Even if you’ve never been on a dig site before, it should go without saying that gold mining isn’t a job you want to goof around on while you’re on the clock. The career requires the use of heavy equipment and powerful tools, so you definitely don’t want to slack around for fear of injuring someone, including yourself. That’s why you need ample experience in the field to do your job well, but even a solid resume isn’t always enough to make the right decisions in the moment while on “Gold Rush.”
Mitch Blaschke is a vital member of the team working as a mechanic. He initially fixed machinery for Todd Hoffman’s team on Season 3, but ever since Season 5, he’s firmly been in Parker Schnabel’s camp. Blaschke has proven on multiple occasions he has what it takes to rough out the elements and help his boss find bountiful gold. He’s fixed machines in a pinch and offered wise counsel when it was asked for. But even Blaschke isn’t immune from making poor decisions that jeopardize the entire operation.
Mitch Blaschke almost brought his team to the edge of disaster
Time is of the essence on any mining job. After all, you only make money when you find gold, so you want all of the equipment set up as quickly as possible so that you can start digging for riches. However, Parker Schnabel and his crew faced even more obstacles than usual during Season 10. According to The Blast, Schnabel was unable to acquire all of the permits necessary to excavate at a given area. As such, the team only had one year to get all the gold they could when it ordinarily should’ve required several years.
The team had to move quickly to start earning those paychecks, and Mitch Blaschke began to pull some sketchy maneuvers to get the job underway. From a Blast video, you can see Blaschke moving quickly to move a plant up a hill using a tractor. From there, he needs to get on the other side of the plant to pull it where it needs to be, and that’s where he runs into trouble. Blaschke gets heavy machine operator Brennan Ruault to maneuver the tractor around the plant through a narrow roadway to get on the other side. One wrong move and the tractor will fall into the pond below.
With more time and planning, a different solution could’ve come up, which would not put anyone in danger. But with the clock ticking, Blaschke and the team chose a more dangerous situation to mine gold more quickly. It’s definitely not recommended for other mining crews to follow.