Unlike most of the “Gold Rush” stars, Todd Hoffman has been on the scene since season one, and even before that. Todd’s path to success is one of grit and inspiration, as he made his way back from economic collapse, and carved out his fortune in the gold mines. The media and the Discovery Channel fanbase have followed Todd through stunning successes and devastating failures, as he tried to make ends meet in an unforgiving world. Hoffman is an inspiration to many, particularly blue-collar workers, as his journey illustrates the true trek from the bottom up as he follows his dreams and works to make wishes a reality.
Early Life and Family
Todd Hoffman was born on 12 April 1969, in Sandy, Oregon USA, to Jack and Georgia Hoffman. Although Hoffman was raised far from the gold mines and processing plants, his father, Jack, worked as a gold prospector. Gold prospecting is a job that involves locating and determining possible deposits and locations of gold, and is an integral part of the gold mining industry. It is the stories of adventure that Jack Hoffman would tell his son about his adventures in the mine, that would later inspire him to pursue a career in gold.
Education
Todd Hoffman attended Portland Christian High School located in Oregon, that instilled a deep religious faith and orientation in him. To this day, he retains these beliefs, and it’s not unusual for him to ask his fans to pray for his success in various endeavors. Hoffman carried on this religious theme when he attended William Jessup University, where he studied theology. He studied the history of the Middle East too, possibly the place of the most contested religious views, through Multnomah University. He also studies communication at Northwestern Christian University.
Career
Aviation
Todd Hoffman began his career as an owner of a small airport located in Oregon. The airport catered for small, non-commercial planes and was especially hard during the 2008 financial crisis. Although he still owns the airport today, it does not bring in the numbers it used to, and is practically defunct at this point.
Gold Mining
With his aviation business taking a turn for the worst Todd went back to thinking of the adventures his dad would recount about his days of gold prospecting. Hoffman decided to follow in his father’s footsteps, and relocated to Porcupine Creek, Alaska to begin a career in gold mining.
Hoffman was able to sink $1 million into mining equipment, and spent three years learning and perfecting the trade, with the help of his father and a small crew of those in a similar position to him. The Hoffman crew began to see incremental success in their mining, and it occurred to Todd that their progress and journey might be the perfect fodder for a docuseries.
Discovery Channel Meets Todd Hoffman
Hoffman’s idea of a docuseries was eaten up by the producers at Discovery Channel and on 3 December 2010 “Gold Rush” Premiered.
The first season of the show focused solely on Hoffman and his crew as they ventured into the world of mining, learning their skills from scratch, and trying to make a name for themselves in the industry. In the second season, the show was expanded to include other mining crews, such as Fred Hurt’s Dakota Boys and Parker Schnabel – towards whom Hoffman has true animosity.
The show follows the progress of each of these groups as they search for the funds and manpower to reach the mining goals that they have set for themselves. Hoffman was not always successful on the show, once losing a bet to Schnabel that forced him to pay the younger man out of the relatively meager profits that his team had made.
However, the most devastating of his failures occurred during the fourth season of the show.
In 2013 Hoffman sank his entire fortune into a trip to South America, where he hoped to make a sizeable amount in the mines. However, this trip was plagued with misfortune, and the crew returned to Alaska with only two ounces of gold, a bone-crushing sum.
Other Appearances
Todd Hoffman has an impressive set of credits to his name, and has appeared in multiple documentaries and docuseries. In 2012 he appeared in both “The Long Road” and “Do or Die”, and went on to appear in “Fox and Friends” (2013), “Home and Family” (2015), and multiple iterations of the “Gold Rush” franchise.
ZÜM Media
In 2015, Todd Hoffman co-founded ZÜM Media, a media company that aimed to produce media for a vast array of platforms, including some starring Todd himself. He’s shared various posts of himself singing and has considerable talent. In fact, it was his desire to hone this talent that led him to leave “Gold Rush” in season eight. However, the company has yet to release any of their projects.
Personal Life
Todd Hoffman is apparently happily married to Shauna Hoffman with whom he has two sons, Hunter and Hudson. Todd is careful to share as little of his personal life as possible with the media, a trait that he claims he is trying to impart on his sons. Todd is highly aware of how easily the media corrupts behavior, and instead tries to lead a relatively private life.
Appearance
When one first sees Todd Hoffman, the thing to be noticed will likely be his beard. Hoffman is extremely proud of his beard, and preaches an exacting care routine involving coconut oil and little else. He wears the rest of his hair short, and it and his beard have begun to grey. He has pale eyes and a broad build. Hoffman weighs 200lbs (90kgs), and is 5ft 9ins (1.75m) tall.
Net Worth and Salary
Although the road has not always been easy for Hoffman, his perseverance and enduring spirit have allowed him to rebuild every time. Hoffman is said to receive between $200,00 and $400,000 per season of “Gold Rush”, and this along with his other ventures, has allowed him to achieve a net worth of over $7 million, as of mid-2020.