ROUGH COUNTRY HEROES
Braving monsoons, battling crocs and fording swollen rivers: all in the job description if you're Garry White, Australian truck driver. Unlike most other truckers, Garry's hauls take him to The Top, an isolated region at the northernmost point of Australia that snakes up toward Papau New Guinea. He journeys four times a year in his big rig, bearing diesel fuel for the power generators required to keep civilization alive in this wilderness.
"You've got to keep the beer cold, mate."
The locals call him the "toughest trucker in the world," a well-deserved title considering the obstacles Garry overcomes on a typical trip to The Top. And when The Wet (monsoon season) is on the way, there's an added urgency for both Garry and those he keeps on truckin' for: if the truck doesn't make it before The Wet, there's no fuel for the generators until the land dries out, four months later.
Then it's back up for Garry, who goes it alone because he says he'd, "never be able to find anyone who wouldn't make a dog's breakfast out of anything he touches." Garry's sure that he can handle anything the world throws at him. He blazes new trails through the bush and emerges from its depths to light up the tropical nights for the cattle stations and aboriginal settlements of the far north.
"All in a day's work, mate. All in a day's work."
The remote, exotic location provides a perfect backdrop to Garry White's voyage to the outer limits of the Land Down Under. We'll sneak a peek at White's destination and then begin the journey to The Top with him, revealing his larger-than-life character from the outset. Through interactions with his wife, Kathy, we'll realize the toll such harrowing and lengthy stints away from home take on their marriage. Then we're off on a wild adventure through the Outback to rendezvous with crocs, battle the elements, storm through the bush and tackle all that the "bloody mongrel roads" toss our way.
We'll send our adventurous crew in a Land Rover or Jeep to follow White's Mobil petrol truck, ready to capture all the peril and triumph on his trek. All the local flavor, as well as the colorful personalities White encounters on his route, will be recorded along the way.
Shooting an aspect ratio of 16:9 on Digi Beta seems the most versatile and appropriate format for capturing all the action and atmosphere. We envision also using some small, mini DV cameras to capture the close-up intimate moments that will make this series compelling viewing.
This series will introduce the audience to a world that is rarely glimpsed. A world full of people who live life on the edge and provide a lifeline to those at the extreme. It's dramatic, visual, fun, and exciting. In short, it's great TV.
Join us as we enter the world of the, ROUGH COUNTRY HEROES
Additional episodes in this multi-part adventure series include:
ROYAL FLYING DOCTOR SERVICE OF AUSTRALIA: Take to the skies in another Aussie adventure. This time, we'll accompany the Royal Flying Doctors. For over 70 years, these courageous physicians and nurses have flown to the rescue of those living in remote regions of the country whose only medical care -- and sometimes, only contact with the outside world -- comes in the form of these amazing airborne medics. We'll travel on tense emergency missions and "routine" house calls to witness tragedy and triumph. Take flight to save lives with the Royal Australian Flying Doctors.
MONGOLIAN WILD HAND: Climb on for adventure through the waving grasslands and sacred mountains of Asia with Mishig Jigjidsuren, a veterinarian who is a hero to people in one of the most remote areas of the world. We'll travel along with Mishig, who each winter packs up an old Russian military truck with everything from rice to books to medicine and heads off into Mongolia's primitive countryside. He provides a lifeline of supplies, news and information to people who live in this wild land of the infamous Genghis Khan. His travel requires long hours, dangerous river crossings, frequent breakdowns and repairs, all in subzero temperatures. But Mishig takes it all in stride. He can wrangle horses, fashion a gasket out of a beer can, fix any kind of vehicle with a screwdriver, and slaughter a sheep without spilling a drop of blood. In Mongolia, Mishig is known as a "zerlig gar" or "wild hand" which is Mongolian slang for a can do guy, a capable, resourceful, talented and experienced person -- clearly a Rough Country Hero.
DEEP FREEZE/VOYAGE TO THE BOTTOM OF THE WORLD: The principal US Station in McMurdo Sound, on the Ross Sea of Antarctica, would wither and die if it wasn't for the harrowing journeys of two US Coast Guard Icebreakers. These ships are the most powerful, non-nuclear icebreakers in the world. Every year, since the 1970's, the 156 men and women aboard these vessels have raced against time and the elements to clear a channel for tankers and cargo ships at the bottom of the world. This eight to 30 mile long channel breaks through ice that can be over 20 feet thick. While the ships are impressive, it's only the courage, skill and determination of the crews that insure that the vital cargo will be delivered and the extensive research program at McMurdo Sound keeps going.
BUSH PILOTS OF ALASKA: Go North to Alaska and take wing over the wind-swept tundra with the Alaskan Bush Pilots. Over one-third of Alaska's population has no access to the state's roads. These hardy aviators deliver much-needed supplies and provide transportation to remote residents. Traveling with a bush pilot in his "sky taxi," we'll probably encounter missions to retrieve the local high school marching band from a basketball game, rush a patient to the nearest hospital and of course deliver pizzas to the crew of workers with a craving for pepperoni. The sky's no limit for the Alaskan Bush Pilots.
RIVER-RUNNING THE MOSQUITO COAST: Tucked behind a thin strip of land on the Honduran coast, La Mosquitiaóthe Mosquito Coastó, is a sprawling wild land supporting dozens of endangered species, as well as diverse peoples who ply the rivers in dugout canoes, navigating between stealthy crocs and petroglyphs carved by hallucinating shamans. We'll join a Miskito Indian named Ofracio Lacayo as he brings in food, building materials, even a full-grown bull on his 38-foot pipante, a dugout canoe carved from a single hunk of mahogany and powered by a small outboard. We'll travel with Lacayo to the Garfuna settlements on the coast, then head up the Rio Platano into Miskito and Pech territory. Above Las Maras, the river gets shallow, and vessels must be paddled and poled upstream. Passed over by roads, electricity -- even wars -- the Mosquito Coast is a nearly forgotten world of psychotropic greens, wildcat missionaries, and rumors of ancient cities buried in the jungle. What adventure couldn't you have here?
Series consultant, TOM CLYNES is an author and journalist with a passion for discovery. Tom has written about off-the-beaten-path travel, music, culture and personalities from around the world. His work has appeared in such publications as Outside, National Geographic Adventure , Menis Journal and the Washington Post. His books include Wild Planet!, a guide to the world's extraordinary festivals and celebrations, and Music Festivals from Bach to Blues. Tom wanders the world, trying to satisfy his thirst for adventure and "a fascination with the world's nooks and crannies."
Executive producer, MICHAEL ROSE, brings to this series his award winning skills as a documentary series producer. He's known for passionate storytelling that transcend borders and keep audiences glued to their sets. Rose's highly acclaimed automotive series continue to air in many territories throughout the world. He has a great deal of experience both as a field producer, writer, director and as a supervising producer who has managed multiple programs with a wide range of budgets.
Join us on this journey as we trek with the champions who supply essentials to spectacularly rugged and out-of-the-way places. Unusual modes of transport are part of the appeal, but the focus is on personality, self-sufficiency and the physical and human obstacles that must be overcome when you're among the ROUGH COUNTRY HEROES.
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