Todd Hoffman shocked the "Gold Rush" fandom two months ago when he declared that his days as a gold miner for the hit Discovery reality show were officially over. Hoffman's departure from the series he created is unusual, but it's being reported by Oregon Live and Discovery that Todd is pursuing a singing career and his new project, Zum Media, a television production company he owns. It's unclear at the moment if Zum Media will create a new show based on a new set of gold miners and try to recreate and grow the same fan base that brought high ratings to "Gold Rush" on Discovery.

Success was not always an option

Hoffman had no real experience as a gold miner when the show started out in December of 2010 and he had to convince many of his friends that his idea was good and potentially very profitable. He eventually convinced enough people to join him in Alaska and scraped together enough money to buy the gear needed to dig, sluice and recover gold, all while the cameras rolled and their daily struggles were exposed to the world. Todd had a few good seasons during his "Gold Rush" career, despite always struggling to maintain his operation. Hoffman claims his gold total to be around $10 million dollars, although it's not been reported how much he spent along the way.

A changing narrative could focus on Parker Schnabel and Tony Beets

Without Todd and his family on the show fans must now readjust to a narrative that depicts the gold mining seasons of cast regulars Parker Schnabel and Tony Beets. Beets owns a significant amount of land and has been involved in reviving vintage dredges that require less fuel and manpower to recover gold from his property.

Parker has leased land adjacent to Beets and purchased some of his own property in an effort to avoid the high cost of royalties he has paid in the past. Next season, no longer contracted to Tony's land, Parker will mine in the Yukon under more reasonable royalty rates. Beets, for all his efforts last season, was unable to get a second dredge operating but did manage to make repairs and upgrades to his first dredge, which has proven so far to be profitable and efficient.

Rick Ness takes a chance as his own boss

Recently confirmed by the official "Gold Rush" Twitter account, a new narrative next season will follow the story of Parker's former crew member Rick Ness, who recently announced he is leaving Schnabel's team in pursuit of gold at his own operation. This should be an excellent story to follow and Rick's history of delivering results will prove to be a fascinating adventure to discover. Veteran gold miner Freddy Dodge is also a considerable force to be reckoned with in the gold mining industry and it would be equally exciting to see what is in store for his future in Colorado and beyond.
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