America’s Toughest Jobs, Episode 2 – I Said A Guy Got Mauled Here
Previously: Crabs and more crabs. Chris thinks women can’t do the job, and then loses to women. Ben almost dies. Senta keeps saying she “can’t” and then is the first to be eliminated
This week: Temple tells us that the 12 remaining will be driving 18-wheelers along the Dalton Highway above the Arctic Circle in Alaska for 500 miles. It is spectacular, but deadly. I would imagine that is better than silent, but deadly.
Boom, boom, boom, bang, bang, bang.
Apparently, long haul trucking is a high stress job that has the most injuries and work-related deaths than any other profession. We see a crash that makes me hope that the poor guy in the car was ok. The contestants took a driver’s test in Fairbanks to learn how to steer and shift an 80,000 pound vehicle that is four times wider than a car. There are 10 gears and a double clutch. You need to match the speed of the engine to best shift gears as we see a montage of bad gear shifting.
6:02 AM. Many high-fives, it’s like picking my kid up at day care. I taught him how to fist bump too. Good times. Temple introduces them to Fred Ready, the Director of Alaskan Teamsters Training. The drivers will be put into teams of two and paired with an instructor. The worst four will have to run a skills test and the worst time goes home. One will drive the first leg to Cold Foot and the other will drive the second leg to Dead Horse.
I’m telling you, I have been talking about Alaska more in the last week and a half than I have ever done in my life. I will say this and try to lay off the political stuff: they sure have interesting town names up there.
Rick is talking about driving a steel trap of death. I think that should not be in the Monster.com job posting. The teams of two are Rick/Michaela, Chris/Phil, Eric/Steven, Bryce/Ben, Rie/Amy, and Rommel/Sandy. Note how he pronounces it rom-ELL, trying to distance himself from that Nazi thing I guess. As he starts the car, Not Nazi crosses himself and then stalls the truck several times. Sandy can’t help but laugh.
Driving the first leg to Cold Foot are Rick, Chris, Rie, Bryce, Rommel and Eric. The Dalton Highway runs along the Alaskan Pipeline and is only half paved. Good job by the local small town governments and state government to maintain safe roads. Sorry, I swear, that is will be all from me. The route has the highest pay for truckers, but the highest mortality rate.
The first 50 miles is a big straightaway and the drivers start to get their skills down. Rie is going a nice speed and Rick is practicing shifting. Bryce is having a hard time navigating the wide load on the small road. Chris tells his instructor Tim, who will be known as the Amazing Tim from this point on, that his job is “to make you happy.” Amazing Tim tells him his job is to “drive the truck without tearing it up.” See, Amazing Tim. Chris has an annoying TH (talking head) where he calls himself a “good husband, good father, good son, and a good brother.” He is a “stand up guy” and compares himself to a horse, seriously, and that you have to let a “thoroughbred run.” Get used to Chris being annoying, folks.
Amazing Tim asks him repeatedly what he should be doing, and Chris thinks that looking left and right is the answer. No. It’s downshifting because they are approaching a hill. You need to downshift to get more power and be able to get the truck up the hill. Phil talks about how hard that is to have your hands and feet act so independently. Am I crazy, or was Phil in the first episode? I don’t remember him. He must have been the most non-descript crab fisherman ever.
Chris keeps having trouble and winds up in a dead stop. Amazing Tim tries to help him, but Chris is riding the brake and the cab is shaking. Instructors have the power to kick someone out of the driver’s seat if they think they are a danger. Chris is not off to a good start.
Commercials – Brian Williams talking about Gustav. I can’t look at him without thinking about his appearance on Sesame Street last year talking about a giant squid. I keep expecting him to blame the storm on the squid. Yes, I have a two-year-old and yes, sometimes my mind wanders.
Chris is finally moving and they are only 72 miles out of Fairbanks now. If you thought uphill was tough, now they must go downhill. Brakes will not slow the truck, you must downshift. Braking will cause crashing. Bryce gets yelled at to get off the brake. He says that coming over the hill and not seeing the bottom was scary. I’ll bet. Wayne the Instructor warns him again about burning out the brakes.
Meanwhile, Rie and Rick are rocking the challenge. Rommel, not so much. He stalled on an incline. Repeatedly. He says he almost peed himself. Sandy mocks him that school buses are passing them.
Oh, they are driving towards an Arctic Storm. Fun.
Amazing Tim takes his glasses off and rubs his eyes in frustration as he tells Chris to slow down and drop a gear. He does it badly. And then very badly. The cab is shaking again. Amazing Tim has had enough and takes the ball from Chris (baseball reference) and brings in Phil. Tim thinks they could have lost the transmission. Chris is full of excuses, that it’s “not how many you were good, it’s how many you are bad.” Meanwhile, Phil? Is a natural truck driver. Who knew?
Rick, Eric and Rie are still rocking and now Phil is as well. Bryce and Rommel limp into Cold Foot, Population: 13. Biting. My. Tongue.
Temple condescendingly asks about Team Lady Truck. Rie and Amy think they were awesome. Temple asks if they are friends, because women can’t be friends in this setting, right? Granted, they have issues later, but I found that a bit sexist. Much more than questioning the qualifications of some other Alaskans. Damn. I did it again.
Chris says that it was up to Tim to tell him “adios” and that “it’s ok.” Temple is surprised by the blasé attitude. He asks if he would jump back in if Tim let him. Chris doesn’t know and he’s pissed off. Good attitude, Chris.
Nighttime. They are sleeping in the cabs and it is a bright, sunny midnight in the Arctic. Steven thinks he is building stories and will be the “coolest granddad on the block.” Eric thinks he should have kids first. Ha! Crazy Eric, who will be not heard from again tonight, made a funny.
Commercials – I am impressed that my wife knows who Roger Federer is.
Leg 2, and seriously, this one looks much tougher. Ben tries to get into the passenger side. Nice start. Amy thinks this is the biggest opportunity of her life. Ever. And that “I will die, I will not go home.” Amy scares me a bit.
6:50 AM. Phil has noticed many a memorial cross and wreath on the road. That scares him. Meanwhile, Chris is sleeping behind him. They have now come across a giant truck carcass on the side of the road. It scares them. That is basically the extent of this part. I hope the driver is ok.
|
(1) 2 »
The comments are owned by the poster. We aren't responsible for their content.
|
|
|
