Rick Ness is back in the Gold Rush. For season 14 of the popular Discovery Channel series, the miner hopes to turn his luck around, returning after a little over a year since stepping away and closing his Yukon mine. What followed was a downward spiral that led to what he describes as hitting rock bottom.
Ness was devastated after losing his mom and all the money he garnered from more than a decade in the industry. Life continued to fall apart with the 42-year-old further entering into a depression, turning to drugs to numb the pain. Ness sold his mom’s house and hoped to rebuild what was lost with Brian “Zee” Zaremba by his side. Past gambles have paid off in the past where he not long ago recorded a record season of $3.6 million in gold.
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Also, this season Parker Schnabel is continuing to make big swings as one of the biggest gold producers in the Yukon. The 28-year-old has reached a crossroads after working for a decade on land he leased from fellow miner Tony Beets. With the license run out, Schnabel has a big decision on his hands. Play it safe and scale back his operation or risk it all on a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to acquire historically gold-rich virgin ground.
Speaking of Beets, the “King of the Klondike” is going strong with 40 years and counting under his belt. The one-time dairy farmer from the Netherlands wants to keep building the family empire with his kids working alongside him. The 63-year-old aims to surpass last season’s best-ever 5,300-ounce gold haul, which was worth an incredible $9 million.
Before the high-stakes season gets underway, we caught up with Ness who opens up about his comeback.
What brought you back to the mines?
Rick Ness: I ultimately stepped back and reevaluated everything in my life. I think like a lot of people, the stress got to me. I wasn’t dealing with things correctly because I didn’t know how. I didn’t want to reach out for help. I was making bad decisions, so I really had to reevaluate. This was a case of asking if this was what I wanted to do. Was I done with this? I thought, “You know what? I have over a decade of invested in this. Time, money, effort, all this.” It was such a big part of my life, so I wasn’t willing to give that up. I made the decision that, no, this is what I want. I will do whatever it takes to get back to it.
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Parker was the one who introduced you to the business when he was a teen. What kind of role did he play in easing you back in? Did you have any conversations leading up to your return?
Honestly, I pretty much shut down. I shut everyone out. That was my decision. Whether it was right or not, I didn’t talk to him until this spring when I got up here. There was a lot of talk about whether I was done for good. A lot of people believed that. He told me he heard a lot of that, but his response was always, “Rick is a survivor. You’re going to see him back here.” That honestly was touching. I’ve had my ups and downs with Parker, but ultimately I’ve spent a lot of time with him. He knows me. He knew I was coming back, so it was really nice.
How was it having Zee be part of your return?
Zee has been one of my best buddies for a long time. He was in my corner the whole time. I really shut down on a lot of people, but Zee was one who I kept in my life for that year. He was always there when I needed him. He has a lot going on in his life too with a wife, a young child, and a career. I asked him if he could come up this year and give me a hand to get started. Of course, he said yeah. I will be forever grateful for that. It was good having a familiar face up here with me in the beginning because I was really starting over this year and from square one without a whole lot of resources. Having him here was a good boost.
You’re using funds from your late mom’s house to get back on track here. How much pressure did that add?
That was one of the things I had to come to terms with. My mom passed, and I never dealt with it. I had the mindset that I was too busy and would put this away for a later date. It turns out that was the wrong thing to do. It turns out a lot of people make that mistake. Part of it was I took ownership of my mom’s house when she passed. I couldn’t even go there for years. That was part of facing it. I walked through that door, packed her house up, and took what I wanted to remember my mom by. Then I had to sell the house to ultimately fund my comeback here. It sounds terrible, but I had that in my head. A house is a house. And if this house could get me back on track, that is what she would want. But it has to mean something. I knew if I was doing this I had to make it work. That was a big part of my journey no doubt.
What kind of big challenges do you incur this season?
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The biggest thing was building a new team. I made the decision that I did have to start from scratch with that as well. There were a lot of reasons for all that. In the past, I gave my trust to people a little too easily… If I was going to do this, I wanted to spend more time to get the right people. That was the biggest thing I learned. Putting the right team together is night and day difference. I’ve always been the underdog. That I’m willing to deal with. Financially getting started was really difficult. All the equipment, things I’ve done before. So I knew I was capable of doing it. The question was can I do it again?
What was your big takeaway when you first started up again?
I realized I had lost all the joy for this before. That was the big thing that made me think if I wanted to do this anymore. I lived a life where I generally move on if I lose enjoyment in something. I realized it wasn’t that I didn’t enjoy it anymore but the way I was doing it before. Coming back to this, I really enjoyed it. It’s been years since I’ve had this passion, energy, and focus. Ultimately, I know I made the right decision. It took me a while to get there.
Were there any points where you were triggered and almost went back to a dark place?
With such ups and downs in business, yeah I hit roadblocks where I let those old feelings back. I just had to say to myself, “Listen, you have lost confidence in yourself. That’s why you went to dark places when you hit roadblocks.” I had to remember I knew what I was doing. I’ve done things before and could do it again. That’s what I did.
What do you want people to walk away with watching you this season? What do you think your experience says about mental health?
I was that guy. That’s where I ended up where I was. It’s how I grew up. Not to ask for help. “Mental health, what’s that?” I had that mentality. It led me to land where I was. It led me to realize there are probably others going through the same thing. I’ve always had the mindset, good or bad, with whatever I’ve done. I’ll stand behind it, whether I’m proud of it or not. I’ve never been shy about owning up to what I’ve done. I took the same idea to this. Whether I like it or not, this is what happened to me. I wasn’t going to hide from it. I think if other people see that, maybe it will help them too. I was taught to show no fear and no pain. In a lot of ways that got me to where I am, but at a certain point, you also need a break from that and be honest with yourself and other people. Finding that balance has got me back to where I am.
Gold Rush season 14 premiere, September 29, 8/7c, Discovery Channel
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