G'day hitmanh , yeah a bit of practice is required for these little buggers , what I usually do is to push the fork seal down out of the way with a piece of wooden dowel then using your free hand carefully lever the ring out of the groove with a jewellers screw driver , leave the screwdriver there then with a fine pair of needle nose pliers grab hold of the ring and pull it clear , this can be easier if you have an able bodied assistant to push the seal down , oh forgot to mention , I've only ever done it with the fork tube out of the bike held firmly in a vice ( use soft jaws ! )
good luck !
JR
Melbourne Australia