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BRITCOM III
  • 2 days ago

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00:00This time on Outback Truckers.
00:03And there it is in front of me.
00:05A thousand k of red dust.
00:07Every day on a dirt road is a roll of the dice.
00:11I see a fair bit of water laying on the road.
00:13This is bloody scary.
00:14If it rains, it turns into a quagmire.
00:17We're going across the Nullarbor.
00:19This will be very, very tight.
00:21Pay attention, son.
00:23Pay attention.
00:25This is going to be a problem.
00:26If we find someone now, we might have half a chance.
00:32Better if it's what I call a make or break.
00:34You either make it up or you break something going up.
00:38If a gas pellet comes over the side, it could explode.
00:42This is what's known as hell.
00:52So how'd you go, Slick?
00:54You've got about two inches in between each egg.
00:58Shit, they're close, aren't they?
01:00When we get out in the dirt and things are rocking and rolling.
01:03I think we should be right.
01:0572-year-old Steve Graham and his subcontractor, Slick Serafini,
01:11are using every available inch of trailer space
01:14to load valuable cargo.
01:16We've got some second-hand mining gear on the front trailer,
01:21but this trailer here is what worries me.
01:23He's a very good customer in Perth,
01:25and he's bought some good cars.
01:27He doesn't want them scratched.
01:30If you can't handle grease in this job, get out of it.
01:34What we've got in front of us is about 2,700 kilometres,
01:38and I've got 1,100 kilometres of dirt in there, of desert.
01:40From Alice Springs, Steve will haul the 60-tonne-loaded rig past Uluru
01:46before hitting the Great Central Road,
01:49over 1,000 kilometres of ragged dirt,
01:52crossing into Western Australia
01:54and then onto his destination, Perth.
01:58It's ominous.
01:58A sky like this is not good when you're heading out in the dirt.
02:02If it rains, there's no bitumen out there.
02:05It turns into a quagmire.
02:06And it did rain all yesterday.
02:09People in Alice Springs are saying,
02:10don't go, the road will be closed.
02:12If the Great Central Road is closed,
02:15the alternative route would add over 600 kilometres,
02:19an extra day and over $1,000 in diesel to his journey.
02:23The gamble is you're then in the hands of the weather.
02:27Sometimes we might lose money on a load.
02:30So I'm going to get going.
02:31I do like this new motor.
02:37It's settling in now.
02:39It's freed up a lot.
02:40I'm driving it a bit harder than what I was before.
02:44Over a year ago,
02:46Steve invested almost $200,000
02:49installing a new motor
02:51in his 30-year-old Kenworth C501.
02:53600 horsepower in here,
02:572,050 foot-pounder torque
03:00and better fuel economy.
03:03To claw back some of his huge investment,
03:06Steve needs to make money on this run,
03:09delivering his load on time
03:11and in pristine condition.
03:13You've got to get the gear to the other end
03:15without damage
03:16because then people don't want to pay you.
03:18If I'm going to have problems,
03:20it'll be with these bloody cars.
03:22I've only got 50 mil between some of those bumpers.
03:29Here we go.
03:29We've got rain on the windscreen
03:31and we've got wall-to-wall gray skies.
03:35Those clouds are getting fatter and fuller.
03:38It's starting to look quite ominous.
03:41My gut feeling about this is not good at all.
03:44This is the sort of rain
03:45that hangs around for a couple of days.
03:46That's when you get road closures
03:48and or get bombed.
03:54This is bloody scary.
03:56I can see a fair bit of water laying on the road.
04:00It's been raining out there on the dirt.
04:02It just turns to gutless red mud.
04:05This is not good.
04:06This is not good at all.
04:12I'll just go up and throw this in.
04:14Getting me warm, morning work out again.
04:18My wife wants me to go to the gym.
04:25Why do I need to go to a gym?
04:2867-year-old Jim Foodie
04:30is on a mission to haul vital supplies
04:33to his hometown, Bamaga,
04:35on the northernmost tip of Australia.
04:37We have big ticket items
04:39and important items that are bulk,
04:42but so is the little stuff important
04:44to whoever's sending it.
04:45We take anything.
04:48All of this stuff is going to Bamaga
04:49because you can see my highlights is a bit full.
04:53We always deal with Jim
04:54to transport our stuff up, back and forth.
04:58It's a time-critical job
05:01as the approaching tropical wet season
05:03will bring cyclones
05:05and extreme monsoonal rain.
05:08Northern Cape York,
05:09it just gets completely cut off
05:11by road during the wet season.
05:13The road may be out of action
05:14for five months.
05:16This is level two in Tetris.
05:19Foodie's filling up the first
05:21of three trailers with mixed freight,
05:23adding to the 14 pallets
05:25of flammable gas already loaded.
05:27We need to have about 50 pallets of gas
05:30to be able to carry the communities
05:32up there through the wet season.
05:34If we don't,
05:35then it really comes down to
05:37people just have no gas for cooking.
05:40Hospital also,
05:41they rely on us heavily for gas.
05:44The cages that hold the gas
05:45are not designed to go up those roads,
05:48so they come apart sometimes
05:50on the road up to Bamaga.
05:52Foodie's 1,000-kilometre journey
05:55starts at Cairns,
05:56hauling one trailer to Mareeba,
05:59adding a second
05:59and then crossing a steep pass
06:02for a third trailer at Lakeland.
06:04After that,
06:05he takes on Cape York,
06:07fighting through winding ranges
06:09and bone-rattling dirt roads
06:11to his destination,
06:12Bamaga,
06:13accessed only by a ferry
06:15that shuts down at 5pm every day.
06:19A lot of transport operators
06:20just go up and do one trip
06:22and never come back again.
06:23They reckon the roads are too rough,
06:25they don't want the ferry,
06:26so they just don't want to do it.
06:27Well,
06:28someone's got to do it,
06:29and that's us.
06:29So we're heading up to Mareeba.
06:39We need to be up the mountain
06:41and then hooking up trailers
06:42about daylight.
06:46Piranda Range
06:47is notoriously
06:48a very narrow winding road,
06:50so it's a bit of a handful.
06:52You really need to keep
06:53your wits about you.
06:54Right now,
06:59we're going through
07:00a pretty bad,
07:01bad patch of fog here,
07:03and it can be
07:05greasy and wet
07:06when it rains,
07:07so it's not
07:09to be taken lightly.
07:10We're about to reach
07:18the road train pad
07:19where our trailer
07:20of Dolly is.
07:29I'm going to do
07:29a little tight manoeuvre.
07:31It's a bit hard to see
07:31what we're doing.
07:32Just knocking out
07:38a few of these posts here
07:39to give the council
07:41something to do.
07:47We're good to go.
07:48This is a 1997
07:59Western Star
08:00Constellation,
08:01a 600 horsepower,
08:0318-speed gearbox.
08:05We've got 80-plus tonnes
08:08on here.
08:08You can feel it.
08:09Makes the engine
08:10work a little bit.
08:13We're going to start
08:14heading up
08:15to the Zaley Range.
08:18Part of the
08:18Great Dividing Range,
08:20the Passover
08:21De Saley Range
08:22rises 120 metres
08:24in just two kilometres.
08:27A challenge
08:27for any car,
08:29let alone
08:29a 27-year-old truck,
08:32pulling over 80 tons.
08:34It's what I call
08:35a make or break.
08:36You either make it up
08:37or you break something
08:38going up.
08:40We'll see some
08:41high temperatures
08:42in the engine
08:42and high temperature
08:44in the gearbox.
08:48Back in the low range
08:49and I'm going to go
08:50right back to the third
08:51here.
08:54This is our steepest
08:56little pitch right here.
08:59Our diffs are heating up.
09:00The diff,
09:02or differential,
09:03transfers the power
09:04of the engine
09:05to the wheels.
09:06If it overheats,
09:07it could seize,
09:09bringing the truck
09:09to a grinding halt,
09:11requiring repairs
09:13that could take weeks.
09:14If we start to warm up
09:15a bit,
09:16I'm going to have to go
09:17for another gear
09:18in an awful hurry.
09:20Yes, we are going hot.
09:22So, here we go.
09:26I don't like doing that.
09:29We've got temperatures
09:30building everywhere
09:30at the moment.
09:32We just keep
09:33our fingers crossed.
09:35Come on, old girl.
09:36You can do it.
09:37The ramps are shorter
09:44than the trailer jetty's.
09:45Come on to that, eh?
09:46Yeah.
09:47Just keep going.
09:47Probably a little bit to you.
09:49That way?
09:49Yep.
09:50Yep.
09:51All right.
09:51Hold it there.
09:53Right, I look good.
09:54We're on.
09:55We're here loading
09:56at Calibra in Brookton
09:57and I'm going to load
09:58two sprayers on
09:59for Victoria.
10:00Put one up here
10:01on the top deck
10:01and put one in behind it.
10:03Keep going.
10:03Oversized load expert
10:06Yogi has delicate,
10:07high-tech,
10:08high-value equipment
10:09to safely transport
10:11and deliver
10:12for innovative
10:13Western Australian
10:14engineering company
10:15Calibra sprayers.
10:17That'll look.
10:19Yep.
10:19You're looking at
10:20over half a million dollars
10:21worth of machinery.
10:22Two 18-metre boom sprays
10:25with 3,000-litre tanks.
10:27When Yogi will get
10:28to his destination
10:29over east,
10:30they will be attached
10:31to the Swarm Series
10:33robotic tractor
10:34for autonomous spraying
10:36so they will no longer
10:37need drivers.
10:39It can just do
10:40its own thing
10:40in the paddock
10:41and they should be able
10:42to do it all through
10:43an app on their phone.
10:45It's amazing technology.
10:48I'm happy with that.
10:50We're going across
10:51the Nullarbor again.
10:53This is the critical point
10:54and we get everything
10:55right first.
10:56We don't want to be
10:56shifting freight
10:57on the Nullarbor.
10:58That costs money and time.
11:01Yogi's epic trip
11:02west to east
11:03will take him through
11:041,200 kilometres
11:06of the punishing
11:07Nullarbor plain
11:08across South Australia
11:10and finally
11:11into Victoria,
11:12a journey of almost
11:133,000 kilometres
11:15across the continent.
11:17All right,
11:17let's do it.
11:18Let's get home.
11:18This truck is a
11:2495 model
11:24Kenworth T900.
11:26PJ is in it.
11:28Just had a major
11:28service done on it
11:29there last week
11:30and looks a bit old
11:32and a bit rough,
11:32a bit like me
11:33but underneath
11:33all strong and solid.
11:35Yogi recently
11:36forked out
11:37$55,000
11:39on a new engine
11:40for PJ.
11:41Cash he desperately
11:42needs to regain
11:43through transport jobs.
11:45If it moves,
11:47it needs maintenance
11:49and that costs money.
11:52Now,
11:53my number one goal
11:54is to have
11:55these two machines
11:56arrive on farm
11:57unscratched,
11:59unmarked,
12:00undamaged
12:01in immaculate condition
12:03because it's my pride,
12:04my reputation,
12:05everything's on the line
12:07about how we deliver.
12:09we hope tonight
12:11we'll leave it
12:11sun up in the morning.
12:17Who are you barking at?
12:19Ho, ho,
12:20big dog.
12:23Hello.
12:24You get your time off,
12:25or?
12:26Yes,
12:26I got time off
12:27so it looks like
12:28we're going to Melbourne.
12:29Yogi's 15-year-old
12:31daughter,
12:31Lucinda,
12:32is keen to go
12:33trucking with her dad
12:34if her mum,
12:36Amanda,
12:36allows it.
12:37Is she going to get
12:38back in time for school?
12:39Probably not.
12:41That's okay.
12:42That's not okay.
12:43That's okay.
12:44There's only limited
12:45space in here,
12:46one bag,
12:47one iPad,
12:48one phone,
12:49right?
12:58Bye, Mum.
12:59Later.
13:03I'm very excited.
13:04I haven't gone across
13:05Nullaby with Dad
13:06for a while,
13:06so,
13:07it should be really good.
13:09And just,
13:09how much am I going to be
13:10able to learn
13:11over, like,
13:12this trip?
13:12Well,
13:13you're looking at the next
13:13generation sitting behind
13:14me here.
13:15A lot of customers
13:16in Western Australia,
13:17they're long-term farmers,
13:19they've got succession plans,
13:21so if I can build
13:22a relationship
13:22with their family,
13:25I can build,
13:25you know,
13:26Lucy can build
13:26a relationship
13:27with their children.
13:29If Lucy decided
13:30to take it over,
13:31I'd be the proudest dad
13:32in the world,
13:33you know?
13:33something's going on here.
13:40Oh,
13:41this bridge should have
13:41been playing here.
13:44No,
13:44we've got problems here.
13:46Oh,
13:47I'm 3.4 metres wide,
13:50there's a lot of money
13:51on the trailer.
13:52Will we make it
13:53over this bridge?
13:55This will be very,
13:56very tight.
14:03If it's been raining
14:04out there on the dirt,
14:06that's when you get
14:07road closures
14:07and or get bogged.
14:10If we get down there
14:11and there's a road close
14:12on,
14:12we're stuffed.
14:13In Central Australia,
14:15Steve Graham
14:16is gambling
14:17on a quicker journey
14:18using dirt roads
14:19through the desert,
14:21but heavy rain
14:22could make the route
14:23impassable.
14:24We have had
14:25some big hold-ups
14:26down here,
14:27but sometimes
14:27we lose money
14:28on a load
14:29because we're stuck
14:29for days.
14:30We have to recoup that.
14:34We've just turned
14:35onto the Lasseter Highway
14:36now,
14:37so I get to drive
14:38out past the rock,
14:39Uluru,
14:40but having a look here,
14:42there's the information
14:43for me,
14:44in black and white
14:45and green.
14:46The roads are open.
14:50That's where we're going,
14:51straight into that
14:52manda cloud,
14:53and it looks like
14:54it's rain out there.
14:56You know,
14:56I can make the biggest
14:57plans of the world
14:58and the outback
15:00in this country here
15:01will decide
15:01what's going on tomorrow.
15:03I'll take what it dishes out.
15:04That's outback trucking.
15:05There we go,
15:20another day starts,
15:21and there it is
15:22in front of me,
15:23red dust.
15:24There's 1,000 km of dirt
15:26from here to Laven.
15:26Oh, there we go,
15:34corrugations,
15:35straight up.
15:36I've only got 40 mil
15:38between two cars.
15:40I don't want the corrugations
15:42to loosen straps
15:43and snap chains
15:44and wreck the cars
15:45down the back,
15:47because then people
15:47don't want to pay you.
15:48It looks like the cloud's gone.
15:56There's a sign
15:57that I'm happy to see.
15:59Grader ahead.
16:00The difference already
16:02is the quietness,
16:03the rattling's gone.
16:06Graded roads
16:06are a wonderful thing.
16:11It's good to be able
16:13to run the dips,
16:13a decent run.
16:14I enjoy this,
16:16so does the dog.
16:18It's a bit of a ride
16:19through the switchback.
16:20It's like being
16:21at the Royal Show.
16:30Hey, Belle.
16:33Did you smell a camel?
16:35Eh?
16:36You got a good nose.
16:39These feral camels,
16:40if they get panicked,
16:41they're straight out
16:41in front of the truck,
16:43and I don't want to be
16:43hitting any wild camels
16:44certainly damage them,
16:46and it doesn't do much
16:48good for my truck.
16:52Wow.
16:53You got rid of him.
16:58I'd have to say
16:59it's a pretty good day today,
17:01and this will do me
17:02for tonight.
17:04I've done probably
17:05600 kilometres
17:06on some pretty shabby dirt.
17:08I don't know how I'll go
17:09getting a good night's rest
17:10in here.
17:11It's a bloody traffic jam.
17:12Look at them all.
17:15Tomorrow, I've still got
17:16a bit under 500km of dirt
17:18to get off this road.
17:20We've picked up
17:20a big mob of traffic,
17:22and the downside is
17:23they're all wrecking the road.
17:25So where I've had
17:26a really good run today,
17:27I'm expecting to have
17:28a big slowdown tomorrow.
17:30here we go.
17:38And the road,
17:45which was beautiful,
17:46has just gone downhill.
17:48every day on a dirt road
17:51is the roll of the dice.
17:55The way we're going
17:56on this road now,
17:56I doubt we'll get off it
17:57tonight.
17:59And that costs money.
18:01You've got to get the gear
18:02to the other end
18:02without damage.
18:05And you've got to try
18:06and get it there on time.
18:09The schedule's blown
18:10out the gate.
18:10There is no longer a schedule.
18:12There's no longer
18:13an arrival time.
18:14It's just dreadful.
18:22I'm 3.4 metres wide.
18:25Will we make it
18:26over this bridge?
18:29This will be very,
18:30very tight.
18:31Pay attention, son.
18:33Pay attention.
18:36Getting there on time
18:38is what you want,
18:39but the load,
18:41getting there in one piece,
18:43is a much more
18:44important problem.
18:48Right, eh?
18:51That was a bit forward,
18:52but anyway,
18:53we got it done.
18:54Yogi has narrowly avoided
18:56expensive damage
18:58to the high-tech,
18:59high-value farming equipment
19:00he's hauling across
19:02the vast Australian continent.
19:05Righty, eh, Lucy, Lou?
19:06We need to just check everything,
19:07make sure it's right.
19:09We've got to stop
19:10for a minute, eh?
19:11I want to check the tyres.
19:12Yogi's 15-year-old daughter,
19:16Lucinda,
19:17is riding shotgun,
19:19seeing first-hand
19:20how the industry works.
19:22Like, I've learnt so much
19:23over time being in truck with Dad.
19:26I think now's the best time
19:27to sort of work out
19:29what I want to do in life.
19:31I'd love to go to trucking.
19:33I've only got two more years
19:33left of school.
19:35I think Dad would be very proud
19:36if I did take over
19:37the business for him.
19:38Oh, all good.
19:38It's a really tough battle
19:42to figure out
19:43if trucking
19:45is financially
19:46a good option.
19:48I think it is,
19:50but
19:50dreams don't work
19:52unless you do.
19:53There's a lot of thinking,
19:55I should be home
19:55at the kids' soccer
19:56or
19:56we should be home
19:58for that
19:58Father's Day present
19:59which you'll miss.
20:00You'll miss your wife's birthday.
20:02You'll miss it all.
20:04I haven't been home
20:04for three days
20:05since Christmas time.
20:07Eight or nine months
20:07into the year.
20:09That work-life balance
20:10is very difficult
20:12to get right
20:13but I've got
20:14a very, very,
20:15very understanding family.
20:22Sun's going out
20:22and it's time for me
20:23to get out of here.
20:24Yeah, I'm getting hungry.
20:26Cooking me dinner?
20:28Yeah, I guess so.
20:31Alright.
20:32Well, I'd love
20:35for you
20:36to be sitting
20:37in the passenger seat
20:37and me drive
20:38across Nullarbor
20:39and Mum piloting us.
20:41Yeah, that'd be
20:42the ultimate.
20:43Yeah.
20:48We're about to go on
20:49to
20:49the 90-mile straight.
20:53146.6 kilometres
20:54of straight road.
20:56No turns.
21:00Today's the day
21:01a point of no return.
21:03If something goes wrong
21:04out here
21:04to bring a mechanic out,
21:06500 kilometres
21:08if I think's the problem,
21:09it's going to cost me
21:10time and days
21:11and money.
21:14A couple of big showers
21:15have come through
21:16last night
21:16and a bit of a storm.
21:17The rain
21:18is a bit of a problem
21:19because the shoulders
21:20get a bit wet
21:21and then we've come
21:22into the narrow section
21:23of the 90-mile straight.
21:25Not a lot of room
21:27to move
21:27if you've seen
21:27another oversize.
21:30These men
21:31have got four metres.
21:33Right you are, bud.
21:34I will find you a spot.
21:36We don't want to be
21:37near any of the edges
21:37when it's wet out here.
21:40Today's one
21:40of the dearest days
21:41to see if something
21:41goes wrong.
21:45The edges are soft.
21:49We don't want
21:50to get popped.
21:55We are going hot.
21:57I'm going to have
21:58to go for another gear
21:59in an awful hurry.
22:00We made it.
22:17The arse chewed
22:18a hole in the seat
22:18I can tell you.
22:19I don't want to go
22:20through that again.
22:21Because if we stopped
22:22on any of those
22:23well we're breaking up
22:24a road train
22:24to get out of it.
22:25But I really don't
22:26want to do that.
22:30You don't want
22:32anything going wrong here.
22:33We've got about
22:3485 tonne pushing us
22:35down a pretty steep
22:37incline.
22:38There's no safety
22:39bets in this place.
22:40You're just going
22:41straight into a rock face.
22:42So if it gets away
22:43on you here
22:44major chances of survival
22:45are absolutely bugger all.
22:51Foodie is giving
22:52his 27 year old
22:53truck a workout
22:54on the great
22:55dividing range.
22:57Desperate to get
22:58his life saving
22:59load to communities.
23:00on the northernmost
23:01tip of Australia.
23:03When it's wet season
23:04up here the trucks
23:05just stop.
23:06All the heavy items
23:07they're too expensive
23:09to ship.
23:10We have to get
23:11everything there.
23:14Here we are
23:15coming in.
23:16I've got to do
23:16a bit of work
23:17in there.
23:17I can slow it.
23:18So we've got to
23:18drop and pick up
23:19trailers and shut
23:20a few things.
23:23Foodie has another
23:24hefty 45 tonne
23:26cement trailer
23:27to hook up
23:28creating a 53 and a half
23:30metre long
23:31triple road train.
23:33We're just playing
23:34musical trailers
23:36at the moment.
23:42Well that's the final
23:43part of the puzzle.
23:45We're rolling
23:46with 130 tonne.
23:49And now we're on the limit
23:50as far as length goes.
23:51We can't be any heavier.
23:53From here about 700 k's
23:57into Bamaga.
24:01We're coming up
24:02on Hell's Gate.
24:03It's a crazy place.
24:06Ahead
24:06the notorious
24:07Hell's Gate Pass.
24:10Foodie needs
24:10enough speed
24:11to pull
24:12130 tonnes
24:13up the steep
24:15incline.
24:16But too much
24:16and he risks
24:17driving straight
24:18through the tight
24:19turns at the top.
24:20You're actually
24:22going uphill
24:23breaking.
24:25We're going to
24:26thunder into it.
24:26We're giving her
24:27everything she's got.
24:29We've got 10%
24:31grade.
24:32Reduced speed.
24:34Look at that
24:35corner there.
24:36We've just got to
24:37judge this corner
24:38right.
24:47Ten days ago
24:48I was doing 60
24:48kilometres an hour
24:49across air.
24:50Now I'm struggling
24:50to get 20.
24:52You can't go fast.
24:54After laying down
24:56almost $200,000
24:57on a new
24:58engine install
24:59Steve is
25:00under pressure
25:01to pay it off
25:02with profitable
25:03jobs.
25:04This is just dreadful.
25:05Fingers crossed
25:06I'm not breaking
25:06stuff.
25:08But deep
25:09rutted
25:09corrugations
25:10on the brutal
25:11Great Central Road
25:12have slowed
25:13him to a crawl.
25:15That means
25:16my delivery
25:17time goes out
25:18my schedule goes
25:19backwards
25:19and that costs
25:21money.
25:22I can't give my
25:23customers an estimated
25:24time of arrival.
25:26I would be foolish
25:27to grab that
25:28satellite phone
25:29and suggest
25:29look I'll be there
25:30tomorrow.
25:31I don't know that.
25:32This will get there
25:33when we get there.
25:33I'd say that'll do
25:43us for today
25:43Bill.
25:45In a punishing
25:4611 hour day
25:47Steve has travelled
25:49less than 500
25:50kilometres
25:51on severe
25:52corrugations
25:53but the end
25:54is in sight.
25:56About 500 metres
25:57from here
25:58is the
25:59bitumen.
26:00and by
26:02gee
26:03after today
26:04I will be
26:05happy to
26:06see the
26:06stuff.
26:12I'm flogged.
26:14We're going to
26:14knock off
26:15light a fire
26:17cook a feed
26:17and go to bed.
26:18Well this is it
26:27Belle, there's
26:28the black stuff.
26:29Bitumen.
26:31It's alright,
26:32this is the last
26:32corrugation
26:33and then you're
26:34going to have
26:35an easy run in.
26:41I'm on the
26:42home run now.
26:48Shit.
26:51I'm just going to
26:51pull up here.
26:58I've got a flat
26:59tyre here.
27:00All that way
27:00across all that
27:01dirt and you get
27:02on a nice
27:02bitumen road and
27:03get a flat tyre
27:03within 100
27:04kilometres.
27:05I don't believe
27:06that.
27:11It's been wet.
27:12We've got to keep
27:13rolling here.
27:13That edge is very
27:14soft.
27:16I don't want to
27:17get stuck.
27:18It's a very
27:19costly recovery.
27:22My number one
27:23goal is to have
27:24these two machines
27:25arrive on farm
27:26in Victoria
27:27in immaculate
27:28condition.
27:32Good on you.
27:33No ball goes
27:33well mate.
27:34See you later.
27:35See you later.
27:36See you later.
27:42This run
27:43across Australia
27:44isn't for the
27:45faint hearted.
27:46If people are
27:48going to do this
27:48job they really
27:50need to know
27:51what their
27:52capabilities are.
27:53You need to
27:54know it.
27:55It's not
27:55something you
27:56think I might
27:58give it a go
27:58for a week
27:59and see what
27:59happens.
28:01How long have I
28:02got before I'm
28:03sitting next to
28:03you?
28:05Ten years.
28:06Unless you let me
28:07drop out now.
28:08Don't drop out
28:09of school.
28:09Right in front of
28:15us now is the
28:16great Australian
28:17bike.
28:18So it's a really
28:19cool part of the
28:19world and I get
28:21to drive past it.
28:27Because I'm
28:28oversized.
28:29We have to be
28:29off the road in
28:30sunset.
28:31We've had a good
28:32day.
28:33Load's been good.
28:34A fairly heavy
28:44sort of storm off to
28:45the north of this
28:46year.
28:47If we hang around
28:48the rain's going to get
28:49heavier.
28:49So my gut feeling is
28:50get up and get going.
28:51And we're back to 80
28:56k's now.
28:58I hate that, eh?
29:00We've got three
29:01caravans travelling.
29:03One, two, three.
29:05Now, I never
29:05understand why a
29:07caravan would want to
29:08be right behind another
29:09caravan.
29:10In a clear day, with
29:12good visibility, it's
29:14a pain.
29:15Okay, mate, I'll let
29:16you know when it's
29:16clear.
29:17Jesus.
29:19It's going to make
29:20it very, very
29:21difficult for me to
29:22get around three of
29:22you when you're all
29:23that close.
29:39Right, eh?
29:40It's just a hard day in
29:41the office today.
29:43It'd be nice to check
29:44the load again.
29:46We're going to
29:47lock down here on the
29:48right-hand side.
29:51I've got to punch her.
30:00Right there.
30:01Oh, there's a massive
30:03hole there.
30:03There's something in it
30:04too.
30:04You can see it.
30:06I don't know what to
30:07do here.
30:11The problem is, it's a
30:11long weekend in the
30:12east, so a lot of
30:13people are away.
30:15If I change it, then I
30:16don't have a tyre for a
30:17long weekend.
30:18So if we do a tyre
30:19tomorrow, it's going to
30:20be worse.
30:20Yeah.
30:21So if we find someone
30:22now, fix them while we're
30:24in town, we might have
30:26half a tenth.
30:27You've called outside of
30:28standard business hours.
30:30Please leave a message.
30:32Thank you for calling.
30:33Unfortunately, you have
30:35called outside of our
30:36normal business hours.
30:45We've got a thunder
30:46rental.
30:46We're giving her
30:47everything she's got.
30:49Look at that corner there.
30:54They've got a major
30:55building program up in
30:57Bamaga.
30:57They've flown up teams of
30:59concreters.
31:00We've been engaged to keep
31:01the cement powder up to
31:02them.
31:03They know when we're
31:06coming and where we're
31:07coming, so we want to try
31:09to hold that schedule.
31:13We're back in low range and
31:15just barely getting up
31:16around the corner there.
31:18So we've got to cross over.
31:19I've got a good call there.
31:21Triple Road train northbound
31:23Hellsgate.
31:30We're up to Nova.
31:33And all of a sudden, we run out
31:46of the smooth road.
31:55We've got a mountable building
31:57in the middle of the road here,
31:58by the way of it.
32:07Well, it's not every day you've
32:09triple overtakes a house going
32:11up the peninsula, but anyway.
32:12There we are, Bamaga, 324 kilometers to go.
32:27Our main aim today is to make the damn ferry before it closes down for the day.
32:41To have any chance of making his deadline,
32:44Foodie must cross the Jardine River, almost 300 kilometers away, before the ferry shuts
32:52at 5 p.m.
32:53We're also anxious on the fuel gauge here at the moment.
32:58We've chewed about three quarters of our 1,200-odd liters that we were in the tank.
33:03There's nowhere to buy fuel up here, up here, on here.
33:15It's corrugations all over the place.
33:18Very, very severe corrugations.
33:24The cages that hold the gas come apart sometimes.
33:28It could explode.
33:31We can't do much more than just waddle our way through them.
33:36We're about 2km an hour at the moment.
33:40We're putting our delivery schedule in jeopardy.
33:42This is basically what is locally known as hell.
33:52Oh, I've got a puncture.
33:53Right there.
33:55Even if I change it now, then I don't have a tyre for the long weekend.
33:58Are you frustrated?
34:00Unfortunately, you have called outside of our normal business hours.
34:04A dangerous puncture on his truck's drive tyre has yogis scrambling to get a repair
34:10or risk changing it, leaving him without a spare.
34:14I have a spare trailer tyre, but I don't have a spare truck tyre.
34:19He still has more than 800km in front of him
34:22on his mission to deliver two high-tech crop sprayers.
34:30I reckon I change it.
34:35Hang on to it properly.
34:36I'll stand two feet.
34:37Yep, right there.
34:41Right there, yep.
34:55We got it done.
34:56An hour and a half, hour that we've been stuck here.
34:59Right there.
35:00Let's go.
35:01I have no spare truck tyres left, so I've taken the risk to get the reward.
35:13If something goes wrong, we have to wait for a call-out.
35:18It's very costly and time-consuming.
35:24Yeah, that's trucking.
35:25I'm day four, three nights in a swag.
35:40We lost time yesterday.
35:43Today, I just want to get there.
35:45Okay, now we're on proper country roads going into country Victoria.
35:58Most of the roads that don't go to Melbourne don't get any maintenance on them.
36:01Got it.
36:02Look, we're up here.
36:11Lucy Lou, this is your dad speaking, also your captain.
36:14All right, I just want to let you know that we've reached our destination, okay?
36:18About time.
36:19All right, what do you want me to do, boss?
36:27We stand back now, fire up the robots.
36:30I've done everything that I could do to get it to this point.
36:33So we're just going to connect, wrap them onto that robot,
36:36and then pull the whole thing off together.
36:38The innovative new crop sprayers Yogi has delivered
36:41are designed to be operated by a robot tractor,
36:45already owned by the farm.
36:47But when you spot the brain, because you're going so slow,
36:50everyone hates doing the job.
36:53This guy can just do it around the clock.
36:56Two o'clock in the morning, when I want to be sleeping,
36:59it can keep working, so that's the plan.
37:04Oh, the eagle has landed.
37:09Job's done.
37:12It's another successful mission.
37:14Just one of the best trips I've ever had.
37:16It's been fantastic.
37:18I've always liked trucks,
37:19but I guess now, after this trip,
37:22it's definitely made my mind up
37:24that this is something I do want to do when I'm older.
37:29We pack up, and then we're off to the next job.
37:32We do it all again.
37:33I don't believe that.
37:43I've got a flat tyre.
37:44There's only one thing to do, and that's change the bastard.
37:48Fighting to complete a marathon job through Central Australia
37:52and make a profit, Steve has hit another setback.
37:56So this is what it is.
38:02Another hold-up.
38:05And what made you go flat, little tyre?
38:08Ah, look at that.
38:10That's what made it go flat.
38:13That bloody bolt through it.
38:15Pick up a lousy bolt on a beautiful bitumen road.
38:18Unreal.
38:19Oh, there's another good day in outback trucking, really.
38:28There's only 700 or 800 flies.
38:31It could be worse.
38:34Right.
38:37I've probably picked that bolt-up out on the dirt,
38:40and it's been working its way in there.
38:43You get on the bitumen,
38:44it's a hard surface bang through the tyre.
38:50There's another issue down the road.
38:55One with a bloody big dozer on,
38:57he's got a lock-up going on with wheels and brakes.
39:03Thanks, mate, Mr. Graham.
39:06You have a good day when it all gets sorted out.
39:10Cheers, mate.
39:11So we like a bit of respect, Mr. Graham will do nicely, thank you.
39:27Now it starts.
39:29The big city traffic business.
39:31Roundabouts and red lights,
39:33and, oh, send me back to the desert and the corrugations.
39:36All right, I consider myself home when this gate's open.
39:46Don't we, Val?
39:48Nearly done and dusted.
40:01What I'm going to do is get Slick to come down
40:03and give me a hand to lift that one off with the fork.
40:05It's always good when I get them off.
40:07When we get them off, nothing happens.
40:10Slick arrived from Alice Springs a day ago.
40:14Now he can assess how well he loaded the cars and equipment for Steve.
40:19That is close.
40:21Nothing was going to move.
40:23I guarantee him that, but there you go.
40:26The job's done.
40:27It wasn't without its challenges,
40:28with the road being the way it was.
40:30It's still a good trip.
40:31There's still a little tiny bit of money in it for me at the end,
40:34so we'll do another one.
40:37Righto, you're going up the shed for a grease-up truck.
40:40We'll tell you up the shed, give you a grease-up,
40:42see if I can find anything that's wrong with you.
40:44Good job.
40:44Corrigation is rapidly getting worse here.
40:56The speedo's not registering on the dial anymore.
40:59This here just really takes a long time to go through.
41:02To do two or three kilometres could take us an hour to get through this.
41:06So, if you imagine if we've got 20 k's of this,
41:10you know, to do the maths, it's not good.
41:12I'm starting to get concerned about making a damn ferry.
41:16In northern Cape York,
41:18Foodie is running out of time,
41:21desperate to catch the last ferry to Bamaga
41:23or risk losing a day
41:25and delaying the arrival of his load of critical supplies.
41:29We've given our customers a commitment
41:32that we'll be in Bamaga early evening.
41:37Here we go again.
41:41I can see the road down there.
41:43It's what I'm going down here.
41:48If I went faster or tried to do like that guy did there,
41:52I literally wouldn't have a truck anymore.
41:54It'd just shake it to pieces.
41:57Hit it a little bit quick.
41:58The gas pallets could start bouncing
42:00and they'll be nothing of busting
42:02a two-and-a-half-tonne bloody Raiders strap.
42:05If a gas pallet comes over the side,
42:07it could explode.
42:11We've got a tyre back there.
42:13What's happened?
42:15I'd better go and have a look
42:17at what's going on back there, I think.
42:19I don't know what that is.
42:21We seem to have all tyres.
42:24Ah-ha.
42:25That's the spare tyre off the trailer.
42:28Obviously not designed for these roads.
42:33Check that out.
42:36Cape York Peninsula strikes again.
42:38Look at that.
42:38Sheared a brand-new bolt out of there.
42:40But this is typical what corrugations do.
42:42They break shit like this.
42:44Grab a little sink in such a fashion.
42:46And start the long walk back to the trailer.
42:49This is starting to really scare me.
42:52If we got an absolute perfect run from here through,
42:55we'd make the ferry easy.
42:57But we've got more corrugations.
43:00This is a very, very unsympathetic road.
43:03Just when you think you might have got there,
43:07it'll throw something at you.
43:09You okay?
43:10Yeah, I'm alright.
43:11Get going.
43:12Transporting bees,
43:21it's as lethal as a load of petrol.
43:23You tip over with that many bees on board,
43:25they'll sting you to death.
43:27Shit.
43:28Passed on double lines around a blind corner.
43:31Can jeopardise a load of bees real quick.
43:33It's running this much dirt,
43:36things can go wrong.
43:40F***ing dust.
43:41You can't see anything's coming.
43:44Shit.
43:45We might be driving through a fire, I mean,
43:47we've got Debbie's gas lines back there.
43:50You get a spark,
43:51you could have a bloody major catastrophe.
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