Brandon Clarke
In motocross, the story usually starts the same way. A kid in the backwoods. A field. Maybe a patch of desert. A PW50, a handful of throttle, and that first taste of freedom. The smell of premix, the buzz of a two-stroke, and just like that, you’re hooked for life.
That’s the blueprint.
Ryder Malinoski didn’t follow it. And somehow, that’s exactly why this story seems like a fictional New York Times best seller.
Built Different, Just Not on Dirt (At First)
On paper, Ryder was always going to be an athlete. His dad, Robbie Malinoski, is a former pro Snocross racer. His uncle, Rusty Malinoski, is a world-class wakeboarder who landed the first-ever 1080. The DNA was there. But motocross? Not even close.
Ryder grew up playing soccer, wrestling, and living for lacrosse. That was his lane. That was his identity. While there was a track in the backyard built for snocross training, he wanted nothing to do with it. Too intimidating. Too uncomfortable. He chose cleats over boots. Turf over dirt. Until the world shut down.
COVID Didn’t Just Pause Sports, It Rewrote His Life
When COVID hit, everything Ryder loved disappeared overnight. No games. No practice. No team sports. So his stepdad, Milt Reimer, founder of FXR, did what a lot of people did during that time: he bought a dirtbike. A Husky TC85.
At first, Ryder wasn’t into it. He was timid. Uncomfortable. Just trying to survive laps at Millville without crashing. But when there’s nothing else to do you either sit still or you adapt.
Ryder adapted. And once that competitive switch flipped, it was on.
When racing came back, Ryder didn’t ease into it, he chased every gate drop he could find. Early on it wasn’t pretty but that didn’t matter because what he lacked in experience, he made up for with obsession. The same drive that pushed him in stick-and-ball sports started showing up on a dirtbike and the progression curve got steep in a hurry.
One by one, the other sports disappeared.
Soccer. Gone.
Wrestling. Gone.
Lacrosse. Packed away.
At 14 years old, the decision was made: this was real now and Minnesota wasn’t enough anymore.
ClubMX, Homesickness, and the First Big Gamble
Ryder loaded up, left home, and headed to ClubMX in South Carolina, far away from Minnesota, and was living out of a trailer by himself, chasing something that didn’t even exist in his life just a couple years earlier.
Loretta Lynn’s became the goal. In 2023, he qualified. But when race week turned into a mud-fest, Ryder made a call most amateurs wouldn’t: he pulled out. Save the equipment. Live to fight another day. That decision led them north to Walton Raceway for the TransCan in Canada. And that’s where things turned for him.
Most top amateurs eventually settle into a system: train, protect themselves, peak for the big races. Ryder? Not even close. He kept racing. Everything. Because in his mind, he was still behind and the only way to catch up was reps and that mindset started turning heads.
After a title at Baja Brawl, people like Daniel Blair started paying attention. And not in a “good for the kid” way, but in a this kid can ride way. And let’s be clear: he wasn’t beating nobodies. He was lining up against names already filtering into SMX Next and the 250 class and holding his own.
Back at ClubMX, Ryder started pushing into supercross. Supercross suspension. Big jumps. Real consequences. At first, it was calculated, roll this, double that. Then it became: Double in, triple out. Triple in, triple out.
For a kid who, not long ago, was scared of the whoop monster at Millville this was a different human. I asked him what that transition felt like. His answer was simple: “If this is what I’m going to do, I have to be okay with getting hurt.”
Not long after, he proved just how real that statement was.
A2: The Reality Check
This year at Anaheim 2 during the SMX Next main event, Ryder had one of the gnarliest crashes you’ll see when he was landed on by another rider on the first lap of the main event. His laundry list that day included a dislocated hip, broken vertebrae, broken scapula, and a severe concussion. The kind of crash that doesn’t just test your body, it tests your entire reason for doing this. And somehow it didn’t break him. If anything, it reinforced it.
“You have to be willing to die for this sport,” he said.
From Rookie to Winner
Rewind to 2024, it started with a learning curve. Foxborough SMX Next, his debut. A 17th place finish. Nowhere near the front. But that didn’t last. Later that year in St. Louis, Ryder lined up for the SMX Next Playoff… and won.
Here’s the wild part. In 2020, off-road motorcycle sales jumped over 40%. Tons of kids got into riding. But most future pros? They start at 4 or 5 years old. Cobra 50s. 65s. Years of foundation. Ryder didn’t have that. He went from never riding to winning races in stadiums in about three years.
Let that sink in. That’s not supposed to happen. And yet, it did. Really proving that anything is possible.
What’s Next
With SMX Next still on the table this season, Ryder’s not slowing down. He’s back racing and finished third at Birmingham. An insane turnaround from his injuries less than two months prior. He’s signed with MX101 in Canada and is aiming for a Canadian National title this summer. Loretta’s is back on the schedule. And if things line up, a few Pro Motocross rounds could be in play.
Not bad for a kid who didn’t even want to ride.
Clearing the Noise
Ryder also knows the perception. Connections to the sport can equal opportunity. But talk is cheap, the results are real. He’s been consistent. He’s earned his ride. He’s proven himself on track. And while having both his dad and stepdad involved could feel like pressure, it’s been the opposite. They’re aligned. They’re invested. And they’ve both wanted what’s best for Ryder. While many moto dads get a bad rap for being overbearing or all up in a team’s business, his dad broke the stereotype and earned his spot as the crew chief for ClubMX.
You can try to downplay it. You can say he had advantages. You can try to explain it away. But you can’t ignore this: A kid who didn’t ride dirtbikes is now winning in stadiums in less time than it takes most riders just to figure out whoops.
That’s rare. That’s special. And crazy enough, it’s just getting started.
Photos: octopi.media
