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The Van Jones Show
Somebody's Gotta Do It
Aired April 16, 2015 - 21:00 ET
THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
MIKE ROWE, SOMEBODY'S GOTTA DO IT HOST: I'm Mike Rowe and I'm on a mission to find people on a mission.
Boom, from a scale of one to 10, how much do you like what you do?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: 25.
ROWE: Here we go.
What are they doing?
Freaking out.
How are they doing it? And why?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I love to make things that make people smile.
ROWE: It's very freaking exciting.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Come on Mike, we got to do it.
ROWE: I dare you to turn the channel.
On tonight's episode, we're getting trash, with a guy who made it his life's work, to clean up American's water waste.
CHAD PREGRACKE: We really have made change.
ROWE: And I'll create a somewhat impermanent art form with the Wisconsin couple who made cold hard cash, out of cold hard ice.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Be in the moment, enjoy the moment, it will pass.
ROWE: Then, I get to play with fire, working with the father and son team, who prove that the art of blacksmithing is alive and well, and painful.
Sometimes, you hear about a person who makes you feel good about humanity, but bad about yourself. Chad Pregracke, is one of those people. I head about Chad, this one man crusade to clean up American's rivers years ago and I felt guilty ever since.
Hey, there you are.
PREGRACKE: Thanks for coming.
ROWE: Finally.
PREGRACKE: Appreciate it. Finally.
ROWE: Finally, it my chance to join Chad and see exactly who this nonprofit living lands and waters is affecting change, one piece of garbage at a time.
PREGRACKE: Rivers are important for so many reasons. I mean, one, we get our daily drinking water out of it. Wildlife, we can't survive without them. And then, you know, transportation is good. It's so important in so many ways.
ROWE: Yeah.
Chad has been cleaning up rivers since he was a kid. But he really opt this game, when he got this thing built, 150 foot long barge that serves as a home, an office, then a floating dumpster.
PREGRACKE: All right. So I'll show you around a little bit.
ROWE: What's this?
PREGRACKE: Pickles, man. I found them yesterday out there.
ROWE: Why are they out here in the place where somebody could eat them.
PREGRACKE: I don't really know. It's a good question. So from here, almost all the way down the supper structure...
ROWE: Yeah.
PREGRACKE: ... is built out of an old strip club.
ROWE: (inaudible) but recycled strip club.
Besides the ghost of exotic dancers, this solar powered recycled strip club supports seven bedrooms, male and female bathrooms, two offices, a classroom and a full kitchen. Plus, other things.
PREGRACKE: Somebody started putting dolls up there, it actually freak some people out.
ROWE: Sure it does. Why wouldn't it?
PREGRACKE: I know.
ROWE: You know, I always wonder what happen to Mr. Potato head.
PREGRACKE: Yup, there he is.
ROWE: That's too bad.
But Chad is not doing it alone. He's got a full time staff, who eats, sleep and live on the barge. But weeks at a time, let's see if hey have anything bad to say about the guy.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's very enthusiastic. He's a go get her, he's constantly pumping everybody up.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He leads by example. Keeps people going to.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: He's motivating. He makes you want to feel better and do better.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: This guy is hilarious too. It makes it fun.
ROWE: Makes you want to vomit, right? And then you hear about what he's accomplished. 831 clean ups, 23 rivers, 20 states and over 8 million pounds of trash removed by hand.
So here's a look at some of the crap you pulled out of the rivers.
PREGRACKE: Yup. And these are a few years old by now. So a lot, a lot of stuff, man.
ROWE: 950 refrigerator, 66 air condition, 280 washing machines.
PREGRACKE: Yeah.
ROWE: Gas tanks, cans, hundreds of them.
PREGRACKE: Yeah.
ROWE: Mannequin heads and hand. That's going to freak you out every time you pull up a mannequin.
PREGRACKE: Yeah.
ROWE: Because for a second, you're like, "is it?"
PREGRACKE: No -- yeah -- no, I've actually seen a hand and thought we have found...
ROWE: So you found real...
PREGRACKE: Yeah, real tissues, yeah, yeah.
ROWE: Heavy (ph).
PREGRACKE: Yeah.
ROWE: This is really beautiful.
PREGRACKE: It's -- yeah. But that's actually -- that's the Mississippi river, so that's 12 foot of water and that's a back channel. So choked up, like if you pull the (inaudible) to it, the dogs thinks it's land, they jump on there and they fall right to the garbage.
ROWE: This is where...
PREGRACKE: And it goes on for miles, man.
ROWE: First of all, people don't understand the real role of rivers and water waste. Secondly there's simply no way they can get their head around that level of pollution, unless they see it.
[21:05:03] PREGRACKE: Unless they have first hand see it.
ROWE: Yeah.
PREGRACKE: Yeah.
ROWE: Is (inaudible), the one Ronal McDonald shoe.
PREGRACKE: I think that's on here somewhere. I'm pretty sure it's...
ROWE: It's just the one.
PREGRACKE: Just one.
ROWE: I mean this is just -- where is the rest of him, man?
PREGRACKE: It's a gray area. I don't know.
ROWE: We got an APB out on most of Ronal McDonald. We got some of him.
In addition to the full time crew, there's also the army of local volunteers. They donate their time and energy and make the rest of us look like lazy slugs.
PREGRACKE: Are we good? That's what I'm talking about, all right. OK, little (inaudible) on myself, because a lot of your guys haven't been to a clean up, don't know who I am, how it started. I grew up in the Mississippi river, (inaudible) 14, spent a lot of time on the river, fishing, playing, swimming, it's like a country river kid.
And when I was 15 years old, I got into commercial shell diving with my brother. I did that and basically worked about 150 mile stretch of the river. And did some commercial fishing, worked on tow boats, some barges and all those experiences, that's where I kept seeing the thousands of barrels, the thousands of tires, all the stuff. And I want to do something about it.
I actually got the idea when I was 17. I got one sponsor, 1997 from the home town, here we are 17 years later, so much has happen. And honestly, I'm going to tell you right now, we've made a big difference since we started. So let's kick some ass. Cool, let's do it. All right.
ROWE: Permission to come aboard. Yes, thanks.
In the past five months, the barge has moved from Memphis, Tennessee to Saint Louise, Missouri, the Evansville, Indiana, to right here in the greater Louisville, Kentucky area. Today's mission is to pull enough crap out of the Ohio River to fill this three Jon boats to the brim, before the sun sets. It's important to have goals. PREGRACKE: All right, we're good to go. Remember, uneven surfaces.
ROWE: Uneven surfaces dug. Watch those fragile ankles.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yes.
ROWE: OK, let's recap. People like to litter, our rivers are filthy. Chad Pregracke is a saint and I've decided to join him today on the Ohio River to save the world, slow things down and get in the way.
PREGRACKE: Right up there is bees' nest, all right. So we essentially want to work the way, OK? We'll bring everything right back to this, right here. See those three, we're going to form a pile right here. It sound good?
ROWE: It does take long to learn, there's a technique to your basic river clean up and the one with a perpetual challenges are plastic barrels full of sand.
PREGRACKE: So basically, we'll have to dig this out.
ROWE: All right.
PREGRACKE: Just loose it up now and just grab it.
ROWE: You know, that's totally full of sand.
PREGRACKE: (inaudible). Sometimes you break -- you use enough is easy.
ROWE: You're right.
See, always an optimist. Chad is what you call a barrel half-full kind of guy.
PREGRACKE: So this is it, man, one little victory at a time. And, you know, people think that, "Don't get discourage." But not really because we didn't come out here and do it, you know, who would?
ROWE: Well 80,000 volunteers since 1998, that's cool (ph). But of course, they wouldn't be here if Chad weren't so freaking inspirational.
Does that make you feel good?
PREGRACKE: What's that?
ROWE: You just, you know, just looking at a bunch of people.
PREGRACKE: It's great.
ROWE: They're all here because of you.
PREGRACKE: Well, honestly, like I think of cops and judges and stuff, I can just feel like they see some of America's worst...
ROWE: Yeah.
PREGRACKE: ... because that feel like see like a lot of American's best, you know. All right, we can get this now.
ROWE: All right.
PREGRACKE: Nice.
ROWE: So far, the jolliest garbage man on planet earth have gathered an astonishing amount of assorted (inaudible), humans have damped in to this river.
PREGRACKE: This is the fun part.
ROWE: I'm not sure how I assume this particular position.
However, we're still being held hostage by an extreme bloody (inaudible) gutter on a (inaudible) mission.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Are we going to meet our quota today?
PREGRACKE: No, no.
ROWE: What's the quota?
PREGRACKE: More.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Thank you guys, one more.
(CROSSTALK)
ROWE: Good find.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah.
ROWE: Impressive, nice. Nice, you make it look easy.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: That's not it.
ROWE: Nice touch with the short sleeve shirts. It's not like anybody is looking at your arm.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Right.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: I was.
ROWE: Were you?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Not.
ROWE: I'll tell you, people are pigs. Dirt gets in everything, man, everything. It might have been pee.
I don't know that I've ever seen a rubber ducky with a human head fused to it. But I got it.
PREGRACKE: Well you never know what you're going to find, though.
ROWE: No. What's the most valuable thing you ever found?
PREGRACKE: T.V.
ROWE: You've been waiting for me to ask that.
TAMMY BECKER, CHAD'S WIFE: Chad and I ironically are like the ninth marriage to happen on that barge, it's people who's like met out there, worked out there together, end up getting married.
ROWE: Get out. Nine?
BECKER: We're the ninth one, yeah.
UNIDENTIFIED FEMALE: Where the love barge.
ROWE: Got it, the love barge.
BECKER: So when we interview people, we got to tell them, "You have like a one over 10 chance of meeting your soul mate while you work out here. Are you prepared for this?"
ROWE: I've been a relatively productive volunteer, so far today, until I ran into a truly stubborn piece of trash, the blue barrel from hell.
This is a major, major project.
PREGRACKE: Yeah.
[21:15:10] ROWE: These things are just diabolically tough.
And while I engaged with this epic struggle, we actually reached our quota and the long awaited into our day.
PREGRACKE: Guys, sorry, we got to go.
ROWE: But Chad can tell I'm not willing to admit defeat at the hands of a 55 gallon drum.
PREGRACKE: We'll come back.
ROWE: OK. I'll be back. Look at it leering at me.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROWE: My day of cleaning up the Ohio river with the relentless (inaudible) gutter named Chad Pregracke is almost done. As the sun begins to set, we've gather just about as much garbage as we can. But wait, we're not quite done.
We have some unfinished business up in the woods with a barrel full of dirt. It's so much easier than with the shovel. [21:20:02] Yes. Wow.
PREGRACKE: Boom, there it is.
ROWE: Not so tough now, are you?
PREGRACKE: See that what the chainsaw is like it makes light work a bit. Yup.
ROWE: I should I watch you work Chad?
PREGRACKE: Well...
ROWE: It really is.
PREGRACKE: I wasn't, you know, the smartest kid in school or any like that or -- but smart enough to know that something needs to be done and that's how we can do it, you know.
ROWE: Smart enough.
PREGRACKE: Team work. Team work. I don't really think about what's been accomplished, you know, I just focus on like what's next because there's lot to do, you know.
ROWE: Yup.
PREGRACKE: Well that's it, operation blue barrel full effect. Got it, right here. Boom
ROWE: What we pick up and hold out today is just a drop in the bucket of what's clogging the shores and water waste of the majestic Ohio River. But Chad Pregracke has demonstrated that this is how you get it done. One stretch of river, one boat load, one day at a time.
Something truly smells bad. Yeah, that's a garbage barge right there.
PREGRACKE: It goes out a lot fast than it came in, you know.
ROWE: Yeah.
PREGRACKE: It's kind of rewarding. That is one thing you -- at the end of the day, you know you made a difference, you know.
ROWE: Seems like to go places to say goodbye, so we're going to do that now Chad. You have always been as a advertised to beyond. Thanks for you hospitality.
PREGRACKE: No problem. Nice coming out.
ROWE: You and your marry band of garbage man are our example. So thanks.
PREGRACKE: Thank you. Thanks for the help today. I appreciate it.
ROWE: Hey crew, say goodbye. UNIDENTIFIED CROWD: Bye.
ROWE: Do it like you did on the island.
(CROSSTALK)
ROWE: It's garbage talk.
PREGRACKE: That is.
ROWE: Thanks (inaudible). All right.
Winter, the frozen tundra of Wisconsin. An epic battle of survival that puts man against the elements and darkest recess is of his own soul. Actually it's kind of pretty. Snow and ice are good things, up here at Franksville. I was in Wisconsin when viewer said, "Mike, you should check out the folks in Art Below Zero while you're here." So we did.
Art below zero is the husband and wife team of Jeanne and Max Zuleta and theirs is a song of fire and ice that's being sung around the world. Jeanne and Max are internationally famous ice sculptors. And from what I'm told their creations are nothing short of master pieces. I think we're here.
We're definitely here.
MAX ZULETA, ICE SCULPTOR, ART BELOW ZERO: Hey Mike.
ROWE: How you doing?
JEANNE ZULETA, ICE SCULPTOR, ART BELOW ZERO: Hi Mike.
ROWE: Hello.
M. ZULETA: How are you doing buddy?
ROWE: I'm great how are you?
M. ZULETA: Very nice to meet you.
ROWE: Max?
M. ZULETA: Max.
J. ZULETA: Jeanne like, like three wishes.
ROWE: Jennie. Where am I?
M. ZULETA: We are Art Below Zero.
J. ZULETA: We're not a typical sculpting company.
ROWE: What is it typical ice sculpting company?
M. ZULETA: Its company at makes a fish, an eagle, you know, a classic ice sculpting.
J. ZULETA: We like when people come to us and say we want to serve seafood in illusion, and I want our monogram and I want my picture frozen in it and I want some -- I'm thinking more kids frozen in it and I want it to be able to be moved in the middle of the party.
ROWE: That's a good story.
J. ZULETA: 900 pounds. So that's what we do.
ROWE: Is that what you're doing now?
M. ZULETA: We're creating this seafood station for a major hotel. The events starts at 4 to something.
J. ZULETA: Sharp.
M. ZULETA: So we try to be out of here by 1:30 in the afternoon.
ROWE: OK. So what can I do to slow you down?
M. ZULETA: Let me finish this.
ROWE: All right.
M. ZULETA: Before we actually start it working in the piece, let's do a practice piece.
ROWE: Great.
J. ZULETA: Let's get him some proper gear.
ROWE: Right.
A good sculptor not only needs the right gear they need the right medium. In this case that medium is an ice so clear, they call it gem like and it's entirely home grown.
M. ZULETA: We are ice farmers, we harvest ice. The biggest secret about how clear our blocks are is first, you know, purify the water. But then that kind of motion makes the particles of water to feels really, really tight together, that's why the ice is so clear.
[21:25:05] When they are not that tight together there's bubbles and bubbles means white ice.
J. ZULETA: This will go down on here, this (inaudible) saw. We clean off the top of it and then we get our perfect block of ice ready to begin.
ROWE: How do you move it? Thongs?
J. ZULETA: We use this. They're heavy. I don't know what your experiences of ice.
ROWE: Made in early Illinois? J. ZULETA: I think so.
ROWE: Don't believe everything you read.
J. ZULETA: Or hear.
ROWE: Or see.
J. ZULETA: Or smell.
ROWE: Or touch.
J. ZULETA: Or taste.
ROWE: Or lick.
J. ZULETA: Right.
ROWE: You're a curious person.
The art here at Art Below Zero is -- well state of the art. With hundreds of tools to get job done, like this computerize numerical control machine, CNC for short use to carve precise designs.
M. ZULETA: We're going to get our machine to give us a nice silhouette of the sculpture and we will finish it in here.
ROWE: How long is to take with that we do with its doing?
M. ZULETA: It takes about 3 minutes.
ROWE: OK. Did he get you into this or did you get him into this?
J. ZULETA: No, we came at separate time. He started in Venezuela and I started in Appleton Wisconsin.
ROWE: Oh.
M. ZULETA. We are very proud to use all kind of technology. We use whatever it is available to us.
ROWE: The best tool for best job at the...
M. ZULETA: Yeah.
ROWE: ... right time for the right client.
M. ZULETA: Exactly.
ROWE: And whoever that client is, they better be willing to fork over some real (inaudible).
M. ZULETA: This things ain't cheap.
J. ZULETA: They're expensive. Our average (inaudible) is 750.
ROWE: So 750 bucks get you your average ice sculpture, basically.
J. ZULETA: Your average Art Below Zero sculpture.
ROWE: Right. This is the practice block
M. ZULETA: Yes. So you're ready for some chain saw of carving?
ROWE: Yes I am ready.
M. ZULETA: Ready?
ROWE: Yeah.
M. ZULETA: Awesome.
ROWE: Well stay with me.
M. ZULETA: Both hands.
ROWE: Yeah.
M. ZULETA: Solid feet on the ground.
ROWE: Yup.
M. ZULETA: Do an extension an off to your arm.
ROWE: So you just put the tip in first.
M. ZULETA: Yes.
ROWE: Just a little bit.
M. ZULETA: Just the tip.
ROWEP Just the tip.
M. ZULETA: Beautiful.
J. ZULETA: Yep.
ROWE: What's holding that thing on there?
M. ZULETA: Let me see.
ROWE: How much? You'd have a really hard time though, without putting these screws in right.
M. ZULETA: For 10 years I carved with only a hand saw and a couple of chisels and an ice peak.
ROWE: Really?
M. ZULETA: That's all. And if you think carving with a chain saw is hard, imagine going through a whole block with a hand saw. ROWE: Yeah, I can imagine that. Happily I don't have to do it because we have power tools, lots of power tools. And we're going to use them.
M. ZULETA: Now, we're going start doing some really fun work.
ROWE: My God we found a camera in your ice.
M. ZULETA: That is going to be a great job.
(Crosstalk)
ROWE: All right.
M. ZULETA: So we have the four barrel holders and now right now right we're going to make into a (inaudible). Like you pour alcohol through here right now, it comes out right here.
ROWE: Right.
J. ZULETA: We do have to make sure it works though. Yup. That's just working too hard.
ROWE: So when we come back, we're going to actually -- the actual work will commence. Now the practice session is done.
J. ZULETA: Arts and friendship.
ROWE: And half of the segment.
J. ZULETA: And a really big glass of whisky.
ROWE: The other half is coming up. Tell them to stay with us.
J. ZULETA: Please, stay with us.
M. ZULETA: Nice.
ROWE: That's nice. That's actually quite good.
M. ZULETA: That's for grown ups.
ROWE: Yeah.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
ROWE: I'm still here in Wisconsin at Art Below Zero with my new friends, Max and Jeanne, and I have just completed my very ice sculpture.
M. ZULETA: Look at you.
ROWE: Yeah.
M. ZULETA: That's awesome. ROWE: But that was a practice piece. Not it's time for the real deal that a client down in Chicago is paying cold hard cash for it. And on top of that, we've kind of been hurry, because when you're working with ice, there's always a deadline.
J. ZULETA: I'm looking at the clock and look at the schedule. We have to keep moving.
M. ZULETA: Next, we're going to make a little hole, so they can put in the caviar.
How's Freddy (ph)?
J. ZULETA: Right.
ROWE: Freddy (ph).
M. ZULETA: Yeah.
ROWE: My dog is good. He's a tremendous pain in the neck.
M. ZULETA: Now, it is a lot more (inaudible). Not too deep because if we go through deep, the spheres going to start moving.
Let's try a different design. I can say that Mike Rowe was holding my balls.
ROWE: You can.
J. ZULETA: But should you? That's wonderful.
ROWE: When people see Max's balls, I want them to be like, wow. I would like to have one of those in my hand.
[21:35:01] J. ZULETA: I would like to have her hold my scrolled ball. Freezer, sir?
M. ZULETA: Yes. Please.
ROWE: Hey, Jeanne.
M. ZULETA: OK.
J. ZULETA: Yes.
ROWE: Show it to, Doug ph. Show it up there. You know, like a home shopping model. Make it sing.
J. ZULETA: Home shopping.
ROWE: Yes. Bring it to life.
J. ZULETA: This is a...
ROWE: Don't speak, just show it him. Sell with your eyes. Sell with your lips. That's it. That's it. Work it. Touch it. Touch the spear. Be the spear. There you -- that's good. Max, you got yourself a winner there, buddy.
M. ZULETA: That wasn't creepy.
ROWE: That's the work of the master. Now, it's my turn. The pressure's on and the question is obvious. Can I decorate a ball worthy of caviar?
J. ZULETA: You're trying. You're great.
M. ZULETA: That's the perfect angle.
ROWE: Thank you. Now, I got it.
J. ZULETA: That looks good.
M. ZULETA: That's perfect.
J. ZULETA: We're doing the sea food platters now.
ROWE: Max is basically preparing two separate carving stations. I think the plan is I get to work on one while he gets the work on the other.
M. ZULETA: We also came out with a concept where we do ice sculptors on a stage, and then, I could show.
ROWE: Live performance.
M. ZULETA: Yeah.
ROWE: Performance art based.
M. ZULETA: Performance art.
ROWE: Do you have a recording...
M. ZULETA: Yeah.
ROWE: .... of that?
M. ZULETA: Yeah.
J. ZULETA: Online, there's a video on there.
ROWE: I think it would be fun to hear the music you're talking about while we're working on the ice.
Max not only found the music, he found the video. So without any further adieu, I present the Ice Beat Factory, starring Max Zuleta.
M. ZULETA: You know, and so the concept of time and space. We're all melting, by the way. So ice sculptors, they have this magic effect on people because they know that it is melting really fast. So they want to take advantage of it. They want to enjoy with their heart with their souls.
J. ZULETA: This, you know, it gives you a sense of your mortality. Be in the moment. Enjoy the moment. It will pass.
ROWE: Because of the words of Max, we're all melting.
J. ZULETA: We're all melting.
ROWE: You should really put it on your business card.
So after quick assembly and to make sure all the pieces are ready to go.
M. ZULETA: That's how it's going to look all set up.
ROWE: It's the most beautiful ice sculptor I've ever seen.
We packed it up, load it up and send it off to Chicago.
So wave goodbye to Art Below Zero.
As my day at Art Below Zero comes to a close, I can help to be inspired by the creativity, ingenuity, they are all talents of these two people. So allow me to present a video of my own. Ice Grooves by Mike Rowe.
Looking back, this is a story about ice sculpting at all. This is the love story, a love story in which the two lovers are both aware of an internal existential truth, to then now immortal words with Max Zuleta, we're all melting.
It's just nice to know that as ice slowly melt. My crew will always have my back.
Damn it. Why didn't I see that? Why?
Hey.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Hello.
ROWE: Hello. Hello. How's it look?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's like our perfect environment.
[21:40:01] ROWE: Really?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah. It really is. Right, look.
ROWE: Yeah. It's so weird having enthusiastic cameraman on Somebody's Got to Do It. It's walking through a setting like this cold and here that it is a dream come true, a fantasy about to be realized. Why are still happy with it, visually?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It has a very industrial vibe. We have a couple of great characters. Yeah, and should be told, we have such brilliant bureau because we had sometimes if you look a sexy footage. But we're calling it a sexy time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: All right, here we go. Pick up our hammer. Yeah, it's really good. Set the hammer down and pick the hammer up. Great, OK, we're done with the hammer. Put the hammer down, lift your hands up. OK, hold that pose. That's very (inaudible). But you have dirty hands too, don't you. That's some big callous there too, nice.
Give me your best Clint Eastwood. Awesome guys, that's great.
ROWE: And I would say, we don't even need a host on this one, we just rolled the bureau and we're set.
ROWE: You know what? That's great. I'll wait in the car. Troy, will take everyone ever hosting duties remain and you guys can just come together in a happy exposure your sexy time.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: (inaudible) that's rough. That's good.
ROWE: Thanks Troy. See you on the next one. We'll be back.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[21:45:11] ROWE: I'm in Pine, Colorado, checking out the father and son team behind dragon forge, where they're stoking the fires to keep the ancient art blacksmithing alive and well. Not I'm talking about banging steel bars into a horse shoe or making a fireplace poker.
I'm talking about serious pieces of art. All made by hand, the way blacksmiths have been working for centuries.
Can I get like maybe a quick your...
CRAIG MAY: Sure.
ROWE: ... of the place before we start making stuff. I mean every where I turn, I see something cool. Is that chandelier the thing you made?
C. MAY: That's part of a series of seven we're doing on a (inaudible), Montana.
ROWE: Yeah. This is amazing.
C. MAY: There were detail on it. It is hand forged, hand fitted.
ROWE: And how complicated is this in the realm of...
C. MAY: It's crazy detail. Yeah. There is a lot of stuff going on in it.
ROWE: What else can you show me? What's this here?
C. MAY: I'd say an interior gate to keep the dogs from having run of the house.
ROWE: So you guys make big meaty pieces of steel.
C. MAY: It's the nature of (inaudible). RORY MAY: Got this full size mirror. So we got a life size (inaudible), copper, brass, bronze, steel leaves, the blue on it and also the blue on the back is all copper ammonia patina.
ROWE: This is extraordinary if it were, if I mean, will you sell it or will you just keep it?
MAY: You're going to buy it?
ROWE: Maybe. Let's see how the rest of day goes. Everywhere I look, I've got questions but...
R. MAY: Well, just shout them out. Do you want to do sign? Do you want to look at your sign?
ROWE: Oh, yeah, yeah. Oh my god.
C. MAY: Which is why we are here.
ROWE: So you've been working on this.
C. MAY: Rory has been working on this.
ROWE: Yeah. This is amazing.
R. MAY: Yeah. It's looking OK?
ROWE: Your boy does a work?
C. MAY: Yes, he does. I learned him good.
ROWE: I mean, I don't know if we have, let's got support it.
R. MAY: There is more that attaches to it as well.
ROWE: So what do we do, it's not done.
R. MAY: Not yet.
ROWE: That's what we're going to finish today? So now, we have a mission. Now, I actually have something to do.
R. MAY: Yeah.
ROWE: All right. I can finish my own sign. What else can I do? Anything? Is this the focus?
C. MAY: We here to make a leaf.
ROWE: A leaf
C. MAY: Yeah. A leaf.
ROWE: What am I going to do first?
C. MAY: Build fire? ROWE: A fire.
C. MAY: A fire. Follow me.
ROWE: To build a fire. It appeared as thought you just reach right to the flame there, if grabs some of the ash.
C. MAY: Yeah, some of us are (inaudible).
ROWE: You really don't have any feeling left in your arms at all, do you?
C. MAY: You just do it quickly.
ROWE: You've burned more times than you can count, I guess?
C. MAY: Yes. And if you get little holes in here, from the fly ash popping out in there?
ROWE: Yeah.
(CROSSTALK)
ROWE: Now we have a fire.
C. MAY: Now, using a hand hammer at the anvil, we're going to be brining this bar up here to the edge and we're going to hit it and turn it and hit it and turn it and hit it and we're going to cause this bar to reduce in mass and get longer into a (inaudible).
ROWE: Good.
C. MAY: This is where everything begins. It's right here.
ROWE: Over the course of time, I have to think this was the -- it's got to be the center of thing.
C. MAY: It was the focal point of the community. Because without the blacksmith or the smithy or the forge in the community to make the tools, repair the tools, shoe the horses, it's just that this never ended.
ROWE: Yeah.
C. MAY: At one time I got to read the daily log of 1912 blacksmith of what he did each day and what he took in payment each day.
ROWE: Not necessarily money.
C. MAY: Not necessarily money. Sometimes it was a bushel of potatoes.
ROWE: How many potatoes you want for that mirror up there?
C. MAY: It's a lot of potatoes, Mike. I'm going to swing this right, across your belly. ROWE: What I'm going to is step over here.
C. MAY: There's a fair chance, I'm going to (inaudible) it up, because I have to make the leaf at the anvil and more than a little while.
ROWE: Well, I like the way I manage expectations. That's a important.
C. MAY: Clearly hot stuff,
ROWE: It's hot stuff. It's hot steel. All right.
C. MAY: Coach him Rory.
ROWE: Get in here and tell me what to do, for crying out loud. All right, I'll start hitting stuff.
R. MAY: OK. The first thing, get your thumb of the handle.
ROWE: Yup.
R. MAY: There you go.
C. MAY: Good form, you're looking nice there. Standing upright.
ROWE: Thank you. I'm maintaining an erect posture.
R. MAY: Hit this hit.
ROWE: Always aiming to the tip.
C. MAY: You can hit it a little harder too.
ROWE: I don't want to break your anvil. Hit the anvil, sorry about that. Oh, that sounded it.
C. MAY: The pain.
ROWE: How big is this leaf going to be?
C. MAY: Maybe that big.
ROWE: What kind of leaf is it?
C. MAY: It's a leaf. Starts with an L.
ROWE: Ends with F.
C. MAY: Yeah.
R. MAY: Just the very thin, just smack turn, smack turn and get that material to move and...
ROWE: Hit, turn, hit, turn, hit, turn, hit, turn.
R.MAY: OK, back in the fire.
ROWE: Hit, turn.
C. MAY: Another quick hit.
ROWE: What is like growing up with him?
R. MAY: Not so bad.
ROWE: No.
R. MAY: Working with dad is also as a form of punishment, like if you get grounded...
ROWE: Yeah.
R. MAY: ... you come to the shop.
ROWE: Come to shop, make a leaf.
C. MAY: Yeah, if you guys get home from school for any other reason and being super smart.
[21:50:04] ROWE: You go straight to the forge. Well, that's really a mix message. You're using the means of making a living as punishment.
C. MAY: I'm just saying, I can use my upbringing and my kids any way I want.
R. MAY: And I'll forge either side of it. Bring out the (inaudible). Good.
C. MAY: We're going to change this one up to just a little bit. I'll now give you this.
ROWE: Yeah.
C. MAY: No, no you don't get this one.
ROWE: He's a tease, your dad.
R. MAY: Yes, he is.
ROWE: I'm going to give you -- no.
(CROSSTALK)
C. MAY: You get to have this. Right hand forward, left hand behind. You're going to strike and we're going to walk a (inaudible).
ROWE: All right.
C. MAY: And not my hand hit it. Go, hit it.
ROWE: I see what we're doing.
C. MAY: Hit it.
ROWE: Maybe this -- we're work together.
R. MAY: There you go.
ROWE: It's awesome.
C. MAY: You're a natural, done is a leaf.
ROWE: Metal leaf man, I made a leaf, I made a leaf, it happened.
C. MAY: Hot stuff up here.
ROWE: You want to cool it's off now or no I got to knock it of.
C. MAY: Your OK to that?
ROWE: Well yeah, that's not a leaf.
R. MAY: It's going to look terrible on your keychain.
C. MAY: OK here we go.
ROWE: All right.
C. MAY: Hold (inaudible).
ROWE: Holding (inaudible).
C. MAY: Now hit hard and watch him.
ROWE: Rory, that was a close one. He's got hotter stuff than that in his crouch, believe me.
(COMMERCIAL BREAK)
[21:55:08] C. MAY: We're going to let you play with Bob here for a second.
ROWE: Introduce me to Bob.
C. MAY: Bob is an acronym for a Big Old...
ROWE: Bastard. Come on over and say hi to Bob. So this is a 250 pound hunk of steel...
C. MAY: Yeah.
ROWE: ... just hanging?
C. MAY: Yeah.
ROWE: So this thing completely changes your world.
C. MAY: It makes life good.
ROWE: I mean a gazillion times or two minutes over here?
C. MAY: This one can hurt you, there's no forgiveness.
ROWE: This will leave a mark. What can you do to a penny with that?
C. MAY: Well first blow would flatten it. Second blow would tear the penny in half.
There it went.
ROWE: It tore the penny in half.
C. MAY: Didn't I tell you?
ROWE: Yeah -- ouch. Wow, just like that.
C. MAY: Yeah, that's kinetic energy working for you. Hold it gently in your hand.
ROWE: Gently. (inaudible) gently in your hand.
C. MAY: Maybe that's now the first pair tongs are invented?
ROWE: Yeah, right? Let's do some more. See what a quarter does.
C. MAY: It will be hot.
ROWE: Yeah well, so tell me about pure kinetic energy again.
C. MAY: Well it's transferred into energy and it's got to release it somewhere so it dissipates its heat.
ROWE: That fast, one smack and a cool quarter...
C. MAY: It loads that much energy into there until it becomes too hot. Isn't that cool?
ROWE: It's very cool. We're just putting touches on this decorative piece which is going to go under the sign, right Rory?
R. MAY: Yeah. This is what the sign will hang off of the mounts, it's the transition between the mounts and the sign.
ROWE: So it will be well-hang?
R. MAY: Yes.
ROWE: Forging metal isn't something that just happens instantly, it takes a lot of patience and even more skill to coax these shapes out of a glowing hot piece of steel. It could take weeks or even months to finish a piece depending on how detailed it is. But, this is T.V. we don't have that kind of time.
C. MAY: The goal is for everybody to leave with their eyebrows today.
ROWE: Good goal. C. MAY: All right. Yeah.
ROWE: That's rabbet doggone.
C. MAY: Sure you don't want to try (ph)?
ROWE: Let's see how the show does. What do you look for in an employee for that -- I mean what's the ideal person?
C. MAY: Rory.
ROWE: Yeah?
C. MAY: Yeah. If I could find another Rory, somebody with his skill, his determination, their willingness to work, willingness to get your hands in there and get dirty and do the job and not bitch about it, just do the job.
ROWE: I get it.
C. MAY: It's blacksmithing, you know, there's no crying in blacksmithing.
ROWE: There's no crying in blacksmithing, I love it.
C. MAY: Yeah.
ROWE: OK.
Oh crap that's looking good. So there's no nuts, there's no bolts, there's no screwing, this is all heat and rabbeting?
C. MAY: Yeah.
R. MAY: The rings obviously are hot.
C. MAY: Boom
R. MAY: Boom.
ROWE: Boom, oh yeah.
C. MAY: I can't wait to see it hung.
ROWE: Well what do you say we take this outside somewhere or somewhere place that makes Troy happy. And we'll hold it up and we'll get some beautiful sort of portraiture for you and I'll say something fitting and then the show will be over?
C. MAY: Then how would that be?
ROWE: I don't know yet.
C. MAY: Fade it back and we're out of here?
ROWE: Not yet, almost. We'll be fading it black very shortly but until we say goodbye and thanks. Goodbye and thanks.
C. MAY: OK.
ROWE: No. No, no, no, we're going to go over here, it's going to be great.
All right, are you ready?
C. MAY: As ready as I'm going to be.
ROWE: Troy, are you ready?
TROY: The sign is beautiful, the shot is perfect enough.
ROWE: I'm just looking for simple yes or no. All right guys up you go then.
C. MAY: We're up.
ROWE: You good?
C. MAY: Yeah.
ROWE: All right, it's very heavy so I'll be brief. I owe a huge gratitude. I think you know what I mean. I'm very grateful to Craig and -- what's your name again?
R. MAY: Rory.
ROWE: Rory. I'll never forget Craig and -- are you sure it's not Cory.
R. MAY: I'm sure.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: It's blocking your mouth.
ROWE: It's Rory.
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Look down through that (inaudible).
ROWE: Oh OK, how about this, how about this, is that better?
UNIDENTIFIED MALE: Yeah. That's great.
ROWE: All right. This is a perfect place for me to say goodbye and thank you, because here at the Dragonforge I've had a great time. I have two enormous blisters but I'm leaving with maybe the coolest thing anybody has ever made for me before. Can you hold it steady -- just hold steady?
R. MAY: OK.
ROWE: All right? I'm almost done. It's been a fabulous trip here -- Pine, is it...
C. MAY: Pine, Colorado. ROWE: Pine, Colorado, my golly it's God's country out here, the mountains and the pine trees and the real blacksmiths and the forging -- everybody is cool and awesome, seriously, thank you very much. Thank you very much.
R. MAY: You're welcome.
ROWE: And goodbye.
C. MAY: We got to repaint these mask.
