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===Specials===
===Specials===
Two additional specials have been produced. The first, ''Then and Now'', premiered on [[August 26]], [[2007]], ran for an hour and provided a look into the development and future of Canada's ice roads. Clips from season 1 were featured, as well as further commentary from Hugh, Alex, and road pioneer [[John Denison]]. ''Off the Ice'', a two-hour broadcast, will premiere on [[September 2]], [[2007]], bringing all six truckers together for a chance to express their thoughts about the job and each other.
Two additional one-hour specials have been produced. The first, ''Then and Now'', premiered on [[August 26]], [[2007]] and provided a look into the development and future of Canada's ice roads. Clips from season 1 were featured, as well as further commentary from Hugh, Alex, and road pioneer [[John Denison]]. ''Off the Ice'' will premiere on [[September 2]], [[2007]], bringing all six truckers together for a chance to express their thoughts about the job and each other.


==DVD Set==
==DVD Set==

Revision as of 17:13, 1 September 2007

Ice Road Truckers
Truck crashing through an ice road
CG truck crashing through an ice road
GenreDocumentary, Reality show
StarringRick Yemm, Hugh Rowland, Alex Debogorski, T.J. Tilcox, Drew Sherwood, Jay Westgard
Narrated byThom Beers
Theme music composerAerosmith
Opening themeLivin' on the Edge
Country of origin United States
Original languageEnglish
No. of seasons1
No. of episodes10 (season 1)
Production
ProducersDavid McKillop, Dolores Gavin, Thom Beers, Philip Segal, Dawn Fitzgerald, Adam Martin, Aron Plucinski
Running time60 minutes
Original release
NetworkHistory Channel
ReleaseJune 17, 2007 –
August 19, 2007

Ice Road Truckers is a documentary-style reality television series that debuted on The History Channel on June 17, 2007 in the 10:00 PM Eastern time slot. The series has been heavily promoted on The History Channel, with commercials featuring the theme song for the show: "Livin' on the Edge" by the rock band Aerosmith.

History

In 2000, The History Channel aired a 46-minute documentary called Ice Road Truckers as part of the former Suicide Missions series, which was renamed Dangerous Missions after the September 11th attacks. Based on the book Denison's Ice Road by Edith Iglauer, the documentary detailed the treacherous job of driving trucks over frozen lakes, also known as ice roads, in Canada's Northwest Territories.[1] After 2000, reruns of the documentary were aired as episodes of the show Modern Marvels.

In 2007, Ice Road Truckers was spun off into a new series, also aired by The History Channel. The show is produced and narrated by Thom Beers of Original Productions, who is noted for narrating popular Discovery Channel shows such as Monster Garage. Shot in high definition, the show "charts two months in the lives of six extraordinary men who haul vital supplies to diamond mines over frozen lakes that double as roads".[2]. During the finale of the show's first season of 10 episodes, The History Channel aired a promo for season 2, but no premiere date was announced.

Critical Acclaim

The series launched on The History Channel to record high ratings of 3.4 million overall viewers ("the most-watched original telecast in The History Channel's own 12 year history").[3]. The series has garnered glowing reviews from several critics. Remarks include "Everything about 'Ice Road Truckers' is astonishing" [4], "episodes of Ice Road Truckers are quite fascinating" [5], and "A certain television viewer, then, the one who hates network fluff but who cautiously enjoys an informative program about life’s gritty hardships (and workaday chances for swashbuckling), may find himself with a hole in his schedule — and a quiet longing in his stoic heart". [6]

Cast

Hugh Rowland

A rough-around-the-edges 20-year veteran of Ice Road trucking, Hugh is 50 years old and is based in Kelowna in southern B.C. He is known by the Ice Road trucking community as "The Polar Bear," which is a reference to his strong personality, bearish attitude, stamina and consistently high number of loads delivered per season. Hugh owns four trucks and drives one while the other three are manned by ice road rookies Drew Sherwood and Todd White, as well as friend and co-worker Rick Yemm. Hugh's trucks all have the emblem R&R Hoe Services on the doors.

During the course of the season, all of Hugh's hired drivers end up prematurely leaving the ice road for reasons such as banishment for excessive speeding in Todd's case, to heated disagreements as to the working condition of Hugh's trucks in Rick and Drew's case. Hugh's truck is called "The Crow's Nest".

Rick Yemm

One of Hugh Rowland's employees, this brash, tattooed trucker from Kelowna, B.C., was in his second year as an Ice Road trucker. In 2006, Yemm was one of the first truckers onto the Ice Road after it opened, when the sound of cracking ice was loudest. This stressful experience almost caused Yemm to quit driving on the Ice Road. He decided to continue, however, remarking "I was too stupid and too stubborn to quit". During this season Hugh's truck foot heater was broken, and Rick was risking frostbite. A source of tension between Rick and Hugh, Rick tried to put up with the broken heater and freezing temperatures in the cab so that he could keep hauling loads and make money. However, feeling that Hugh was not fulfilling his responsibilities to maintain the trucks, Rick quit the ice road and returned home.

Alex Debogorski

A legend in the Ice Road trucking community, 2007 marked Debogorski's 26th year as an Ice Road trucker. Debogorski is the father of eleven children, seven grandchildren, and is a year round resident of Yellowknife. As stated in the series, being that he has been a staple driving the ice roads, it is something of a good-luck charm for Alex to pull the first load over the ice roads at the beginning of every season.

Jay Westgard

Jay is also a year round resident of Yellowknife. Despite his relative youth, Westgard is considered by the Ice Road community as the most talented driver of his generation. Westgard is currently 25 years old. He began driving trucks at age 16, and owned his first truck by age 18; at the time of his introduction, Westgard had acquired a reputation as a driver who excels in hauling oversized loads. Because of his experience, he is entrusted with delivering some of the more demanding loads, such as a huge 48-ton ore scrubber. He also agrees to lead a convoy hauling vital jet fuel to remote Deline—a job most veterans would turn down because the trip is very risky.

T.J. Tilcox

A 21 year-old ice road rookie Tilcox is vocal about how he hates the cold, the ice, and how he is here for the experience, not the money. Tilcox has been trucking since age 16, and decided to try ice road trucking after seeing an advertisement in the paper. By his own admission, Tilcox is a "very nervous" person, a fact made evident by his inability to urinate during his drug screening. One question posed by the series is whether Tilcox has the wherewithal to survive the cold should he become stranded. He starts the season with an older truck with no heat, but moves to a brand new Volvo truck from Trinity Transportation. This new truck was acquired when a co-worker decided not to finish out the remainder of the ice road season. Tilcox proceeds to get in an accident before ever hitting the ice road with his new truck, due to a failure of an air hose. Tilcox is cleared of responsibility and allowed back on the road, after a delay to be shuffled back into the queue. After the accident Tilcox is injured while tying down a load, and several days later experiences severe abdominal pain which becomes so bad that he has to be flown out to receive medical care. Tilcox is able to return to the ice roads after being treated for his injuries. Fortunately, his insurance covered the twelve thousand dollar bill [1]. Despite his ordeals, Tilcox gains respect for the job and the men who do it as well as self-satisfaction at himself having run for the entire season—a rare feat for a rookie.

Drew Sherwood

Drew is a veteran trucker, but an Ice Road rookie. He joined Hugh Rowland’s team after answering an advertisement in the local newspaper. Sherwood shows a high degree of confidence that he will have no problems adjusting from highway to ice driving. Rowland considers Sherwood an arrogant rookie and a "one year driver". In the series premiere, Sherwood states "I have no intention of going into a ditch, bro", which is soon followed by his driving into a ditch. His hard luck continues when he subsequently loses his battery box and batteries (resulting in two days lost while a replacement box is fabricated on the spot), suffers a flat tire, and then experiences problems with his truck’s on-board computer that forces him to abandon a load on the roadside. This truck is eventually put up for sale after the ice road season.[7] Sherwood ends up driving the truck of fellow driver Todd White (who is banned from the roads for excessive speeding) just to pick up where he left off. After further mechanical problems with this second truck, Drew decides to leave the ice roads and return home.

Todd White

Todd works for Hugh Rowland, comes from the eastern coast Canada and is a self proclaimed trucker and singer. He responded to an ad that Hugh placed, and was hired as part of his crew after a seven year absence from ice road trucking. One of the main reasons Todd returned to ice road trucking was the need for $20,000 to repair his own truck. Todd was banned from ice road trucking after a speeding violation where he was clocked at 63 in a 40 Km/h zone. Todd claimed he missed a speed limit sign, but his appeal was denied.

Supporting Cast

Tom Tweed

Tom is a dispatcher for Tli Cho Landtran in Yellowknife.

Rick Fitch

Rick is a projects manager for Tli Cho Landtran, and is seen responding to several accidents in the series.

Ken Murray

Ken is an officer for Secure Check. Secure Check is responsible for security and rules enforcement for the winter ice road. A first time speeding ticket can result in a five day suspension from ice road driving.

Lee Parkenson

Lee operates a garage in Yellowknife, and is often seen fixing Hugh Roland's trucks.

Episodes

At the top of the world, there's an outpost like no other…and a job only a few would dare. The mission: To haul critical supplies across 350 miles of frozen lakes to Canada's remote billion-dollar diamond mines. The challenge: to transport 10,000 loads in 60 days—before the road disappears. The rewards are great; the risks even greater. These are the men who make their living on thin ice.

— Thom Beers, opening of the show

Ready to Roll

The series premiere, which aired June 17, 2007. Six ice road truckers are introduced, and ice road truckers are described as men driving eighteen wheelers who haul equipment and supplies from Yellowknife, Canada, across a temporary road comprised of portages and frozen lakes, the destination being one of three diamond mines located to the northeast of Yellowknife. Nuna Logistics construction crews began by defining and strengthening a 350-mile (560 km) highway that crosses permafrost and frozen lakes. When the ice over the frozen lakes reaches a thickness considered to be safe, the road is officially opened, and the truckers begin carrying loads across what is considered to be the most dangerous road in the world. Highlights include: Drew crashing into a ditch, T.J. making his first ice road run. At the end of the episode, the load count was as follows:

Ice Road Load Count
The Count Alex Drew Jay Hugh Rick TJ
Loads 1 1 1 1 1 1

Destination: Diamond Mine

This episode premiered June 24, 2007. The road is stopped due to a traffic jam. Jay hauls a 17-ton water tank, while Hugh and Rick begin a season-long competition to see who can achieve the highest load count. Hugh and Rick deal with mechanical issues and T.J. loses the heat in his truck. At the end of the episode, the load count was shown, now with a tally of cash earned. The load count was as follows:


Ice Road Load Count
The Count Alex Drew Jay Hugh Rick TJ
Tons 103 66 82 51 66 53
Estimated Cash 11.2K 8.6K 7.5K 9.2K 9.4K 7.8K

Dash for the Cash

This episode first aired July 1, 2007. The road is closed due to a strong Arctic storm. Also, Alex transports a desperately-needed piece of equipment to the mine; a 44,000-pound diamond-ore crusher.

Ice Road Load Count
The Count Alex Drew Jay Hugh Rick TJ
Tons 125 60 87 110 86 65
Estimated Cash 13K 10K 9.2K 10.8K 11.2K 10K

The Big Chill

This episode premiered July 8, 2007. On the 18th day of the season a 50-ton fuel tanker flips over at the start of the ice road. Jay hauls three giant water purifiers to the De Beers diamond mine. Drew gets back out from the garage, while fellow rookie TJ weatherproofs his truck with duct tape.

Ice Road Load Count
The Count Alex Hugh Rick TJ Drew Jay
Tons 176 163 140 122 60 97
Estimated Cash 16.2K 15.6K 14.4K 12.2K 10.2K 10K

Midseason Mayhem

The fifth episode premiered on July 15, 2007. The season is half way over with 4,000 loads taken but with 6,000 to go. Reckless speeding has led to blowouts on the ice road. More than one driver faces harsh repercussions after being caught speeding - Todd is banned from the ice road after he is clocked going 23 km/h (about 14 mph) over the speed limit. A fuel tanker flip on the Ingraham Trail not only blocks traffic but also threatens the Yellowknife River with fuel spillage. T.J. leaves the yard with a new rig, and almost immediately has an accident when his brakes malfunction.

Ice Road Load Count
The Count Alex Hugh Rick Jay TJ Drew
Tons 262 214 202 173 177 116
Estimated Cash 21.2K 20.4K 17.2K 16.8K 15.4K 13.4K

Driving on Thin Ice

This episode premiered on July 22, 2007 and was the sixth episode this season. Jay takes a 95,000-pound diamond ore scrubber to the De Beers mine, the scrubber had to be delivered or else the mine couldn't go into operation in the fall. TJ's accident from the last episode was investigated, and emergency crews responded to a truck that partially went through the ice.

Ice Road Load Count
The Count Alex Hugh Jay Rick Drew TJ
Tons 346 249 242 254 127 198
Estimated Cash 26.0K 23.6K 22.8K 20.2K 16.2K 15.4K

The Rookie Challenge

This episode premiered on July 29, 2007. Alex makes a run over a new road to return a mobile housing unit to Yellowknife, and is temporarily stranded when his truck loses momentum trying to climb a hill. Drew faces more challenges when his truck runs out of diesel fuel. Despite being refueled, the lines freeze and Drew is forced to wait in his hotel room while they thaw in the garage. After being convinced by his wife to keep trying, he attempts to make another run, but the brakes on his trailer lock up. Drew switches to another trailer, but the brakes on the new one fail too, costing him another day. The final straw is a coolant line failure in his truck's engine bay. After being told it would take 1-2 days for repairs due to no room in the shop, Drew makes the decision to return home. He receives his pay from Hugh and turns in his driver number. Hugh on the other hand nearly misses a run due to a flat tire discovered during an oil change, but is able to get a replacement and hits the road. T.J. requests medical assistance as the conditions from his injury worsen, requiring him to be flown from the Dome Lake Camp back to Yellowknife for treatment. Following his release from the hospital, T.J. passes a physical to allow him back on the roads.

Ice Road Load Count
The Count Alex Hugh Jay Rick Drew TJ
Tons 412 376 333 329 220 213
Estimated Cash 31.0K 29.4K 28.0K 25.0K 19.0K 18.4K

Into the Whiteout

This episode premiered on August 5, 2007. There are still thousands of loads to be delivered to the various mines, but the end of the season is in sight. Complicating matters is the fact that an Arctic storm is bearing down on northwestern Canada. Because of storm, special permission is granted allowing five trucks to head to the mines instead of the usual four. Drivers Alex, Jay, Rick, T.J., and newcomer Cody form up in this special convoy. At a rest stop, T.J. oversleeps and the convoy continues on without him. T.J. later leaves with another driver from the company he was driving for. The four remaining drivers head north to the mines, arriving just as the storm comes in, and are forced to stay at the mines because the ice roads have been closed down. During the storm, three drivers - including T.J. - go missing. It's later learned that T.J. had stopped at a portage and waited out the storm there. Meanwhile, Hugh brings his friend Danny in to replace Drew, and drive Drew's rig. Danny does not get very far before the truck has further problems, including very little turbo power and an overheating engine.

Ice Road Load Count
The Count Alex Hugh Jay Rick TJ Drew
(Resigned)
Tons 440 418 371 344 233 220
Estimated Cash 32.6K 30.8K 30.5K 26.6K 20.0K 19.0K

The Big Melt

This episode premiered on August 12, 2007. In The Big Melt, the season is starting to wind down as spring inches nearer and the ice covering the lakes begins to melt. There is a push to get vital loads up to the mines before the ice roads become unusable. Alex takes a housing unit over an ice road to a closed mine in the process of being cleaned up. Jay leads a special convoy to the remote village of Deline with vital supplies - facing a number of challenges throughout the trip. After the first trailer he takes causes him to be overweight, he switches loads with another driver with a lighter truck. Then one of the trucks in the convoy has a fuel tank that comes lose, gets stuck underneath the truck, and is punctured when it hits the ground. This forces the convoy to stop to clean up the spill as best they can, and to remove the tank from underneath his truck. Rick confronts Hugh about the issues he is having with his rig - specifically the non-functional heaters, and decides that the time has come for him to leave the ice road as well. Rick hopes that he can continue being friends with Hugh, but states that he would never work for the man again. A new leader in the "dash for the cash" appears, Hugh has over taken Alex in the money count.

Ice Road Load Count
The Count Hugh Alex Jay TJ Rick
(Resigned)		 Drew
(Resigned)
Tons 572 498 440 288 374 220
Estimated Cash 42.8K 41.4K 39.5K 29.0K 28.0K 19.0K

The Final Run

This episode, which is the the final episode in season one, premiered on August 19, 2007. The ice covering the lakes continues to melt as warmer weather finally arrives, and the ice road season winds down. Hugh is involved in an accident when he is sideswiped by another truck. Not only is his truck crippled by the accident, but one of the bags of ammonium nitrate he was carrying begins leaking on to the ice - which melts the ice at an even faster rate. Hugh and ice road maintenance crews work to contain the spill and clean the ammonium nitrate off the road. Another truck takes the load north while Hugh returns to Yellowknife. Jay takes an underground rock truck north to the Fortune mine. Trying to climb a steep hill he becomes stuck due to the way the load sits on his truck, but fortunately there is a bulldozer on site to pull him the rest of the way. After reaching the mine and unloading the rock truck, Jay heads home for the season. Hugh manages to get one of his other trucks working, and takes a final load north. Alex convinces officials to allow him to take a light load north on his own, it turns out to be his final load of the season as the road is closed soon afterwards. And a raven, sacred to the north, flies by TJ for a second time as he takes his final load north, capping a remarkable rookie season. The season turns out to be one of the most successful seasons so far, with 10,922 loads, or 662,000,000 pounds, delivered.

Ice Road Load Count
The Count Hugh Alex Jay TJ Rick
(Resigned)		 Drew
(Resigned)
Tons 722 648 542 363 374 220
Estimated Cash 58.4K 57.0K 57.5K 37.0K 28.0K 19.0K
Loads 37 36 35 23 18 13

Specials

Two additional one-hour specials have been produced. The first, Then and Now, premiered on August 26, 2007 and provided a look into the development and future of Canada's ice roads. Clips from season 1 were featured, as well as further commentary from Hugh, Alex, and road pioneer John Denison. Off the Ice will premiere on September 2, 2007, bringing all six truckers together for a chance to express their thoughts about the job and each other.

DVD Set

A three disc DVD set of the series will ship November 30, 2007. It will include 3 DVDs and will feature 470+ minutes of footage, but will contain no closed captioning. [8]

Website

The History Channel also incorporates an interactive mini-site, featuring interviews, maps and articles on topics such as female ice road truckers and daily life in Yellowknife. The site also offers third-party provided games from popstarsplus.com such as “Pimp Your Rig”, which allows visitors to create their own virtual ice road truck, and a driving game where visitors can test their skills driving loads over virtual ice.[9]

Ice Road Route, Stops, and Destinations

  • Lockhart Lake Rest Stop
  • Colomac Mine - a closed gold mine that was recently cleaned up due to the risk the mine’s toxic materials presented to the environment. Now that the cleanup is finished, truckers (including Alex) are being called in to haul away equipment.
  • Tundra Mine - a gold mine that stopped production in 1968 and is now undergoing environmental cleanup. Equipment from the Colomac Mine is being transferred here to assist workers with the cleanup.

Season 2

At the end of The Final Run, it was announced that there will be another season of the program. It was stated as "COMING SOON"

Quotations

"It's not just a job, it's a job to die for!"

"You make a mistake, you will get in trouble."

"These truckers would not be able to do this job if they weren't some of the toughest guys out there."

"It's called the dash for the cash."

References

  1. ^ IMDb.com Ice Road Truckers (2000) (TV)
  2. ^ History.com About the Ice Road Truckers series
  3. ^ http://www.realitytvworld.com/news/ice-road-truckers-debut-sets-history-channel-ratings-records-5383.php
  4. ^ http://www.nypost.com/seven/06232007/tv/slide_show_tv_adam_buckman.htm
  5. ^ http://blogcritics.org/archives/2007/06/12/083330.php
  6. ^ http://www.nytimes.com/2007/06/22/arts/television/22truc.html?ex=1183521600&en=b2a59f29ea23c215&ei=5070
  7. ^ Canadatrader.com1997 Freightliner owned by Hugh Rowland for sale
  8. ^ AETV Store http://store.aetv.com/html/product/index.jhtml?id=77610
  9. ^ Pop Stars Plus Ice Road Truckers

See also

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Ice_Road_Truckers&oldid=155046052"