The LeBeau family has been harvesting timber in the highlands of British Columbia for more than 80 years. But it wasn’t until 2021, inspired by the love of truck shows and managing social media accounts, that brothers Brent and Craig LeBeau invited television viewers inside their forwarders, harvesters, skidders, and feller bunchers for their show “Mud Mountain Haulers”. HAIX® had the chance to chat with the LeBeau brothers during filming of the third season.
Mud Mountain Haulers documents the life of loggers and haulers; from commuting to the worksite at 1 a.m. to operating heavy equipment in wintry conditions. These men and women stack 16-hour workdays like they stack...well, logs. But those long days leave little time for family, never mind sleep, which is a priority in this type of work. Check out any list of the world’s deadliest jobs and you’ll find logging and log hauling at the top, alongside professions like deep sea fishing and landmine removal. But you won’t find anyone on the LeBeau Forestry team backing down; Brent confesses his favorite part of the job is the “unknowns”. He enjoys adapting to changing conditions and coming up with innovative ways to bring us the timber used for everything from keeping a roof over our head to toilet paper on our rolls.
There is a willingness (or should I say stubbornness) to face what mother nature throws at them; and mama has a mean curveball. From ice-covered slopes and early thaws that cause—you guessed it—thick mud on narrow roadways, the loggers from LeBeau Ltd often find themselves sinking and sliding their way down the mountainside. The heavy-duty machinery needs both an experienced hand and a truckload of courage. However, for the LeBeau brothers and their teams, navigating the day-to-day dangers of the logging industry is only half the battle. According to Tamara Debalinhard, Executive Administrator for LeBeau Forestry Ltd, “Trying to run a logging company and be on TV is a lot of extra work and it uses up time that can be spent with family. The film crews have to follow us around with their cameras and drones. It slows us down a bit some days, but it is still a lot of fun doing it.” The show is currently filmed in various locations around British Columbia from Sun Peaks, to Revelstoke to Falkland.
Finding Their Footing with HAIX® Logger Work Boots
Brent is a strong believer in excellent equipment—especially when it comes to footwear. According to him, “Proper footwear in the forest industry is probably one of the most important tools when it comes to personal protection. Good footwear is like a good foundation on a building; the foundation of a good day...which we have found with your boots.” HAIX® offers boots designed for the machine-driven logging and forestry industry. The HAIX Airpower XR200 offers all-day comfort; with shock-absorbing soles and a built-in arch-support system. And for those brutal Canadian winters, it offers a slip-resistant sole, insulation and leather that is waterproof yet breathable with GORE-TEX® Performance technology. Known as the crossover, the XR200 also includes Class-1 cut protection, when chainsaw safety is needed. ASTM F2413 as well as CAN/CSA Z195 certifications for impact, compression, puncture, and electrical hazard protection round out the features of a highly versatile boot engineered to perform well in exceptionally rugged conditions.
When asked about plans for the show, Brent LeBeau said it’s all about bigger and better. “[We] want to show what logging is all about to people who have no knowledge about it to begin with.” The good, the bad and the best...boots that is.
Catch Mud Mountain Haulers on Discovery Canada Mondays at 7 p.m. PT / 10 p.m. ET.
For American viewers, season 2 is now streaming on the Weather Channel.
