Catching Up with #38 Tristan Lane | Brought to You by Dirt Care

Catching Up with #38 Tristan Lane | Brought to You by Dirt Care

By Billy Rainford

Tristan Lane is the ride who earned #38 for the 2025 season here, but we never got to see the rider who snagged an impressive 2nd place at Gopher Dunes in 2024. He’s arguably the nicest rider you’re ever going to meet. Here’s what he had to say when we got in touch with him down in Florida this week:

Direct Motocross: Hello, Tristan. Thanks for taking some time with us for Week #38. I’ve known you for a bunch of years through our mutual friend, Brendan Goldstein, down in Florida but for those unfamiliar with you, could we start by having you tell us a bit about yourself. How old are you, where are you from, and how did you get into Motocross in the first place?

Tristan Lane: Yes! Brendan is awesome, it’s amazing that we have linked up through him so many years ago. Now I see you more often than I see him! We need to fix that. Haha.

I’m 27 years old from DeLand, Florida. It’s a city located between the Daytona Beach and Orlando area. Now I live in Port Orange with my wife, but DeLand is a great place to grow up and I coincidentally happened to be neighbors with Justin Starling. He was my idol and someone that had a lot of influence on me getting into racing. It’s pretty funny we race one another now, I definitely didn’t see that coming when I was a kid. I was pretty much just a redneck riding four-wheelers in the woods with my dad and sisters (we didn’t wear helmets either 🤣) and eventually I begged and pleaded for a dirt bike because I thought that was way cooler than 4 wheels. On Christmas the day after my 8th birthday (I was born on Christmas Eve) I saw a 2001 Kawasaki KLX110 sitting in my living room and that bike pretty much changed the course of my life forever!

You seem like a guy who would probably thrive in the public school system. Is/was that the case? What kind of things did you do in school? What other sports were you involved in?

I did go to public school all the way through high school, and was able to dual enrole in Daytona State community college and earn an associates degree while finishing up high school. Being that my dad never raced dirt bikes and my two sisters weren’t very into sports, it was natural for me to be a “normal” kid and go to public school. Racing truly wasn’t a priority in my life until the end of middle school or beginning of high school for me.

I had a good group of friends but they were interested in things like hunting, surfing, and traditional stick and ball sports. I was obsessed with two wheels during that time period, and often found myself drawing dirt bike tracks on pieces of paper and day dreaming of hopefully getting to ride after school. With that being said, earning good grades was paramount in my family and I always had A’s and that was mostly out of fear of losing my riding privileges.  😂

You’ve dipped your toes in Canadian moto over the years. When was your first time here and how did that go?

My first time going to Canada was to race Gopher Dunes after the Red Bud national. I believe this was 2019, but that date could be off. It was the season that Mike Alessi and Filthy Phil (Phil Nicoletti), and Colton (Facciotti) were duking it out! I surprised myself (I didn’t have any expectations coming in) and got a top 5 in the first moto.  

In the second moto I remember Colton was having a rough moto, and I was able to pass him I believe and then because I knew he was behind me I rode terribly and ended up crashing myself. Haha. I still was around the 6th place area I believe and took that as a win considering I had never been to a pro race and got to feel what it was like to be “in the mix.”

How many different tracks have you visited up here?

So far I have raced Gopher and Sand Del Lee, but hopefully that will change in the future.

You had that amazing result in 2024 at Gopher Dunes where your 2-5 put you 2nd overall behind Josiah Natzke’s 1-3 for the win. You were super-pumped at the end of the day, as I remember. Can you take us through that experience?

Yes, 2024 Gopher was an awesome race for me. After Supercross, I had committed to not racing the entire outdoor series in the states, so I decided I would hit a few races that seemed fun to me. I trained at WW Ranch (now called Club 57) with the trainer Brad Jerominski for 1 month or so and then raced Southwick, Redbud, Gopher, Sand Del Lee, and then even raced a off season SX race in Finland a few months later. It was an amazing summer!  

The story behind my race at Gopher is pretty funny: my buddy Max Darling and I were traveling in his van (he borrowed it from a friend of his) and the AC didn’t work. The van was loaded down with no wiggle room to spare and nothing but the smell of race fuel the entire trip, we kept the windows down the whole time!

Southwick went decent for me, I crashed the first moto and didn’t end up in the 20’s to my knowledge, but I redeemed myself with a 19th in the second moto. Next up was Redbud, in the first qualifying session I was sitting in the low 20’s, and the second qualifying session is usually slower once the track is rough and beat up. Well, I was wrong. It got faster, and I hadn’t! It was a big blow to miss qualifying for the National through qualifying, so I raced the LCQ and ended up missing the cut! I didn’t qualify, it was a huge blow to my ego, and something that now makes the Gopher story even better.

I didn’t end up racing the second moto as an alternate, but got a flat front tire after a few laps and called it a day. It just wasn’t meant to be, it seemed. I was so upset with the day, I considered not making the drive to Canada. We were exhausted, mad, and broke!

Max and I decided to go for it, and once we got to the border they stopped us, searched our van, brought us in for further questioning, and around 2 hours later sent us on our way into Canada. That was a big blow for us because we were sleep-deprived, hungry, and we had one of the gnarliest tracks out there to compete on the very next morning.

We crashed at an Airbnb near the track, grabbed a Tim Horton’s Farmers wrap on the way, and pulled into Gopher.

Max and I weren’t signed up for the race yet, nor did we tech our bikes the day before (because we were racing the Redbud national!). Thankfully, I had contacted the owner of Gopher (Digs) [Derek Schuster] and let him know we were coming. They pulled strings for us like you wouldn’t believe, but I still didn’t even have a transponder or practice sticker on my bike while the 250’s were on the track before me. It was a shit show! Thankfully, I made it out there in time and was happy to be back on the infamous sand track.

To make a long story long, I was so exhausted and unprepared for this race that I didn’t even know what place I qualified. My dad actually flew in to watch the race, and he was not only my mechanic but Max’s too. When I went up for the first moto people thought I was trying to show off my Florida roots and flex that I was prepared for the hot weather. But in all actuality, I just didn’t have an umbrella because we were so unprepared! 😂

I was able to finish 2nd and to get on the podium was amazing. That was my first professional podium and the only problem was, I was so spent after the race that I didn’t know how I’d line up for moto 2!

Because my dad was pit boarding for Max, he was gone while I went back to the van. So in between nearly throwing up, trying to hydrate/eat something and get the bike together for the short turnaround, I ended up not washing my bike and settled with a new air filter and topping off the gas. I looked like a total goon lining up for a professional race with a dirty bike, dirty gear, and felt even worse. Haha.

I got a terrible start in moto 2, but put my head down and came from the back of the pack to 5th.

Another side note worth mentioning, my dad said the marker for his pit board broke during Max’s first race, so he ended up just showing me what position I was in with his fingers. It was true comedy to see him jump out of the mechanics area and hold up his fingers as I rode by.  

I was very happy with that ride and even though it wasn’t a podium, it landed me on the box with 2nd overall due to the madness that happened with Jess (Pettis). With the circumstances I had leading into the race, the lack of preparation, having competed in two pro nationals in two days, two different countries, as well as earning my first overall podium (and a trophy!), I was truly excited. Something I will never forget.

Great story! You only came north for Gopher Dunes and Sand Del Lee (6-6 for 6th) but it was enough for 12th in the series and #38 for 2025, but we never saw you. Why no trip north this past summer?

This summer I decided to take some time off, to heal my body and mind. I had racked up some injuries from the season, but I also had two riding buddies get injured and that took a toll on my mind and my outlook of racing dirt bikes. Chad Saultz is my training partner in Florida, and he suffered a spinal cord injury during the SX season while riding in GA. Afterwards, my teammate Jerry Robin had a spinal cord injury also during the New Jersey Supercross. To see these guys get hurt like that, truly shook me to my core.

I began to change my outlook and chose to see it as though I was “racing for them,” and that helped a lot. Thankfully, those two are as tough as they come and are doing as well as you could expect for their tough circumstances. It’s a huge inspiration to me when I see them both working hard in physical therapy, and staying strong even when most couldn’t. 

And let’s talk about your Supercross season. I know you hit a few goals that you’re proud of.

Supercross was great for me, I had a new team I rode for (The Mcginley Clinic Privateer Support Program) and was able to compete in six 450 main events, qualify for my first triple crown race, and earn my career best finish of 12th place in Foxborough. I had my share of ups and downs, but I fought through and am proud of my effort. 

Hey, and what’s the story behind the #711? Is there one?

My number comes from running #11 as an amateur. At my first race I needed a number but my dad only had electrical tape, and number 1 was taken, so 11 was the next easiest number to make with tape! When I went pro, I needed a three digit number, and 711 was available so I went with it. I really like the number though, and it seems easy for people to remember 😂.

What did you actually get up to this past summer? I lurked your IG and saw some fishing and some mountain biking. Why no moto?

I didn’t end up racing as we talked about earlier, but I did do some riding. To be honest, I focused more on healing my body and mind and spent the majority of the summer surfing, exercising, fishing, hand hanging with friends and family! It was a lot of fun.

Do you have a 9-5 when you’re not racing?

No, I don’t have a typical 9-5 when I’m off from racing, but I am a Realtor! I work under my mom’s real estate brokerage in Ponce Inlet, FL. Anytime I’m not racing, you can find me doing real estate with her, or coaching kids in my area and sharing my knowledge of riding. If you or anyone reading this needs a home in FL or is looking to sell their home, keep me in mind! 😎

Always selling! And finally, what are the plans for the future?

I am back riding two days a week at Club 57 currently. We are riding Supercross, but just getting my feet wet and working all the skills that are easy to overlook in the midst of stop watching and competing against other riders. It’s been a lot of fun so far. I am planning to race Supercross next season in the 450 class. I haven’t decided with who, and on which bike, just yet! But I should know soon.

Thanks for the chat, Tristan. Good luck with everything and who would you like to thank?

I appreciate you reaching out, it was fun to reminisce on some great stories. I would like to thank my wife Sydney first and foremost, she is truly the driving force behind my racing and I’m proud of the team we make as well as grateful for the lifestyle we are fortunate enough to live together.  I would also like to thank my family, friends and people like Donald David and the Davis family for supporting my racing so much. I also owe a lot to Jason Beck with Beck’s Tech, John Ayers with Gear Services, Brad with Club 57, O’Neal, EKS Brand goggles, FMF, Dunlop, Motion Pro, and others that I’m sure I forgot. To anyone that helps me chase my dreams, I truly appreciate it.