Ice Road Truckers

During the harsh winter of Canada’s Northwest Territory, remote villages and work camps are cut off from the world. To keep them supplied, a tenacious group of long-haul truckers drive their rigs over hundreds of miles on ice roads cut across the surface of frozen lakes. Sometimes the ice cannot support the heavy rig, and driver and cargo plunge through the ice and sink to the bottom. Hitch a risky ride along with the Ice Road Truckers as they drive headlong into bone-chilling danger.

This season, Ice Road Truckers is in the remote communities of Inuvik and Tuktoyaktuk, over 100 north of the Arctic Circle. Two clients, the Mallik Gas Hydrate Research Project and MGM Energy, rely on the short ice road season as the sole supply for their energy ventures. In about two months, or until the ice roads melt, these clients collaborate with three competitive trucking companies who must work together to move hundreds of heavy and oversized loads over frozen river and ocean water through fatally cold and often dangerous storm conditions.

This season, Ice Road Truckers is headed to Alaska—250 miles north of the Arctic Circle. Trucker legends Hugh “Polar Bear” Rowland and Alex Debogorski return to take on the most death-defying road so far. Hundred-foot cliffs, hairpin curves, avalanches and -70 degree temperatures are just a few of the challenges that await them. And here in Alaska, Hugh and Alex are no longer considered the kings of the road. Their co-workers at Carlile Transportation, including veteran George Spears, the “King of the Haul Road,” and the fearless Jack Jesse, know what it’s like to haul everything from giant loads of construction materials to oversized drilling rigs across the deadliest ice passage in North America, and they’re looking to show Hugh and Alex a thing or two about driving in Alaska.

The Ice Road Truckers return to Alaska, hauling their biggest loads ever across the most dangerous terrain they’ve faced. But this year, trucking critically needed cargo north to the oil fields of Prudhoe Bay is just the beginning. The drivers will tackle frozen rivers and swamps out beyond the Dalton Highway, hauling supplies to some of the most remote towns of the Great White North. Reigning king Jack Jesse looks to defend his title, and Lisa Kelly, one of the only woman truckers on the haul road, fights to prove herself in the male-dominated profession. Rookie Ray Veilleux, who recently lost his business in the lower 48, has come north to run the road and keep his struggling family afloat. And, continuing their decades-long rivalry, veteran drivers Hugh Rowland and Alex Debogorski are back racing neck and neck. The stakes are high as the dash for cash is on again.

This season, from Prudhoe Bay, Alaska, to northern Canada’s Manitoba Province, the ice road truckers will risk it all to deliver essential goods and supplies to the oil fields and villages that dot the planet’s harshest landscape. Along the way they will battle temperatures that plunge to -40 degrees, blinding snowstorms and thinning ice. Three new faces will take on veteran drivers Hugh Rowland, Alex Debogorski and Lisa Kelly to see if they have what it takes to win the dash for the cash.

This season, the Ice Road Truckers battle the farthest reaches of the North American continent. In Alaska, oil exploration is at an all-time high, and Carlile drivers are preparing for the busiest season in Dalton history. This year, they’ll push past Prudhoe Bay and head out onto the remote oil fields of the North Slope. In Manitoba, Canada, warm weather has made the normally rough winter roads barely passable, and every driver will be forced to battle the thinnest ice the winter roads have ever seen. In the Yukon, drivers take to Canada’s Dempster Highway, crossing rivers, lakes and even the Arctic Ocean to make deliveries to the northernmost settlements accessible by ice road.

The battle lines are drawn in Manitoba, Canada. Hugh “Polar Bear” Rowland returns after quitting his job at Polar Industries and sets up his own shop right down the street. Bound and determined to reclaim his crown as “King of the Road,” he poaches Polar’s dispatcher, intent on landing enough loads to force his old company into submission. Hugh rounds up the toughest truckers he can find and they hit the winter roads. However, Polar Industries and its owner, Mark Kohaykewych, aren’t about to take this challenge lying down. To counter this threat on their turf, they enlist some of Hugh’s biggest rivals. Ice road legend Alex Debogorski signs on with Polar as well as Alaskan trucking icon Lisa Kelly, after a year hiatus. Montana legend Darrell Ward is also enlisted by the crew at Polar. This season also chronicles an eccentric mechanic way up north who dances to the beat of a completely different drum. Joey Barnes, nicknamed “The King of Obsolete,” fills his yard with trucks from decades past. Many of the vehicles are rarities, and some have been re-engineered as Joey’s own unique pieces of equipment. He’s taken it upon himself to use his fleet of trucks to rescue those stuck in the most remote corners of Manitoba.

This season, the toughest job in the world just got tougher. A polar vortex has descended onto the Canadian backcountry, creating the most severe winter in over a century. Freezing winds, towering snow and blinding whiteouts push the drivers to their emotional and physical breaking points. Despite the brutal conditions, Polar Industries and VP Express aren’t backing down from the war that started last year. VP boss Hugh Rowland has stolen ice road legend Alex Debogorski away from Polar. Although they’ve been rivals in the past, having the two titans together on the same team might just provide the edge VP needs to run Polar out of town.

The battle for supremacy on the winter roads begins a bold new chapter. After two seasons of domination, Polar Industries is back to defend its place as load count champs in Manitoba, but Darrell Ward is ready to take on his former employer with his upstart company. He’s also stealing one of Polar’s superstar drivers to help him try to win the fight–Lisa Kelly. After breaking through the ice at the end of last season, not only is Lisa joining forces with the Montana Legend, she’s even getting a percentage of the company.

Polar Industries is back to defend its place as load count champs in Manitoba. But Darrell Ward and Lisa Kelly are not backing down. In fact, they are building a trucking empire of their own and won't let Polar stand in their way.

As the Ice Road Truckers head into season 11, a tragedy has shaken them to the core—the loss of one of their brother in arms. Meanwhile, old rivalries are shattered when Lisa and Darrell’s son, Reno, join the Polar squad, uniting everyone onto one team. Together, they must haul a massive cargo load through yet another warm winter—a risk that could cost them everything.