Lisa Kelly (trucker)

Lisa Kelly (born December 8, 1980) is an American trucker who has been featured on the History channel reality television series Ice Road Truckers and its spinoff series IRT: Deadliest Roads. For seasons 3–5 and 7–11, Ice Road Truckers followed Kelly and her fellow drivers as they make their way along the icy Dalton Highway from Fairbanks to Prudhoe Bay, frequently hauling "oversized" loads. Kelly has also made appearances in Seasons 1–2 of IRT: Deadliest Roads. Kelly was notable as the only female trucker featured in the series until Maya Sieber joined in Season 5, and Stephanie "Steph" Custance in season 10. Originally from Grand Rapids, Michigan, she now resides in Wasilla, Alaska.[2] She has a YouTube channel under her name.[3]

Lisa Kelly
Kelly in Chile.
Born (1980-12-08) December 8, 1980
Grand Rapids, Michigan, U.S.
NationalityAmerican
OccupationTrucker
Known for
SpouseTraves (Travis) Kelly (m. 2008)[1]

Early life

Kelly was born on December 8, 1980,[4] in Grand Rapids, Michigan. Her family moved to a mini farm in Sterling, Alaska, when she was six years old. She returned to Grand Rapids for college, attending Cornerstone University for one semester before deciding it was not for her.[5]

Career

Prior to her appointment as an Ice Road Trucker, Kelly worked as a school bus driver and motocross rider.[6] She also worked at gas stations, and a pizza company[5] and was a state freestyle motocross champion. After these ventures, she decided to settle on a long term-career and trained as a trucker because it 'looked interesting'. She subsequently got a job driving for Carlile Transportation, an Alaskan haulage company. Being a woman, Kelly says this was a difficult achievement. "I had to work twice as hard. I had to pull my weight and everybody else's and get the job done as fast, or faster."[7]

TV appearances

Kelly is one of the truckers for the History Channel's Ice Road Truckers. She first appeared in season 3 (Seasons 1 and 2 had been set in Canada) in 2009, as the only woman.[7][8] She subsequently took part in season 4 (in 2010)[8] and season 5 and 7.

She also took part in the History Channel's Ice Road Truckers: Deadliest Roads[9][2]along with Rick Yemm, Dave Redmon and Alex Debogorski[10] trucking in the Himalayas in India; in a later season, she drove in Bolivia and Peru.

Journalist Kaye O'Hara claims that Kelly was offered a contract to return to the show for season six, but she declined it. According to show's producer Kelly was taking a year off.[11] Kelly returned in season 7, and on season 9, she was working in Darrell Ward's new company before his death following season 10. She appeared in season 11, the final season for Ice Road Truckers.

Personal life

In 2008, Lisa married Traves Kelly, after dating him for four years. He is full Aleut Native Alaskan and an avid dirtbiker.[5] They have no children. Her hobbies include motocross, horse riding, skydiving, hang gliding, and snowboarding.[5] She owns a miniature horse named Rocky[12] and a cat named Tanzi.[13]

References
  1. "The Official Lisa Kelly Web Site". Thelisakelly.com. September 26, 2008. Archived from the original on April 7, 2012. Retrieved April 15, 2012.
  2. "'Ice Road Truckers' Star Lisa Kelly Talks Danger and Earning Respect". Aoltv.com. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
  3. Kelly, Lisa. "Lisa Kelly".
  4. "Lisa Kelly - Info". Facebook. December 8, 1980. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
  5. "About me". Thelisakelly.com. 2013. Archived from the original on August 7, 2014. Retrieved August 3, 2014.
  6. "Season 5 Truckers — Ice Road Truckers —". History.com. Archived from the original on February 9, 2010. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
  7. Lisa Kelly cuts pretty figure on "Ice Road Truckers", Daily News (New York), May 28, 2009. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
  8. Lisa Kelly – Ice Road Trucker Archived March 7, 2012, at the Wayback Machine, North Shore Journal, June 21, 2009. Retrieved March 11, 2012.
  9. "Lisa Kelly — IRT Deadliest Roads —". History.com. Archived from the original on October 28, 2011. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
  10. "Season 2: South America — IRT Deadliest Roads —". History.com. Archived from the original on October 28, 2011. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
  11. "'Ice Road Truckers': Thom Beers Addresses the Question, 'Where Is Lisa Kelly?'". Kate O'Hare's Hot Cuppa TV blog (June 25, 2012). Archived from the original on August 28, 2012. Retrieved August 21, 2012.
  12. "Rocky's World". Thelisakelly.com. Archived from the original on March 10, 2012. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
  13. "Tanzi's Album". Thelisakelly.com. Archived from the original on March 10, 2012. Retrieved March 15, 2012.
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