The Dairyland motocross track is an unassuming plot of land across from the West Valley Fire Department satellite station on West Valley Drive.

Built on family farmland with a sweeping view of the valley and maintained throughout the short summer motocross season, the course is anything but unassuming on the High Country Motocross Association circuit.

This season, the course was named track of the year and produced both the 2015 rider of the year and youth rider of the year, with 26 riders finishing at or near the top of their divisions.

Leading the charge has been Kalispell’s Taylor Mann. A 22-year-old professional, Mann has won every class he’s competed in the last two seasons, sweeping the 250cc, 450cc and Open Pro divisions again this year.

Missing one of the eight races, Mann rode his Yamaha to top three finishes in every event he participated in the Open class, won three times in the 450 class and won all but one race in the 250 class.

In his wake are a handful of other local riders, including 6-year-old Ryder Larsen, who raced his way to youth rider of the year honors this season.

Starting on a dirt bike at 4-years-old, Ryder took off this season, finishing in the top two in all three of his 50cc air-cooled B-class races before advancing to the A-class mid-season. Once there, he progressed quickly, finishing fourth, then third before winning the next two races.

Open three times a week during the season, Dairyland has helped nurture an entire pack of riders that is beginning to make its mark on the state.

“It’s an awesome motocross community,” Mann said. “It gives you something to strive for.”

Mann, even at a young age, is one of the veterans at the track that has been steadily growing in popularity over the last six years. Run and operated by Cade Marvin and his family on a plot of land abutting the family farm, the track has given people in the community a place to ride where there were few options before. The only other course in the area is in Hungry Horse, and was in bad shape before the Flathead Dirt Runners renovated the property a few years ago.

“Kalispell hasn’t had a place to ride for I don’t know how long,” said Tyler Larsen, the father of Ryder, who himself has ridden for years.

“If you didn’t go to Hungry Horse you couldn’t go anywhere. These guys finally opened up a spot where people can get back into the sport.”

On race day this season, June 28, Dairyland saw 230 competitors despite 102-degree temperatures and a two-race weekend. The hot and dry weather wreaked havoc on courses this summer. During race week, the team at the property had to use watering trucks from the farm to wet down the course and keep things from getting dusty.

The track currently is open three days a week, on Tuesdays, Thursdays and Saturdays during the summer.

The Larsens live on property next to the track, and get out as often as possible. Ryder is more than eager to start riding.

“He’s ready and geared up before I can get home,” Tyler Larsen said. “It’s hard for me to get the bike worked on and get him on the track at the same time.”

Tyler, who has been riding most of his life and whose grandfather still rides at age 82, gets nervous with his young son zipping around the course.

“It takes my breath away,” Tyler Larsen said. “All you want to see is him. With the tracks nowadays, they’re pretty large. You put on some miles trying to see where he’s at and what he’s doing.

“I’ve had to tell him to slow down because he’s scared me so bad. But he keeps in control. He has some great balance on the bike. It truly is amazing at his age what he’s doing.”

The course has provided an amazing experience for many in the region, proofed by its status as course of the year, which Marvin said left him speechless at this year’s award ceremony earlier this month in Fairmont Hot Springs.

Most importantly, it allows riders like Mann and the Larsens to continue their passion.

“It’s fun,” Ryder Larsen said.