>> DON'T FORGET GOLD STILL
HANGING AROUND $1300.
OUNCE.
1302 TO BE PRECISE.
) IMAGINE THIS.
A GEOLOGIST WRIST A BIG CHUNK
OF HIS OWN MONEY.
HE THANKS HE SPOTTED A LARGE
POOL OF OIL IN ALASKA.
HE SPENDS THE MONEY, BUILDS AN
ICE ROAD TO GET THE EQUIPMENT
ACROSS THE TUNDRA, BECAUSE YOU
CAN'T DAMAGE THE TUNDRA AND HE
STARTS TO DRILL BINGO.
HE HITS WHAT WAS USED TO BE
CALLED A GUSHER.
I'M GOING TO CALL HIM AN
AMERICAN HERO.
HE'S A FRIEND OF MINE.
WELCOME TO THE PROGRAM.
>> IT'S GREAT TO BE HERE.
AMERICAN HERO, YES, THAT IS
YOU.
I HOPE MY WIFE AND KIDS ARE
WATCHING.
YOU HAVE A HUNCH, YOU'RE A
GEOLOGIST BY PROFESSION AND
YOU JUST WERE GOING THROUGH
SOME RECORDS AND YOU HAVE A
HUNCH.
WHAT DID YOU SEE?
>> IS PROBABLY MORE THAN A
HUNCH BECAUSE I HAVE A SMALL
COMPANY OUT OF DENVER AND WE
HAVE A DOZEN REALLY GOOD
TECHNICAL GUYS AND WE REALLY
TEAR APART AN AREA AND THE
NORTH SLOPE OF A ALASKA HAS
SORT OF BEEN LEFT BEHIND.
EVERYBODY BELIEVED THAT ALL
THE BIG WELLS HAD BEEN FOUND.
WE HAD KIND OF CONFIRMED,
GEOLOGISTS ARE FUNNY.
I NEED TO BECOME A PRISONER OF
WHAT THEY THINK THEY KNOW AND
WE WENT UP THERE AND SAID WE
THINK THEY LEFT SOMETHING
BEHIND THAT MAY BE REALLY
BIG.
WE ASSEMBLED A BUNCH OF LAND
AND WENT LOOKING FOR PARTNER.
WE HAD A FANTASTIC PARTNER OUT
OF SPAIN AND WE STARTED
DRILLING THESE AREAS.
>> YOU CHUCKED A LOT OF YOUR
MONEY INTO IT.
>> I PUT A LOT.
>> I'M NOT GOING TO ASK YOU
HOW MUCH, BUT I DO BELIEVE
IT'S AT LEAST 50 MILLION TO
DRILL ONE WELLIN ALASKA.
>> THAT'S RIGHT.
>> SO YOU FIGURED OUT THE WELL
WAS THERE, OFF YOU GO, YOU GET
THE MONEY AND WHAT'S THIS
ROAD.
>> THE WAY YOU DRILL IN ALASKA
IN THE WINTERTIME, IT'S REALLY
DARK AND COLD.
IT'S ABOVE THE ARCTIC CIRCLE
SO IN THE WINTER THE SUN NEVER
COMES OUT.
AS SOON AS THE GROUND FREEZES
IN LATE DECEMBER, YOU HAVE TO
KNOW WHERE YOUR LOCATION IS
AND IN OUR CASE IT WAS 17 AND
HALF MILES AWAY.
YOU POUR FRESHWATER ON THE
TUNDRA AND IT FREEZES.
WE BASICALLY MADE A 17.5-MILE
ICE-SKATING RINK AND YOU GO
ALL THE WAY OUT THERE AND YOU
BUILD YOUR PAD AND WHEN ALL
THAT'S FROZEN YOU MOBILIZE
YOUR RIG AND ALL YOUR PEOPLE'S
PLACES TO EAT AND LIVE,
WHATEVER, AND THEN YOU DRILL
YOUR WELLIN YOUR TEST YOUR
WELL AND THEN ICE ROAD MELTING
YOU CAN NEVER TELL YOU ARE
THERE.
>> THAT'S AMAZING.
>> YOU HAVE TO DO IT THAT
WAY.
>> YOU BUILT THE ICE ROAD, YOU
HAVE YOUR EQUIPMENT, IT'S THE
DEAD OF NIGHT, 40 BELOW ZERO
OR WHATEVER.
YOU DO THE TEST DRILL AND WHAT
WERE THE RESULT.
>> ONLY DRILLED THE WELL WE
CAN AND IT IS ONLY WERE
CHASING.
WE DRILLED INTO IT AND WE SAW
WHAT WE WERE HOPING TO FIND
AND LATE AT NIGHT MY CHIEF
GEOLOGIST CALLS ME UP AND SAYS
WE HIT IT.
IT LOOKS GREAT.
HE SAID THAT WERE OUT OF IT.
I WENT TO BED.
THE NEXT MORNING WE GET UP AND
GET A PHONE CALL AND HE SAID
WE WEREN'T OUT OF IT.
>> WHAT DOES HE MEAN.
>> THE PAY ZONE WITH THE OIL
IN IT.
HE SAID I WAS WRONG, WE WANT
OUT OF IT.
IT'S THREE TIMES THICKER THAN
WE THOUGHT IT WOULD BE.
WE KNEW RIGHT AWAY IMMEDIATELY
IT WAS A BIG DEAL.
OUR ENTIRE OFFICE WAS WASTED
BY 10:00 A.M.
>> YOU WEREN'T EVEN IN AMERICA
AT THE TIME.
>> I CAN'T REMEMBER WHERE I
WAS.
>> BUT YOU COULD FOLLOW THE
RESULTS OF THE TEST DRILL ON
YOUR PHONE.
THERE WAS A MOMENT YOU KNEW.
>> IT WAS ONE OF THOSE THINGS
WE HAD IT YOU JUST KNEW.
WE KNEW IT WAS BIG BUT IT JUST
KEPT GETTING BIGGER AND
BIGGER.
IT WAS TERRIFIC.
>> I CALLED IT A GUSHER
BECAUSE I SEE THOSE OLD MOVIES.
THIS DIDN'T GUSH OIL.
IT DOESN'T DO THAT ANYMORE.
THAT WOULD BE BAD FOR THE
ENVIRONMENT.
>> SO IN THE AREA THAT YOU
DRILLED IT, THE AREA WHERE YOU
THOUGHT YOU HAD THE HUNCH THAT
IT WAS THERE, ROUGHLY HOW MANY
BARRELS OF OIL.
>> SO I'M THINKING, IN THAT
AREA WHERE WE FOUND THE FIRST
WELL AND WE WERE SO EXCITED
ABOUT IT IT HAD SUBSEQUENTLY
GOTTEN BIGGER AND BIGGER AND A
COUPLE YEARS AGO WE DECIDED
THAT BASED ON OUR ANALYSIS,
WHEN YOU STEP AWAY FROM THE
FIELD, NORMALLY IT'S LIKE A
MILE IF YOU'RE REALLY RISKY
USED ABOUT 2 MILES.
WE STEPPED OUT 21 MILES AND
FOUND THE SAME ZONE, SAME PAY
ZONE.
>> SO IT'S A LAKE.
>> YES, 40 MILES LONG, 3 MILES
WIDE, WE THINK THERE'LL BE
ABOUT 3 BILLION BARRELS.
>> YOU, BILL ARMSTRONG, YOU
DISCOVERED 3 BILLION BARRELS.
>> IN MY GUYS, AND MY
PARTNER.
I CAN TAKE ALL THE CREDIT.
>> BUT I TAKE IT YOU HAD A
LARGE PIECE OF THE ACTION.
>> YES WE DO.
>> IT'S FUNNY, I LEARNED EARLY
ON TO BE CAREFUL TO TRY TO GET
INTO A POKER GAME IF YOU CAN'T
AFFORD TO STAY AT THE TABLE.
THIS THING WAS JUST TOO BIG
FOR ME.
I BROUGHT IN A PARTNER FROM
AUSTRALIA AND THEY'RE NOW
HELPING MOVE IT FORWARD.
>> YOU'VE TAKEN A BIG CHUNK OF
MONEY OUT.
>> THAT'S CORRECT.
>> WHAT'S NEXT WEST MARK.
>> IT'S KIND OF IN YOUR
BLOOD.
>> BUT YOU'RE NOT A FRACTURE.
>> NO, I'M A DRILLER.
>> IS THERE A LOT MORE OIL
LEFT ON THE NORTH SLOPE.
>> WE THINK THERE'S A TON.
WE FOUND A NEW ZONE AND I
THINK IT'S REPEATABLE TIME AND
TIME AGAIN SO IT'S PRETTY
EXCITING.
>> I CALL YOU AN AMERICAN
HERO.
A MAN WHO RISKS IT ALL AND
WINS ON OIL IN ALASKA IS MY
IDEA OF A GOOD GUY.
THANKS FOR BEING ON THE SHOW.
>> CAN I SAY ONE THING.
>> YOU MAY.
>> I AM SO PROUD OF YOU THE
WAY YOU LOVE AMERICA AND YOU
LOVE CAPITALISM MY LOVE THAT
ABOUT YOU.