Jack Minsker is a 21-year-old Onewheel racer from Portland, Oregon who has spent 2026 on both sides of the same skill. At Seek n' Shred in May he posted the fastest time trial of anyone at the event, 2:55.900, and lost second place in the final by roughly three inches. At Northwest Electric Fest in July he treated his time trial as a sight lap, never got a second run, and finished second at 9:21.200. He competes under USA FLT, the national sanctioning body for Onewheel racing, and sits second in the 2026 Mens Pro off-road standings on 64.63 points.
Jack Minsker putting down his one timed heat on Friday before the finals. Photo credit Seth Johnson (USA FLT).
Who Is Jack Minsker, the Onewheel Racer?
Minsker has been riding personal electric vehicles since mid-2020 and racing since 2022, and he found the sport on television as a kid. He watched MythBusters, where Adam Savage rode whatever odd single-wheeled machine was available, including an early electric unicycle Minsker describes as a motor strapped to a normal unicycle. Then a Onewheel turned up on the show.
"And I went, what's that? It was a V1."
He was 12 or 13 and a year or two into skateboarding. He did the research, found the boards were still shipping through Kickstarter, and took the idea to his parents anyway. He remembers his mother's answer well enough to deliver it in her voice: "My mom went, hell no. Not getting one of those. You're not getting one of those. You can stick with skateboarding. That's already enough."
He did not let it go. "So then I kind of kept asking and asking for like, years," he said.
What eventually changed her mind was not persistence. He was two years into a relationship when it ended badly, and his mother, in his words, "felt bad enough, she finally bought me a pint."
It did not hold him long. "I took that thing out of the box and I hit pushback in the first, like five minutes," he said. He rode that board until it died.
His first board, a Future Motion Pint. Photo supplied by Jack Minsker.
His first race came in 2022, on an XR against a field that had just moved to GT boards. He entered amateur and took third.
"And I was like, okay, this is for me. I'm gonna keep doing this."
The amateur podium at NW Electric Fest, 2022. Photo supplied by Jack Minsker.
He came up on the trick side first, with the Portland and Vancouver crew at Float NLC. "I started out as a fairly heavy trick rider," he said, before trails took over.
Why Racing Runs in Jack Minsker's Family
Racing was in the house long before Onewheels were. His uncle drives rally. His mother raced stock cars when she was younger.
"Competitive racing is kind of like in our family."
That is also where his sponsorship comes from. His main sponsor is his uncle's team, Dave Ford Motorsports, which covers entry fees, tires, and rails. Asked about the family thread, Minsker pointed at the name on the car: his mom's last name is Ford.
So the jersey he races in, orange with blue and yellow stripes and a Union Jack on the sleeve, is not a sponsor's kit he earned. It is his family's livery, the same one on the orange Mini his uncle races.
The Dave Ford Motorsports Mini. Photo supplied by Jack Minsker.
None of which meant he assumed he belonged on a start line. "I didn't think I was fast enough to race," he said, crediting Jason Messer of Electric Bigfoot and Andrew Osterman of ShredEx with pushing him into it.
What Board Does Jack Minsker Ride?
Minsker races a 32s1p GT build with a Superflux High Speed V2 motor and a Jet Fleet F6 controller, on a six inch hub with a big tire. He assembled it in early April 2026 and it has carried the whole season.
Current race setup: 32s1p GT, Superflux High Speed V2 motor, Jet Fleet F6 controller, six inch hub, big tire.
Battery and controller boxes open on the bench. Photo supplied by Jack Minsker.
At Seek n' Shred, a month after the build, he was already finding its ceiling. "I hit 40 in my time trials on the downhill, so it was what got me that five seconds," he said. Two months later the verdict had not changed: "It holds up to my abuse, so I'm happy with it."
He also keeps a trick board, a stock board with a five inch tub and an 18s2p pack, thrown together in a couple of days because Travis Tatum lives an hour away with a full trick setup in his backyard. The controller box on it is his own design.
The controller box Minsker designed for his trick board. Photo supplied by Jack Minsker.
How Did Jack Minsker Do at Seek n' Shred 2026?
Minsker finished third in Pro Men at Seek n' Shred 2026, behind Cameron Patecell and Nico Aleman, after posting the fastest time trial of anyone at the event at 2:55.900. The race ran May 28-31 at Blue Mountain Event Center in Wilseyville, California, on a course rain had packed into the fastest edition the series had seen.
"It was a heater of a lap. We were all tight through there," he said.
"We got a little separated out at the rock garden and then me and Nico kind of stayed neck and neck through the rest of it. We lost Cameron, but me and Nico had a nice battle back and forth on pineapple and that was killer. And then we had a smoker of a finish. I think he finished like three inches in front of me."
Pro Men podium at Seek n' Shred 2026. Minsker, right, took third. Photo credit Seth Johnson.
His own read on it was not complicated. "So it was a close third. I was a little bummed, but also, dude, I'm just stoked to have placed."
Asked what keeps him showing up, he did not mention results at all.
"I love the racing, I love the thrill of it, but it wouldn't be the same if it weren't the people you're surrounded with and like who you're getting to race with."
How Did Jack Minsker Finish at Northwest Electric Fest 2026?
Minsker finished second in Mens Pro on the USA FLT timed results at 9:21.200, behind Cameron Patecell at 8:47.130 and ahead of Kai Peterson at 9:40.200. The event's own podium, decided in the head-to-head heats, placed him third.
The contrast with May is the whole story. USA FLT scores off the timed run, and at Seek n' Shred that run was the fastest anyone put down. At Northwest he used it as reconnaissance.
"That was my sight lap. I hadn't looked at the trails yet," he said. "I'm gonna take my first one slow, and then I'll hit my second one faster."
He never got the second one. On the course he named the same two problems the rest of the field named, potholes deep enough to end a run and a dust cloud for anyone off the front. Full results are in the event recap.
On the rider who beat him at both races, he does not think the board explains it. "I think a lot of it's skill. I think you could put him on pretty much anything," he said of Patecell.
The Northwest Electric Fest 2026 podium as awarded, with Minsker third. On the USA FLT timed sheet he was second. Photo credit Seth Johnson (USA FLT).
Northwest is still his favorite weekend of the year, and the result is not why. "It's home territory. I know generally the trails. I helped build some of those trails," he said. Other events do not feel that way: "I need to be on the trails. I need to race. I need to be prepared."
What Gear Does Jack Minsker Wear to Race?
Minsker races in a full face helmet, two chest protectors (one lightweight and padded, one heavier), wrist guards, knee pads, padded shorts, and motocross pants. It is the first thing he raises when asked what he would tell a rider on the fence, and he gave the same answer at both events this year.
Geared up at Seek n' Shred 2026, chin camera mounted. Photo supplied by Jack Minsker.
In May it came out as a warning. "be prepared for the risk," he said. "And if you're wanting into it, gear up. Gear is going to save you more than you think."
"I look like a hunchback in my gear, but I can fall at 30 and I can take a hit, roll up and be up before people even react."
By July it had a slogan attached: "The way I've heard it put is dress for the slide, not the ride." He came up the other way, in a basic helmet and wrist guards, pushing 25 mph on an XR with no elbow pads, and says he got lucky. The armor has held. "The most I have really walked away with in the past couple of years while racing has been a couple bruises and maybe a scratch or two," he said.
He does not lift. He ran cross country for four or five years and still trains by running, for "the leg strength to just power through, you know, three to six miles of trail at a time without stopping."
Why Jack Minsker Wants More Attention on Amateur Classes
Minsker thinks the biggest barrier to new racers is raw speed, and that the answer is more visibility for the non-pro classes rather than more spectacle at the top. "as the boards have advanced, staying competitive has meant going 35 or 40," he said, against 25 to 30 in the XR and GTS era. "It's scary for people. I don't think a lot of people want to go that fast."
That does not mean amateur racing is slow.
"I mean, I think if you looked at amateur class times right now and compared it to like two or three years ago, you'd see some of those amateur times are competitive with the pro times from two or three years ago."
His view of sanctioning sharpened across the season too. In May he was glad it existed: "It's the first overall sanctioned body we've gotten," he said, since Future Motion riders and VESC riders had never been scored in one place. By July he had an ask attached. "The event happens yearly. I feel like we should be getting some of this information six months before," he said.
Where Jack Minsker Sees Onewheel Racing in Five Years
Minsker expects trick riding to become bigger than trail racing within five years, and he says that as someone who rides trail. His argument is about the venue, not the riding.
"I think tricks are gonna become bigger than trails most of the time. I think it's because you can have a set park, you could have your audience, you can have people watch the thing live right then and there."
Sending it over the crowd into the airbag. Photo supplied by Jack Minsker.
He thinks sanctioned trick judging is workable, since "we're already doing trick comps and stuff like that where we're having people score and judge." The hard part is impartiality: racing settles itself at the finish line and tricks do not. Risk is the other argument in favor, since "the chances of injury are a lot lower than trying to go 40 on a trail."
Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Jack Minsker?
Jack Minsker is a 21-year-old Onewheel racer from Portland, Oregon. He has been riding personal electric vehicles since mid-2020 and racing since 2022, and competes under USA FLT, the national sanctioning body for Onewheel racing.
How did Jack Minsker finish at Northwest Electric Fest 2026?
He finished second in Mens Pro on the USA FLT timed results at 9:21.200, behind Cameron Patecell at 8:47.130 and ahead of Kai Peterson at 9:40.200. The event's own podium, decided in the head-to-head heats, placed him third.
How did Jack Minsker finish at Seek n' Shred 2026?
He took third in Pro Men behind Cameron Patecell and Nico Aleman, losing second by roughly three inches at the line. He also posted the fastest time trial of anyone at the event, 2:55.900, on a board he had built the month before.
What board does Jack Minsker ride?
He races a 32s1p GT build with a Superflux High Speed V2 motor and a Jet Fleet F6 controller, on a six inch hub with a big tire, assembled in early April 2026. He also keeps a separate trick board, a stock board with a five inch tub and an 18s2p pack.
What gear does Jack Minsker wear to race?
A full face helmet, two chest protectors, wrist guards, knee pads, padded shorts, and motocross pants. His advice to new racers is to prepare for the risk and over-gear, because gear saves more than they expect.
Where does Jack Minsker rank in the 2026 USA FLT standings?
He is second in Mens Pro off-road on 64.63 points from two races, behind Cameron Patecell on 52.36. USA FLT scores on time deficit, so the lower total is the better one and each class winner scores 0.00.
Minsker's remaining 2026 point races are Best of the West, Wheel Life Rally, and the Amped Electric Games finale in Bentonville. He also returns to Race for the Rail, where he took third in Mens Pro last year: "I was at Race for the Rail last year and got third in men's pro, and I want to shoot for first this year because who wouldn't?"
Follow Jack Minsker: athlete profile at usaflt.com/athletes/jacksonminsker. He is on Instagram, YouTube, Facebook, and TikTok as Jack Minsker, and films every race on a chin camera without posting much of it. "I have my chin camera. I just have to actually get around to editing it," he said.
Sponsors: Electric Bigfoot (Jason Messer), ShredEx (Andrew Osterman), and Dave Ford Motorsports.
Results from official USA FLT timing at Seek n' Shred 2026, Blue Mountain Event Center, Wilseyville, California, May 28-31 2026, and Northwest Electric Fest 2026, Havenroot, Veneta, Oregon, July 15-19 2026. Standings current as of July 2026. Full standings at usaflt.com/standings.
