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‘Gold Rush’: Rick Ness Got His Crew Together to Compete in 500-Mile Race on Ice

In the name of “Gold Rush,” we must ask what was Rick Ness thinking? He wanted to give his crew something special in the off-season.

How about a race on ice. Let Ness tell you the background behind the endeavor in this 2020 interview with “Monsters & Critics.”

“I really wanted to get my crew together and kind of do something fun in the offseason,” Ness said. “So, we got together and ended up entering this 500-mile endurance race on ice in Northern Wisconsin.

“It’s called Iceman 500 and it’s labeled as the world’s world’s fastest UTV race,” the “Gold Rush” star said. “So, me and my guys got together because that is more of what we are into. We’ve done more of that kind of stuff, and we entered this race and I drove the whole thing, and we raced against 24 teams. A lot of them were like factory-sponsored professional racers and I ended up, taking third place.”

The Discovery Channel show just finished its 11th season on the air. “Gold Rush” continues showing the adventures of family-run mining companies in Dawson City, Yukon, Canada.

Miners’ work had to start later in 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Crew members had to quarantine for two weeks as they mostly live in the United States. En route to the site, even Discovery film crews had to adjust their filming plans.

‘Gold Rush’ Star Talked About Danger, Power of ‘the Hunch’

When it comes to trusting your gut, then Ness has some thoughts about that subject.

He admitted in an interview that the show’s 10th season was a bit of a trial for him. Especially when it comes to the use of one’s intuition.

“I lost my confidence that year,” Ness told “Looper.” “I lost my ability to trust in my decisions, to pivot like that when things happen, and that was nearly the end for me.

“That was a big thing for me to get over as I reflected after that season, to know what the hell happened,” he said. “And when I realized that, what had happened, for some reason I wasn’t trusting my gut and my ability to do what needed to be done.”

Ness understood about trusting one’s intuition while observing former “Gold Rush” miner Todd Hoffman.

“You know, there’ll always be a bit of that there with me because that’s gold mining,” Ness said. “But I am working towards kind of minimizing that whole ‘hunch’ thing, testing it, trying to rely more on, you know, a specific set of reasons that help me know where I’m going is correct.”

“Gold Rush” truly tests a miners’ patience, too. The team owners understand the need for speed out in the field.