Ryder: The Grove Street Traitor

Ryder, real name Lance Wilson, is one of CJ's oldest friends on Grove Street and one of the first faces you meet in GTA San Andreas (2004). He is loud, short-tempered and often the funniest man in the room, and he is also one of the two friends who sell the gang out. Rapper MC Eiht, of Compton's Most Wanted, gives him his voice.

Who Is Ryder?

Ryder is a senior member of the Grove Street Families who grew up with Carl Johnson, Sweet and Big Smoke. He is easy to spot: a black San Andreas cap, dark glasses over a Jheri curl, a thin moustache and a windbreaker. He is rarely seen without a joint, and his habit of lacing it with PCP goes a long way to explain his temper. He drives a Picador, the game's answer to the classic car-based pickup.

Many players see Eazy-E of N.W.A in his look and his attitude, although Rockstar has never said so. MC Eiht had already played A-Wax in the film Menace II Society, alongside Clifton Powell and Samuel L. Jackson, who voice Big Smoke and Officer Tenpenny in the game.

Ryder's Missions in Los Santos

Ryder gives CJ some of the most memorable jobs of the first act. In the mission that carries his name, a trip to the barber ends with Ryder holding up the pizza place next door. In Home Invasion he sends CJ to steal crates of guns from a house at night, in Catalyst the two of them hit a train carrying ammunition, and in Robbing Uncle Sam they raid a National Guard depot.

He also rides along in Sweet & Kendl, Cleaning the Hood, Drive-Thru, Nines and AKs, Drive-By, House Party and Reuniting the Families, always with a sharp line about CJ's driving or his years away in Liberty City. Every mission of the story is on our San Andreas missions page.

The Betrayal

In The Green Sabre, CJ watches Big Smoke and Ryder meet Officer Tenpenny, Officer Pulaski and the Ballas. The two friends have been working against Grove Street all along, and they knew about the attack that killed CJ's mother. The short film The Introduction, made with the game's engine and sold with the special edition of the game and its soundtrack, already shows Smoke and Ryder talking about the gang's future before CJ comes home.

After the betrayal, Ryder turns up in San Fierro. In Photo Opportunity, CJ photographs a meeting of the Loco Syndicate, the drug ring run by Jizzy B, T-Bone Mendez and Mike Toreno, and Ryder is there as their partner. His story with Big Smoke goes on in parallel, in Los Santos.

How Does Ryder Die?

Ryder dies in Pier 69, a mission given by Cesar Vialpando in San Fierro. CJ and Cesar storm the pier during a Loco Syndicate meeting and kill T-Bone Mendez. Ryder runs for a speedboat, CJ chases him across the bay and kills him on the water. Mike Toreno escapes by helicopter, which leads straight to the next mission, Toreno's Last Flight.

Ryder is the first of the traitors to fall. His jokes carry much of the first act, and he almost disappears after The Green Sabre, which is why so many players feel he deserved a bigger part.

Ryder at a Glance

Every other character is on our San Andreas characters page.