Book description
Every year a fleet of men travel beyond the northern equatorial line to
the Arctic Circle, a region heavily endowed with natural resources.
Locating the abundance of natural gas, conflict-free diamonds, and gold
is relatively easy. Extracting and transporting these goods is another
matter entirely. The truckers picked to deliver these precious
commodities spend two months traveling to lengths of up to 355 miles on
a naturally formed road of ice. It is one of the most dangerous jobs in
the world. For more than 20 years, Hugh Rowland has survived the ice
roads like no other. Known by the ice road trucking community as
"The Polar Bear" (a reference to his legendary stamina, strong
personality, bearish attitude, and prowess on the ice), Hugh Rowland has
performed amazing feats and survived spectacular wrecks to become king
of the ice road truckers. Each year when the temperature plummets well
below zero, Rowland leaves his family, home, and successful excavation
business north of Vancouver, Canada, to drive 1900 miles to Yellowknife
where he throttles up for another ice road season. From the first
snowstorm to the final thaw, On Thin Ice traces the history of ice road
trucking, preparation for the trek, and follows leading trucker Hugh
Rowland through his nine week journey across the infamous Ice Road. This
book is filled with anecdotes of epic breakdowns and breathtaking acts
of heroism that are all a daily part of the job. While the trip may be
dangerous, these men who brave the odds come home with their fingers and
toes intact, their bank accounts full, and the chance to do it all over
again...on thin ice.
