Gold Rush

WE'RE BEHIND AND NOW WE GOT TO CATCH UP.

Narrator: ON THIS "GOLD RUSH"...

YOU'RE IN CHARGE OVER THERE.

THIS ISN'T WORKING.

GET YOUR HAND OFF THAT LEVER.

YOU GUYS NEED TO GET WITH THE PROGRAM HERE.

SERIOUSLY BEEN AN AMATEUR HOUR.

IT'S A DISASTER.

CLEAR BACK!

IT EXPLODED.

DEFINITELY THE WORST CONDITION

I'VE EVER SEEN ANY OF OUR EQUIPMENT.

WORSE, EVERY TIME SOMEBODY ASKS ME THAT.

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HEY, LOOK, A TREE!

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CAPTIONS PAID FOR BY DISCOVERY COMMUNICATIONS

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GOT A LOT OF DIRT TO MINE.

HOPEFULLY, WE'LL GET IT TOGETHER,

PUT SOME MORE GOLD IN THE BANK.

Narrator: FIVE WEEKS INTO THE SEASON, TODD HOFFMAN IS COMING UP SHORT.

THROWING EVERYTHING AT IT.

THEN WE CAN GET BACK ON TRACK

TO THAT 5,000 OUNCES

AND TRY TO KICK PARKER'S ASS.

HE SHOULD HAVE 1,000 OUNCES,

BUT HE'S GOT LESS THAN HALF THAT.

JUST NOT GETTING THAT GOLD.

YOU KNOW, AND I GOT THIS BET WITH PARKER.

THAT'S NOT FUNNY.

TODD'S RUNNING 300 YARDS AN HOUR THROUGH DOUBLE TROUBLE.

I DON'T WANT TO LOSE TO THAT KID.

AND SON HUNTER IS DOING THE SAME WITH MONSTER RED.

WE'VE BEEN RUNNING SUPER HARD HERE IN SACRAMENTO.

WE'RE RUNNING A LOT OF YARDS RIGHT NOW.

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-Hey, Hunter? -YEAH, WHAT'S UP?

CAN YOU COME BY THE GOLD ROOM HERE?

I'VE GOT SOMETHING TO SHOW YOU.

UH, OKAY. I'LL HEAD OVER.

Narrator: JACK HOFFMAN DOES DAILY CLEANUPS

TO KEEP A CLOSE TRACK OF THEIR PROGRESS.

WHAT'S UP?

WHAT IS IT? WHAT IS THIS?

THAT'S A WHOLE DAY'S RUN.

-HOW MUCH IS THIS? -4.05.

YOU NEED AT LEAST FOUR TIMES THIS.

-YEAH. -THAT DOESN'T PAY BILLS.

WE'RE BASICALLY RUNNING FOR NO REASON AT THIS POINT.

WELL, HUNTER, YOU KNOW, YOU'RE IN CHARGE NOW.

BUT THIS ISN'T WORKING.

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-OKAY. -ALL RIGHT. SEE YA.

Narrator: AT 4 OUNCES PER PLANT, PER DAY,

THE HOFFMANS WOULD HAVE A 1,200-OUNCE SEASON,

LITTLE MORE THAN LAST YEAR'S DISASTROUS TOTAL.

HEY, WE NEED TO SHUT DOWN MONSTER RED.

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HEY, BRIAN, KILL IT.

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OVER AT DOUBLE TROUBLE,

TODD IS RUNNING DIRT FROM THE SAME CUT.

MY DAD'S GONNA BE PISSED.

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Hey, Dad?

WHAT DO YOU NEED?

WE GOT TO SHUT THE PLANT DOWN.

You're kidding me.

WE JUST HAD A 4-OUNCE CLEANUP, OKAY?

AND THAT WAS FROM THOUSANDS OF YARDS RUNNING.

I'M NOT GONNA SHUT DOWN.

Let's just push through it.

It could just be a bad layer.

WE AIN'T GONNA GET ANY GOLD IF WE AIN'T RUNNING.

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GET YOUR HAND OFF THAT.

WE'RE BURNING FUEL.

WE'RE LOSING TIME.

WE'RE WASTING DAYS GETTING NO GOLD.

GET YOUR FRICKIN' HAND

off that lever.

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YOU BETTER HAVE A DAMN GOOD REASON

WHY YOU SHUT THAT PLANT OFF.

I DID YOU A FAVOR 'CAUSE WHATEVER WE'RE RUNNING

RIGHT NOW, IT HAS NO GOLD IN IT, OKAY?

YOU HAVE BAD DAYS. YOU GOT TO RUN THROUGH 'EM

-NO. -TO GET TO THE GOOD DAYS.

BUT I JUST GOT 4 OUNCES.

THAT'S NOTHING. THAT DOESN'T COUNT

TOWARDS OUR 5,000 AT ALL.

IT DOESN'T MAKE A DENT IN IT, OKAY?

WE'VE BEEN RUNNING

THIS IS OVERBURDEN.

Narrator: UNLIKE MOST OF THE GROUND THE HOFFMANS HAVE MINED,

SACRAMENTO IS AN ANCIENT GLACIAL DEPOSIT.

MILLIONS OF YEARS AGO, A RECEDING GLACIER LAID DOWN

A LAYER OF GOLD-RICH DIRT AND ROCKS.

OVER THE NEXT HUNDRED THOUSAND YEARS,

A LAYER OF WORTHLESS DIRT FORMED ON TOP,

UNTIL THE NEXT GLACIER CAME DOWN AND LEFT A NEW PAY LAYER,

WHICH, IN TURN, GOT BURIED.

SO WHAT DO YOU WANT TO DO?

WE HAVE TO STRIP.

WE NEED TO SHUT DOWN FOR 2 DAYS,

STRIP THAT CRAP OFF, AND GET DOWN TO THE PAY.

TWO DAYS?!

WITH ALL THE TRUCKS WE HAVE,

WE CAN PEEL THAT OFF IN 2 DAYS.

THAT'S CRAZY, MAN.

IT'S GONNA TAKE MONEY AND TIME.

ALL RIGHT.

I'LL GIVE YA 2 DAYS,

BUT I'M TELLING YA IT'S ON YOUR HEAD.

GET ON IT NOW.

GO.

YOU KNOW WHAT?

YOU'VE GOT THE BALLS TO COME SHUT MY PLANT OFF,

YOU BETTER HAVE THE BALLS TO FOLLOW THROUGH

ON THIS STRIPPING.

LET'S HOPE AND PRAY HE'S RIGHT.

YOU KNOW, I'M NOT GONNA WORK ALL DAY FOR 4 OUNCES.

HE'S WRONG. THE BIGGEST THING I CAN DO

IS JUST LEARN FROM ALL THE MISTAKES

MY DAD MADE IN THE PAST

AND, YOU KNOW, THIS IS THE RIGHT DECISION.

WE HAVE TO STRIP. WE HAVE TO SHUT DOWN

FOR 2 DAYS, BUT, WHATEVER.

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BETWEEN SLUICIFER AND BIG RED,

WE'VE GOT TWO VERY HUNGRY MOUTHS TO FEED,

SO HOPEFULLY WE CAN MAKE THAT WORK

WITH THE PEOPLE AND THE EQUIPMENT WE'VE GOT.

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Narrator: 2,000 MILES NORTH,

PARKER SCHNABEL'S PUSHING AHEAD OF TODD

WITH TWO WASH PLANTS WORKING HARD TOWARDS HIS 5,000-OUNCE,

$6 MILLION, GOAL.

CONSISTENCY IS THE KEY, SO, WE DO OUR DAMNEDEST

TO BE RUNNING 24/7 ALL THE TIME.

RUNNING THE PLANT NONSTOP

HAS CREATED A FLOOD THAT MITCH IS TRYING TO FIX.

RIGHT NOW, WE'RE JUST TRYING TO CLEAR THE CULVERT

THAT DRAINS OUR SETTLING POND.

ALL NIGHT, WE WERE PUMPING THOUSANDS OF GALLONS OF WATER

INTO OUR SETTLING POND, AND NONE OF IT WAS GOING OUT.

NOW, IT'S CAUSED SOME FLOODING IN THE CUT.

Narrator: TO WASH THE GOLD, SLUICIFER PUMPS

NEARLY 200,000 GALLONS OF WATER AN HOUR INTO THE SETTLING POND,

BUT THE WATER IS NOT DRAINING PROPERLY.

INSTEAD, IT'S SEEPING BACK THROUGH THE BERM INTO THE CUT.

IT'S COLLECTING IN THE LOWEST PART OF THE CUT,

BUT IF IT GETS INTO THE DRY PAY DIRT,

IT COULD WASH THE GOLD DOWN DEEP IN THE FRACTURED BEDROCK,

WHERE THEY MAY NOT BE ABLE TO RECOVER IT.

Blaschke: IF WE DON'T GET THIS WATER TO DRAIN,

THEN WE'RE GONNA BE DIGGING IN A POND

INSTEAD OF DIGGING IN NICE, DRY PAY DIRT.

Narrator: THE PUMP THAT USUALLY DRAINS THE CUT CAN'T KEEP UP.

IT'S REALLY NOT LOOKING GOOD IN THE CUT.

THE WATER'S COMING UP WAY TOO FAST.

AND IF IT REACHES THE PAY, THEN WE'RE

WE NEED A MORE LONG-TERM, GOOD SOLUTION TO THAT.

MAYBE HAVE THEM HAVE IT DRAIN OVERNIGHT.

MAYBE AT THE END OF THE DAY TODAY, JUST CRANK THAT PUMP UP

AND LEAVE HER RUNNING WIDE-OPEN.

ALL RIGHT. COOL.

WELL, THIS THING'S CAPABLE OF DOING 4,200 GALLONS A MINUTE,

SO I THINK IT'S TIME WE CRANK HER UP AND GET THIS CUT DRY.

SHOULD BE GOOD TO GO BY MORNING.

Narrator: NEXT MORNING, THE FLOODWATER IS BEGINNING TO COVER THE PAY,

AND THE DEWATERING PUMP IS SPEWING SMOKE.

STAND BACK!

REST IN PEACE, LITTLE PUMP.

SOMETIMES IT'S HARD TO SEE WHAT'S WRONG.

THIS ONE, IT'S PRETTY CLEAR.

IT BLEW UP PRETTY HARD.

YOU CAN SEE RIGHT HERE, I CAN PUT MY HAND INSIDE THE MOTOR.

AND HERE'S WHAT'S LEFT OF OUR PISTON THAT EXPLODED.

HANG ON. THERE'S THE REST OF THE CONNECTING ROD.

IT'S PRETTY BAD WHEN YOU CAN DISASSEMBLE AN ENGINE,

AND YOU DON'T HAVE TO REMOVE ANY OF THE PARTS.

YOU KNOW, THIS IS A VERY CATASTROPHIC FAILURE,

DEFINITELY THE WORST CONDITION

I'VE EVER SEEN ANY OF OUR EQUIPMENT.

THERE'S NO COMING BACK FROM THIS ONE.

THIS MOTOR IS JUNK.

THIS PUMP'S MOVED A LOT OF WATER FOR US,

BUT WE'VE GOT A BUNCH OF SCRAP METAL NOW.

Narrator: TILL IT BROKE, THE PUMP WAS DRAINING

A CRUCIAL 4,200 GALLONS OF WATER A MINUTE,

EQUIVALENT TO OVER 33,000 WATER BOTTLES.