Ax Men Reality TV Star Gabe Rygaard Dies in Washington State Car Crash

Gabe Rygaard, star of the canceled History Channel reality TV series Ax Men and one-time candidate for Clallam County commissioner in Washington state, died on 16 September 2016 in a three-vehicle crash on U.S. Highway 101 near his hometown of Port Angeles. He was 45 years old.

The Washington State Patrol investigation reveals that Rygaard veered to avoid a slow truck, and his Ford Bronco struck that and another vehicle coming from the opposite direction. A total of seven people were in the two vehicles. But none of them sustained major injuries, other than Rygaard.

Ax Men is an American reality television series that premiered on March 9, 2008 on History. The program follows the work of several logging crews in the second-growth forests of Northwestern Oregon, Washington and Montana and the rivers of Louisiana and Florida. The show highlights the dangers encountered by the loggers. Following in the footsteps of other shows from Original Productions, like Deadliest Catch and Ice Road Truckers, the series is considered part of a recent "real-men-in-danger" television programming trend.

Rygaard was the owner-operator of Rygaard Logging Inc., Ryfield Properties Inc., and other local businesses in partnership with members of his family, some of whom also appeared in Ax Men, which chronicled the ups and downs of the logging business.

Rygaard is survived by his wife, Katy, and three children

Rygaard Logging This company, based in Port Angeles, Washington, was founded by Craig Rygaard in 1992. His sons Gabe, Jason and Burt are his business partners. Craig retires at the end of Season 6 and turns the business over to Gabe. One of the company's support truckers is Todd Dewey, who is also an ice road trucker during winter. He is the nephew of Craig and cousin of Gabe, Jason and Burt. Todd is featured in Season 8.