Vincent Thomas Bridge

Vincent Thomas Bridge. Working forty stories above the water they will be painting and replacing lamps along the huge superstructure. The first step will be hauling up supplies to the bridge structure by rope and it is quickly obvious that Chris hasn’t gotten over his fear of heights he exhibited on the oil derrick. It takes him a long time to muster up the courage to walk out onto the platform to haul up the supply bucket. Eventually he and the rest of the team get the job done and it’s time to prepare the structure for painting. Again Chris is barely able to move along the structure, choosing instead to plaster himself on the side of the bridge grasping the supports. Once the team completes the preparation they get a few minutes to enjoy themselves while eating lunch high atop the harbor, then it’s back to work. The next step gets a bit more tricky as the contestants will need to replace the lamps high atop the bridge by walking up the suspension cable. The cable itself is only eighteen inches wide and its walking surface is only really about half of that. While Ben and Sandy have excelled at this job so far, Chris continues to struggle due to his fear of heights and it takes a lot of inspiration from Sandy to get him to even attempt the job. At last he overcomes his fear and slowly scales the cable, completes the job and heads off the the next stage of the project.

Chris Young

With the lamps replaced, and the structure prepped for painting the final step in the project will be to paint the suspension ropes on the bridge. With he group split up into two teams and Ben choses as supervisor this seems to be an easy task, especially for Sandy who has sailed along so far. However her confidence turns into cockiness and in her haste she almost thrusts her ladder into oncoming traffic causing almost certain disaster. The accident causes her to land in the bottom two with Chris for the first time. To decide who will remain in the game the two will race up the huge suspension cable and turn on four lamps each. With little hesitation Sandy runs up the bridge structure while Chris walks slowly at first and then admitting defeat turns around and heads back down. While he has been narrowly dodging the bullet all along this time his luck has run out. At the end it is revealed that he has returned home and left the field of investment brokering to become a policeman.

This week it’s off to Saint Angelo, Texas where the remaining contestants will try their hands at bull fighting. Their boss is Rob Smelts, a 5 time bullfighting champion. They will start off dodging a wheelbarrow, then move on to a 100lb training bull before graduating to a 1500lb competition bull. Right from the start the

Bull Fighting

contestants realize just how tough this job is going to be as only Sandy and Bryce show the right footwork needed to avoid the bull or wheelbarrow in this case. Rie ends up following and dislocating her knee and has to decide whether or not she can continue. After some once again heated arguing between Chris and Sandy it’s time to face the training bull. Steven is up first but shies away from the bull, while Sandy takes a much more aggressive approach. Unfortunately she doesn’t listen to the advice of her teachers and runs in a straight line making herself an easy target for the bull. After being thrown to the ground and stepped on she gets right back up and asks for another shot. On her second shot her knee gives out and further aggravates the injury and she is taken away for xrays. Afterwards the rest of the contestants stay a little further away from the bull to avoid a repeat of Sandy’s fate.

After the first round the contestants are joined by their families who will stay in the stands while they face the competition bulls. First up is another strong performance by Michaela, then a good one by Chris. Steven again stays wide from the bull during his run and Rommel ends up dislocating his shoulder trying to be

Rie Heffron

more aggressive. Bryce has a good showing and Rie decides to tough it out and gives it her best shot. It is Ben’s performance, however that ends up being the show stopper as he spins with the bull until the bull finally retreats. In the end the boss chooses Rie and Steven as the two weakest and they will compete against each other to stay in the game. In the end, by virtue of a tough break Rie is sent home. Her luck did improve after the show, however, as she ended up landing a new modeling contract and was able to afford to move back closer to her daughter.

This week the remaining contestants head to Texas to work on an oil rig.  As rookies, or worms as they are referred to they will be judged by a 20 plus year veteran of the industry.  One mistake could cose down the rig and cost the company one million dollars so there is plenty on the line.  Working in over 100 degree heat they will have to move 100 pound bags, roll 30ft pipes and eventually work the floor making the

Oil Derrick

connections between the pipes as they search the earth for oil.  It doesn’t take long to see Chris and Eric are struggling while once again the lady contestants are the ones who continue to get the job done.  Bryce despite his physical strength once again looks like the job has gotten the best of him, Steven is making careless mistakes and Ben is teased about his dreadlocks.

Day two see the contestants working on the floor of the rig and once again it is quickly proven that size is overrated as Rommel and Rie tackle the job with ease compared to Bryce and Chris.  Chris also has to struggle with his fear of heights as he climbs the derrick in over 30mph winds.  At the end of the day there is aso some gender bashing going on as the woman have continued to dominate the men and the men have nothing but excuses for their poor performance.  Ben then jokingly makes a comment which escalates into an argument between Chris and Ben.  In the end Steven, for lack of safety concern, Chris, Bryce and Eric are chosen as the bottom four and will have to compete in a time

Eric Waterhouse

challenge to stay in the game.  In the end, although he gave it all he got, Eric’s body just couldn’t keep up with his will and he is sent home.  His eventual fate?  Eric the sculptor became Eric the inventor and developed a wildfire water protection system for the home.  Hmmm, and we though he would have ended up behind a desk somewhere.

This week’s episode takes the remaining contestants to Salinas, California to drive monster trucks as part of Monster Jam.  They will have a chance to drive one of three monster trucks including Grave Digger, and be judged by the man behind Grave Digger, Dennis Anderson.   They will also be observed by saftery officials and each truck has been fitted with a remote device that is able to turn off the ignition if needed to avoid any disasterous events caused by the inexperienced contestants being behind the wheel of the 1500 horespower machines.  The first practice runs go well for Rick, Rie and Ben, while Rommel is a little timid on the throttle.  Eric and Chis fare much worse and their engines are remotely shut off as they both over accelerate.  Chris also takes some heat for not braking when the engine is cut even when given a second chance and once again is pulled from the cab as happened with the trucking job.  Bryce does one worse as he leaves before the green light is given and almost runs over one of the officials.

Grave Digger

Next stage of the competition involves changing one of the tires in teams.  The massive tires weigh 720 pounds each and need to be carefully positioned and then the truck needs to be raised or lowered on the jack to line up the lug nuts.  The team of Chris, Eric and Rie and being led by Rick fail to do this correctly and instead try to push the tire on the truck causing the truck to fall off the jack.  Luckily the only casuality is the $2000 jack which will be deducted from the prize winnings.  Dennis is now somewhat worried about Rick’s ability to handle the pressure.

Finally each contestant is given a chance at three jumps to see how well they have mastered driving the monster truck.  The three women continue to excel, as Rie, Sandy, and Michaela execute their jumps perfectly as do Steven and Rommel.  Bryce and Chris however

Rick Broider

struggle, Rick shifts accidentally in neutral and Eric leaves before the green light sealing all four of their fates as the bottom four.  Ben, by the way, scored the best with the judge and looked like a natural behind the wheel.  Each of the four is then given two chances each at a 90 degree wheelie jump.  Eric and Chris each score one good jump.  Bryce goes almost perfect on the firt and then flips the truck over going high into the air on the second.  Tha ambulance rushes to the scene but he is unharmed.  Finally it’s Rick’s turn but he is unable to get much air on either attempt and is eventually informed that this will be his last job.  As the other contestants say their good byes and travel to the next location, it is revealed that Rick left his job in the software industry and his currently building his own gym for mixed martial arts.

This week’s episode sees our contestants employed as gold miners, panning for gold at the Crow Creek Mine

Gold Panning

in Alaska. They will be working in frigid 35 degree water, running down from melting glaciers through the countryside. After a quick rundown from a couple of experienced miners, they begin what will become a 24 hour shift spread over the next two days. The contestants quickly realize that no one is going to get rich quick as after three hours of panning, no one has produced any gold. Finally Sandy and Rick come up with a few small pieces of gold, while Phil’s luck goes the other way as he slips while treading through the ice cold waters of the creek. Meanwhile Ben seems to be spending more time complaining about the cold than actually working. At the end of the day the team is then supposed to come together as a team and set up camp to spend a night out of the bitter cold. The entire ordeal is comical as best as everyone wants to be leader but no one is able to lead. The tension begins to build between Rie and Bryce as well when Bryce tries to order her around while Rie attacks his work ethic.

The next morning arrives with Rick and Michela cooking breakfast while Rie, Sandy and Ben gather firewood, while the rest of the contestants sit around and watch. Soon afterward the contestants are split into teams for the second part of the job, where again each contestant will be judged by the two miners. The team of

Phil Kolarczyk

Chris and Rick as well as the team of Eric, Rommel and Ben both seem to be working well together. However elsewhere it seems as if Steven can’t keep up with his teammates of Rie and Sandy. Even more frustrating is watching Michela doing all the work while her partners Phil and Bryce accomplish nothing. In the end nothing goes unnoticed though as the bosses acclaim Sandy as the hardest working and announce Steven, Phil, Bryce and Ben as the bottom four. They will each have 15 more hours to produce the most gold possible, with whoever pans the least set to go home early. All four work tirelessly through the night but it is Phil (just barely missing Ben’s total weight) who is sent home this week. Again with what seems to be a trend it is announced that Phil has accepted a job with a trucking company in Alaska rather than returning home to his pharmaceutical job.

Ice Road Trucking

trucks as well as the driving conditions render the brakes useless and the driver must rely on downshifting the engine onto a lower gear to keep the rig’s speed under control.  One false move and the truck can quickly accelerate down a downgrade causing the driver to lose control and end up flipping over both the freight and tractor.  To help maintain a sense of safety, each team will be made up of two contestants with a safety instructor on board, who will in the end determine the fate of the contestants.

Right from the beginning it is obvious that Chris is struggling keeping the rig under his control and Tim, the supervisor on board, isn’t pleased with it.  At best the strain on the transmission from his struggles will end up being a costly repair but there is also a saftey factor involved as well.  Soon afterwards, Tim decided enough is enough and replaces Chris at the wheel with Phil, who right from the start looks like a natural.  Phil isn’t the only one struggling though as Bryce is having difficulties as well mastering the transmission as is Rommel.  Their troubles seem small compared to Amy who forgetfully leaves the transmission in neutral while going down a steep grade causing the rig to quickly gain dangerous speed. With the instructor on her, she struggles with each advancing gear until she is finally to get the truck into seventh gear.  The instructor makes it very clear that little more in terms of mistakes will be tolerated from her.

While Phil has done an excellent job behind the wheel, the instructor decided to give Chris one more chance to redeem himself and once again they switch places.  While his driving has improved somewhat his attitude takes a turn for the worse and he wrongly begins to make excuses and chastise the instructor for his own performance.  In a matter of mintes the instructor has had enough of his mouth and orders him to pull over where he leaves him on the side of the road for the rest of the convoy to pick up.  Elsewhere the woman of America’s Toughest Jobs, with the exception of the

Amy Brodsky

blunder by Amy, seem to have easily mastered this task as well. In the end, however, Phil is revealed to have done the best overall job.  At the same time, it is no surprise that the four weakest named are Chris, Bryce, Rommel, and Amy.  In order to decide who goes home they are given a challenge to correctly back up their trailer to a loading dock, release the trailer and drive away in the leat amount of time possible.  Bryce struggles a bit at this nut eventually gets the job done while Rommel has an easy time with it.  Chris on the other hand, has a extremely tough time and looks confused the entire time.  After several attempts he gets it done in just under 30 minutes. Next up Amy is able to quickly and efficiently line up the trailer and gets it done with plenty of time to go. Unfortunately she ends up not having the strength to pull the pin out releasing the trailer and struggles with it for a heart breaking full 20 minutes until her time is up, never giving up the entire time. In the end it is revealed that the experience must have been something Amy needed for herself as she ends up not returning to her job on Wall Street but instead heads back home to Boston to explore new opportunities.

Fierce Allegiance

boat, which happens to be the world most dangerous job (ala Deadliest Catch). Many of the contestants are leaving behind jobs sitting behind desks for the grim reality of just how tough this other world can be. Bering Sea crabbers face an almost 100% injury rate as well as grim statistics about the number of lives lost at sea. Freezing cold conditions and long work loads can take their toll on even some of the world’s toughest. After a brief introduction the contestants will be expected to perform all of the various work duties done at sea by a greenhorn or junior deckhand. These include grinding bait, baiting the pots, launching and then after soaking for some time they will need to be hauled back aboard, the crab sorted and then the 800 pound pots will have to be stacked. The four worst performers will return for addition 2 days aboard the boat until the weakest contestant is eliminated.

As the trip gets underway the deck boss explains to each contestant the ritual of each crew member biting the head off a herring for good luck. While many are reluctant, it’s Amy who objects stating that she is allergic and would go into anaphylactic shock. This doesn’t sit well with the other contestants but Eric steps forward and has another to appease the gods. Actually I think he had a third as well, but that’s another story.

Amy doesn’t impress anyone at the bait grinder either as she struggles to lift the 40 pound bags of frozen bait into the grinder. Amy isn’t the only one struggling either, as Rick is soon battling seas sickness and before long both Sandy and Senta are spending a lot of time at the rail of the boat emptying their stomachs as well.

Amy Brodsky

A short two hour nap is all the contestants get before going back to work. However the rest as made a world of difference for Sandy who is steadily improving after a night of sickness. The rest however, didn’t do much to help Amy who continues to struggle and almost sends Eric overboard when she is unable to throw the buoy over the rail of the boat. Eric also seems to be struggling, mostly from a lack of focus. The deck boss ends up comparing him to the Tasmanian Devil as he is running around quickly but when the “smoke” clears little is being accomplished. Senta also has not been able to show any strength and is quickly over shadowed by Michaela who manages to outdo her while throwing the grappling hook at the rail. We also get a good glimpse at Steven who appears to be avoiding the work as much as possible, which won’t bode well when the captains need to make their decision. When it’s all said and one the captains declare two of the ladies, Michaela and Sandy have outperformed everyone else. Michaela had been rock solid from the beginning while Sandy had to overcome her early bouts of sea sickness to regain her composure and her mental and physical strength. The four names chosen as the weakest are Steven, Senta, Amy and Eric. These four will return to the boats for one more shot at avoiding being sent home early.

This time around Steven is quick to step things up and push himself, quickly getting back into the good graces of the captains and deck bosses. Amy begins pushing a little more also, but it’s apparent after just a few minutes seeing her that she is not cut out for this type of work. Eric still lacks focus but has the heart at least, although his lack of attention can make a dangerous job even more deadly. In the end it’s Senta who just can’t get the job done, from lack of physical strength but also lack of real determination. There are many times when the only words coming from her muth are “I can’t” or “Can someone help me?”. Not exactly the type of attitude needs to stay in the game. After the return back to Dutch Harbor she is officially sent home, without the prize money but with the reward of a life experience that changed her life. It is later revealed that shortly after filming this episode she left her job and returned back to Alaska where she is currently working in Denali National Park.

Americas Toughest Jobs

The series premier of the show, America’s Toughest Jobs will be on Monday August 25, at 9, 8C on NBC. Afterwards check out our message boards and start talking about the show to other fans. The message boards were just added so we need some help from fans of the show to kick things off!

Steven Hopper

Age: 22
Hometown: Dallas, TX
Current Occupation: Recent college grad
Past Jobs: Lifeguard, receptionist, personal assistant

Dream Job: Something outside. I don’t have to be the boss but I like to do things at my own pace. I would love to be a travel guide or explorer. I often say I was born in the wrong time period.

Why do you want to be on ATJ? I think people see me as like this immature kid, this pretty boy kid fresh out of college. But I’m here to show them I can do this better than anyone else.

Why do you think you can win ATJ? I’m like Iceman from “Top Gun.” I don’t make mistakes and always get the job done right and on time.

What are your strengths? My background as a lifeguard; it’s a job where you have to be very physical and endurance is pretty high.

Weaknesses? I’m not super-aggressive. I’m competitive but I don’t cut other people off.

What are your best qualities? I’m easy to get along with.

Worst? I’m too forgiving.

What are your biggest fears? Closed spaces, failure, drowning.

Other interesting characteristics: Is “scared to death” of commitment; apart from football and basketball, he is an avid surfer.