop.
You guys are wearing these adorable matching Polar outfits.
Yeah, I'll get the fish.
Matching hoodies.
It's so cute.
Oh, we've been sweethearts since last year.
Oh yeah, because you were both from VP.
- Yeah.
- I've never worked at VP.
Fuck, you're lucky.
I can honestly say that that's the worst job I ever had in my entire life.
Well, they treated you like shit, Art.
I never worked with assholes like that before in my entire life.
Is that why you made the switch over to Polar this year? Yeah, you know when I got here I was like, I'm gonna go talk to Mark.
He was just so happy to get, to steal me from Hugh, he's like I'll pay you whatever you want just to take you from Hugh.
I said, then you just got yourself a new driver.
I just wanted to hear him say it because he was badmouthing me all year about how I couldn't drive, and I just wanted him to beg me for a job so I could tell him no.
Well, that goes to show you that the two-faced part, eh? That's what he is, big time.
Him and Vlad are very two-faced.
See that's what I like about Polar is we're more like a team, I feel like.
Oh way, way different.
- It's a whole way better.
- Totally different atmosphere.
You know what's a bummer though, is Darrell leaving.
Oh, well, I know that Darrell has been really pissed about the whole truck's being broke down and his truck hasn't been working, he hasn't been making any money.
We're here to make money not be sitting on our ass because our trucks don't work.
I'm so sad that he quit.
Me and Darrell are friends, like my first like real friend.
I love running with Darrell.
I learned through the years that sometimes the grass is not always greener.
Bingo.
Sometimes when you get on the other side of the fence you can't come back.
Yeah.
So we'll see, we'll see what happens.
And who knows what's gonna happen.
Next time on Ice Road Truckers This is gonna be rough! the roads go from bad We're not trucking anymore, we're moto-crossing.
to worse Tires are like fucking skis out there.
as the season Who likes to go this fast on ice? Frickin' nobody.
A little uglier there.
goes slip sliding away.