Ryder Bell has been riding motocross since he was 2 years old.

Now, at 16, he is a two-time national champion.

Bell, a Haiku resident who was born and raised on Maui, won the 250 C Limited and 250 C Junior (12-17) class crowns at the AMA Amateur National Motocross Championships that took place Aug. 1-6 at Loretta Lynn Ranch in Hurricane Mills, Tenn.

The results capped the season of Bell’s life so far — he has been living in Lake Elsinore, Calif., since January to train with motocross coach Brian Medeiros of Kauai.

“I have been doing motocross since I was 2 years old when I first started riding in my yard,” Bell said. “Slowly it just got competitive after that.”

After qualifying for his first trip to the mecca of the sport in the nation, he walked away with two crowns.

“It was just a dream to go there,” Bell said. “It was just a dream. Like, just to qualify and make it there was the goal in the beginning of this year. And then, to make it there and win, I couldn’t say anything about it.

“And everybody from Hawaii that’s supported me forever to get over there, I just … it’s not just me. I just can’t thank everybody enough. It’s just a dream to be there and now I’m just ready to keep this momentum going.”

Bell had to go through local and regional qualifying to reach Loretta Lynn Ranch and then when he got there, he was the best of 40 qualifiers in each of his divisions.

He won all three motos in the 12-17 age division class, while he finished fourth, second and first, in order, to claim the limited class. He plans to move up to B class next year and A the year after — the A Division will offer him the chance to compete as a professional.

He also won class titles at the Cal Classic in April and Mammoth Motocross in June.

Things started to go light speed for Bell when he met Medeiros on Kauai on Labor Day weekend 2021.

“He’s kind of the only one who’s pushed motocross from Hawaii up there (on the Mainland),” Bell said. “So, he took me under his wing and he told me that he’ll help me out and the goal was to make it to Loretta’s.

“I went up in January and I just put my head down from there and did a lot of local races, and just kept pushing. And then, we made it to Loretta’s and ended up winning.”

Bell gives a lot of credit to Medeiros.

“I am living in Lake Elsinore at Brian’s house — he lives in California now — and he basically just took me around and pointed me in the right direction to get to where I am now,” Bell said.

Bell is currently home on Maui and will return to California in early November — there is a large AMA race in Arizona in December. He will return home for Christmas, but then in January it will be back to training in California for the next run at nationals.

He said he is about two years from his dream of becoming a professional rider.

“My goal is to next year just build speed and build up and then the year after that just do it again and become a professional motocross racer,” Bell said.

The former King Kekaulike High School student has been studying online since the onset of COVID and while he misses his former classmates, he is continuing on the online learning plan.

“I kind of miss school with the friends and stuff, but if this is what I want to do in my future then that is what I’ve got to sacrifice,” Bell said.

The eldest of Douglas and Diana Bell’s three boys has his eyes firmly set on professional racing, and he is proud to be one of the first ever to reach these heights from Maui and the state.

Seth Bell, 13, and Kain Bell, 10, watched their older brother do his thing in Tennessee.

“My confidence is boosted, like, next year I’m ready to just put my head down and just see what I can do, be the best that I can be next year,” Ryder Bell said. “I’m happy the way it’s going and we’re just going to keep the progress going.”

* Robert Collias is at rcollias@mauinews.com