For 16-year-old Maddie Rankin, the driver’ s seat came early through demolition derby, a sport where drivers build their own cars and compete by hitting one another until only one vehicle is still running.
“ I’ ve always wanted to get in a car. I’ d watch my parents at county shows,” Maddie says.“ I wanted to be like my dad one day.”
What started as watching, turned into working in the garage and eventually driving herself. She learned the sport alongside her parents, Patrick and Brittany, who both compete, making it not just an event but a family affair.
GETTING BEHIND THE WHEEL EARLY
Maddie may not have her driver’ s license yet, but she has already spent years behind the wheel in a demolition derby.
Her first experience driving came through Power Wheels competitions at local events, where young kids could participate in scaled-down versions of the sport.
“ A man had a trailer full of Power Wheels. Any kid who wanted to run them could,” Brittany recalls.“ That was the first time she got to do it and she was hooked.”
From that point on, Maddie took it seriously, even at a young age. Her parents got her a Barbie jeep and painted it to match her dad’ s car, using his signature purple and black brick-wall design. As she got older, that began to change. Maddie began building her own cars and developing her own style, shifting to green and black with money-themed graphics.
She left the Barbie jeep behind and entered her first derby competition at age
11, driving a compact car in a large-scale event.“ I didn’ t know how big this show was,” she remembers. The process leading up to that event took months. Building a derby car involves more than just preparing a vehicle. It requires stripping it down, reinforcing it and rebuilding it with strategy in mind.
“ My first time welding was on that car. All my memories were in that car,” Maddie says.“ You never know how much emotion you can put into a car and build that connection.”
That connection might seem unusual in a sport built around impact, but for drivers, it comes from the time, effort and learning involved in building and driving the car.
Even so, there are moments when letting go is not easy.
“ There is a little sadness,” Brittany says.
FINDING CONFIDENCE ON THE TRACK
MADDIE RANKIN TIGHTENS A BOLT IN HER NO. 4 ENGINE NEAR HER GARAGE IN ELIZABETH. RANKIN, 16, HAS BEEN PARTICIPATING IN DEMOLITION DERBY COMPETITIONS FOR FIVE YEARS.
As Maddie gained more experience, she began to understand the competitive side of the sport.
“ The biggest thing I had to learn is that there is really good competition out there,” she says.“ I should not beat myself up if I don’ t do as well as I want to.”
That mindset has helped her develop confidence, not just as a driver, but as a competitor.
PAGE NO. 8 NEWS AND TRIBUNE SPORTS MAGAZINE MAY / JUNE 2026