Born to rip, Landyn Poppert is all gas all the time.
Story By: Tyler Tate
Photos Provided by: Landyn Poppert
At only 11 years young, Landyn Poppert loves going full gas and racing. Whether it is in his RZR or on his BMX bike, Landyn is driven to win. Landyn races in the 250 production and 600 stock class in the WORCS racing series along with select feature races such as the Mint 400, UTV World Championship, and BITD 4wp youth series. Landyn raced his first UTV race at the age of 7 and has been hooked ever since. He has won 3 championships, 3 podium championships and over 30 podium finishes throughout his young racing career. Looking towards the future, Landyn is excited to start his desert racing program and has committed to racing the entire BITD season in a new Polaris RZR XP 1000.
USM: What got you into racing?
Landyn: My dad and my mom met through racing. My grandpa and my Dad raced in Baja together so we have been into racing for a long time. You can say I was born to race. It was a natural fit for me. When Polaris RZR came out with the 170 platform, it piqued my interest since I had driven around on the Polaris Powerwheel. My Dad was so nervous. He was always chasing me around the property making sure I did not crash into anything. Eventually I got better and I never crashed into my family or the other cars.After that, my Dad found a series for me to race in and we went for it. I remember in my first race, both my Mom and my Dad were so nervous.
As I have gotten better in the car, we looked for other series to race in and that has led us to where we are now where I race 250 Production and 570. Last year I raced three cars but this year only two. I want to add a third car next year again.
We are also good family friends with Wayne and Kristen Matlock so spending time with them and going riding with them also made us want to race UTVs.
USM: You and your Dad are the mechanics on your cars. Maintaining one car for racing is a chore, but maintaining two or three cars is a big deal. Not to mention you also have younger brothers who race. How do you help in the preparation of the cars?
Landyn: I have three brothers and two of them race as well. So for each race we get five cars ready to go. It is something we all do as a family. Dad and I work on the cars and my Mom helps to prepare the other gear. We have a race shop at our home which helps us a lot. We are very fortunate to have that. We have a lot of room to work on the cars and the equipment to work on them.
USM: How has where you lived growing up helped you to be a better racer?
Landyn: My family owns a ranch here in San Diego. We have a practice track out there where I get to spend a lot of time driving. I have learned a lot about how to get in and out of corners and when to hit the gas. One time I jumped the RZR and landed with my foot on the gas and ripped the transmission right off the car. I have learned not to do that anymore.
USM: What was the hardest part of learning how to race?
Landyn: For me the biggest challenge was learning how to communicate with my Dad. I am still learning about how the car works. Now that I am older, I know what the parts are called and what they do and how the car is supposed to drive so I can give better feedback. I know when the car is too soft in the back or when I don’t have traction. My mechanical knowledge has grown a lot. I can almost take the entire transmission out of the car and fix it myself.
USM: Do you like to be the mechanic on your car?
Landyn: My parents have always had the goal of teaching me all the skills to be a great driver but also to be self-sufficient in a race. Our goal is to go desert racing. I have a newly built 1000 desert car that I get to race for the first time at the UTV World Championships this year. I want to be a desert racer like my Dad and Grandpa. I have always been a gear head so to learn more about my car all the time is fun for me.
USM: What do you like to do when you are not driving?
Landyn: I like to ride my bike and dirt bikes and go on vacation. We just went to Hawaii as a family. I also like to race my BMX bike. Right now I am ranked number 6 in California for BMX racing.
USM: What is your favorite part about racing?
Landyn: I like that racing is a family thing for us. We all go together and race together. I have made a lot of friends racing too. We always look out for each other and want everyone to succeed in the race. My whole family and even my grandparents all go in the motorhome and we go have fun at the races. I really like winning too.
Who doesn’t Landyn…who doesn’t?
You can catch Landyn on social media at @landynpoppert9 or watch for him in person as he is back to racing at TexPlex Raceway and at Mid America Outdoors.
Landyn made sure to tell us he is blessed to have the support from his entire family, parents Tyler and Marsha along with his 3 brothers who all race as well; Corbyn, Grayson and Dawson. “Our racing program is a true family effort and wouldn’t be possible without the help and support of my grandparents Frank, Veva, Gregg and Denise,” said Landyn.
Landyn’s thanks all of his sponsors too.
Polaris RZR, DS Moto Customs, Carr-One Fabrication, O’Neal Racing, Coastline Steel, Franks Well Drilling, Powder 1, Rockery, DIII Transport, P4 Racing
