You say world’s toughest fixes.
we say wtf!
New Season of NATIONAL GEOGRAPHIC CHANNEL’S
WORLD’S TOUGHEST FIXES GOes INSIDE THE MOST OVERSIZED
REPAIR JOBS WITH … WELL … THAT SKINNY, RED-GOATEED PRO RIGGER
From Grounded Barges (WTF!) to Broken Dams (WTF!) to Satellite Launches (WTF!),
Sean Riley Helps Tackle and Explain BIG Industry’s BIG Jobs
“There’s nothing like the smell of demolition in the morning.” — Sean Riley
WORLD’S TOUGHEST FIXES Second Season Premieres Thursday, June 4, at 9 p.m. ET/PT
10 All-New Episodes Air All Summer Long!
(WASHINGTON, D.C. — MAY 15, 2009) Lying underneath a 300-ton barge … as it begins to slip. Launching a $250 million satellite … from deep in a remote jungle. Driving a five-lane bridge … for miles. Raising massive wind turbine blades that make Wolverine’s claws look like Q-tips … in gale-force winds. WTF! These are some of big industry’s biggest, most dangerous and expensive jobs, requiring a brave team of veteran specialists with serious know-how and steady hands. “So … ” they say, “tell me how a skinny, red-goateed rigger named Riley can help.” And we coolly say, “You’ll see.”
Photos from the season premiere- click to view full size:
On Thursday, June 4, at 9 p.m. ET/PT, WORLD’S TOUGHEST FIXES (WTF!) returns for a second season all summer long, taking you inside some of the most daunting real-world construction and repair jobs imaginable. Each one-hour episode follows professional rigger Sean Riley as he goes behind the scenes with some of the world’s top mechanics and engineers. For each new job, he has to prove to the crew that he’s no mamma’s boy. It’s usually a quick initiation, and before they can finish busting his chops, Riley is flexing his engineering muscle helping these experts solve problems of enormous proportions while he explains the fix with his own rousing wit and down-to-earth insight.
Whether climbing atop a 336-foot-tall wind turbine, taking a crash course in underwater welding or helping erect a fully functional commercial solar energy field, Riley takes viewers inside the marvels of large-scale industry. “You have to be incredibly aware of where you are,” says Riley, “so you know from where the next heavy object is gonna come flying.” Yeah, for real.
Season premieres include:
WORLD’S TOUGHEST FIXES: Mississippi River Barge
Thursday, June 4, 2009 at 9 PM ET/PT
“Note to self: Force lifting barge — good. Force shooting out sideways, crushing me — bad.”
— Riley, on raising a grounded 300-ton barge in New Orleans.
Riley heads down to the Big Easy to clear the Mississippi River of a 300-ton barge that was blown into the water from a local salvage yard by Hurricane Gustav in August 2008. The barge rammed into a protective levee that is now caught underneath the boat. Using inflatable bags and wooden cribbing, the team carefully raises the barge — but the higher the barge goes, the more unstable it becomes. And in one dramatic moment, the barge actually begins to slip … as Riley, the workers and camera crew all race out from underneath to keep from being crushed!
WORLD’S TOUGHEST FIXES: Satellite Launch
Thursday, June 11, 2009, at 9 PM ET/PT
“Either this rocket is going to launch … or it’s going to be one hell of a show.”
— Riley, on launching a $250 million communications satellite from the French Guiana jungle.
An aging satellite, currently providing phone and Internet service to millions, needs to be replaced. Riley heads into the remote jungle to help a team of rocket scientists and engineers launch a new two-ton satellite with a price tag of more than $1 million into orbit. Some aspects of the preparation are so sensitive, only Riley is allowed inside, without his camera crew — and he works and films all the action on his own as the team races to make the launch window.
WORLD’S TOUGHEST FIXES: Giant Wind Turbine
Thursday, June 18, 2009, at 9 PM ET/PT
“The load is hanging in the air. The wind is picking up. SNAP! A line breaks!”
— Riley, on erecting a 336-foot wind turbine in Portsmouth, R.I.
Riley travels to Portsmouth, R.I., where residents are setting up a 115-ton wind turbine that will provide years of clean, green energy. The good news is that the winds here are constantly blowing. The bad news is that Riley is about to find out what it takes to raise giant blades in the midst of these unpredictable gusts. Riley joins a team of engineers, ironworkers, crane operators and riggers who must attach the 68-ton gearbox at the center of the blades to the very top of a 300-foot tower, all the while fighting forces strong enough to snap protective lines.
WORLD’S TOUGHEST FIXES: 50-Ton Rudder
Thursday, June 25, 2009, at 9 PM ET/PT
“Fifty tons of metal rising to the surface by a bunch of balloons! Incredible!”
— Riley, on helping divers attach lift bags underwater to raise the rudder to the surface.
Riley joins a team of industrial divers on the Caribbean Island of Curaçao to salvage and repair the 50-ton rudder of a ship carrying $3 million worth of iron ore. With lots of money and big business on the line, the pressure is on and the crew gets right to work. After a quick hazing (where Riley is charged with getting lunch orders), he takes a crash course in underwater welding so he can accompany the crew when they dive under the ship to disassemble the rudder. They work for hours wearing 30 pounds of gear, including helmets and air hoses. Get ready to hold your breath as they attempt to move a 100,000-pound beast under 60 feet of water!
WORLD’S TOUGHEST FIXES: Interstate Bridge
Thursday, July 2, 2009, at 9 PM ET/PT
“There’s nothing like the smell of demolition in the morning.”
— Riley, on demolishing an old bridge in Salt Lake City before installing a new five-lane bridge.
In Utah, Riley joins a crew of more than 300 engineers, contractors and laborers as they gamble on an innovative installation technique: demolishing a crumbling concrete bridge and installing a new throughway bridge in just four days. This fix involves huge remote-controlled trailers, enormous hydraulics, and a 4 million-pound, five-lane bridge that must be transported almost two miles before installing it in one piece on Interstate 80 in Salt Lake City. Did we mention that the bridge will have to drive across intersections that house major utility cables like water, electricity and communication? No pressure.
Other upcoming episodes:
Position a fully functioning commercial solar energy field; fix a broken dam holding back nearly 2 million pounds of water near Portland, Ore.; replace one of the most powerful magnets ever built in the “atomic racetrack,” a 17-mile-long nuclear research tunnel in Geneva, Switzerland; and swap out one of the Trans-Alaska oil pipeline’s valves.
About Sean Riley
Sean Riley (known as “Riley” to his friends) is a designer, rigger and sculptor living in San Francisco, Calif. His interest in the laws of nature and how they relate to industry led him to set up and run his own company, Gravity Design. With expertise in rigging, suspension and load transfer, he has scaled the lofty heights of his field. Riley has been flying and moving live loads for a variety of clients — from circus acts to industrial installations — for more than 13 years. Never one to shy away from the tough problems, Riley works where nobody else will and accomplishes what few others can. His company engineers solutions that frequently involve large masses, difficult access and big retrofits to existing buildings.
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