Bulldozer to the Rescue

By George L. Nitti 

In West Texas, on Super Bowl Sunday, a recovery operation unfolded involving a bulldozer, a 350,000-pound coil unit, and a steep incline. It started when Harvey Pierce of B & B Towing received a call about a coil tubing unit used for well servicing; it had gotten stuck traversing a hill.  

Needing assistance from another heavy-duty tow company, Pierce dispatched Big Sky Towing and Recovery of Midland, Texas, led by lead operator Travis Turner, who loaded up their bulldozer to make the four-hour trek to the oil field. “We had to haul the bulldozer out there,” Travis explained. “We knew that the bulldozer was the key to getting that coil unit out. It was the only thing with enough brute force to make it happen.” 

The bulldozer was a John Deere 850, a 60,000-pound machine designed to handle rough terrain. Unlike a wrecker, the bulldozer’s tracks provide exceptional traction on dirt, making it ideal for this job. Upon arrival, the towing team carefully rigged the bulldozer to the coil unit with two large straps and prepared to pull the massive load up the hill. 

However, the job wasn’t as straightforward as it seemed. The hill was steeper than anyone had anticipated, and there was uncertainty about whether the bulldozer could pull the unit without damaging the drive shaft. The team had a backup plan: if the bulldozer couldn’t handle it, they would attach the wrecker to the bulldozer to provide extra pulling power. But fortunately, the bulldozer pulled through as Travis and his team slowly maneuvered the coil unit up the incline. 

“Once the bulldozer got started, it was like a steady grind,” Travis said. “The tracks were digging in, leaving big ruts in the ground, but the dozer kept moving. It took about 15 minutes to get the coil unit up the hill, but it felt like a lifetime.” 

After the bulldozer reached the top of the hill, the coil unit was able to continue its way to the next location. Despite missing the Super Bowl, Travis commented, “It wasn’t the game that mattered. It was getting that coil unit out. That’s what we do – solve problems and get the job done, no matter what.”