Dan Moss
Short Range Engineer & Open Pit Blaster
Nevada Gold Mines
Elko, NV USA
“If you work hard and you have integrity in what you’re doing, you can go far in any industry.”
Videos
By Roadtrip NationDan Moss
00:50
Dan Moss Highlight03:32
Interview01:31
Transitioning Into A Leadership Role02:02
My Career Path01:30
Day In The Life Of A Mining Engineer
Milestones
My road in life has been direct.
I grew up in a small mining and ranching town in Nevada, where I gained a lot of experience working and handling equipment.
I played three sports in high school and worked a full-time job in order to support those sports.
Rather than going straight to college, I knew I wanted to work and make money after graduating high school.
I took a job working in exploration drilling in Alaska for about six months because it was the best financial opportunity at the time.
When I came back to Nevada, I started drilling for a small blasting company—however, the company moved around a lot and I knew I wanted something a bit more stable.
I was able to get a job with the Nevada Gold Mines as an equipment operator driving the haul trucks.
After working for a while, I got the opportunity to move into the drilling and blasting side of mining—I was only 21 years old, which is actually the youngest age at which you can handle explosives!
Since starting at Nevada Gold Mines, I’ve driven haul trucks, worked in the blasting department, moved up to lead blaster and relief supervisor, and now work on planning in the engineering department.
Education
High School
Career
Short Range Engineer & Open Pit Blaster
I design plans for drilling holes and blowing up hard rock to retrieve mineral deposits.
Career Roadmap
My work combines:
My work combines:
Engineering
Environment & Nature
Accomplishing Goals
Day to Day
I start my day by hopping on the computer to see what operations have happened. Then I gather a few teammates and tour the whole site to evaluate operation and safety. Back at the office, I put together a plan and present it at a mid-day meeting so all of the supervisors in survey, engineering, open pit, and drill and blast can contribute. We finalize a 24-hour mine plan in the meeting. I also go on an end-of-day tour to make sure the plan is working and that we’re ready for the next crew.
Skills & Qualities Beyond School
Public speaking and communication skills are important in mine planning because you have to be able to present your plan well to your team and supervisors.
Advice for Getting Started
Here's the first step for everyone
We offer a lot of different internships in different departments here. If this seems like an industry you want to get into, you can get that hands-on experience through an internship.
Hurdles
The Noise I Shed
From Society in General:
"You should get a college degree."
Challenges I Overcame
Financial
Relocation
Fitting In
Interviewed By
All In
Innovative careers in Nevada’s historic industries
