Kawasaki’s Ryan VillopotoDuring last weekend’s Grand Prix of Trentino in Italy – round four of the 2015 FIM Motocross World Championship – America’s Ryan Villopoto suffered a hectic crash.Following the MXGP wreck, the Monster Energy Kawasaki Racing Team Leader underwent a medical examination. Doctors said he sustained “coccyx failure,” meaning the 26-year-old California broke his tailbone.
Due to this, Villopoto – who joined the FIM Motocross grid this season following four-straight AMA Supercross titles – may be sidelined for this weekend’s MXGP of Europe at Valkenswaard in Holland. Villopoto and the team will know more following further testing set for the end of the week.“The doctors told him that there is no risk of further injury if he rides his bike, but of course it will be painful. We don’t want to put any pressure; Ryan will do a test and then we’ll take a decision for this weekend,” explained KRT team manager François Lemariey.Villopoto took his first MXGP during race one of round two in Thailand, following that with a third-place finish in race two. He then finished fourth in both Argentina races, and took another fourth in race one in Trentino before crashing out in race two.Villopoto’s not the only Kawasaki Racing Team KX450F-SR factory rider injured; his teammate Tyla Rattray also was injured in Trentino, though he’s set to go for this weekend’s Dutch MXGP.“Tyla also had examinations and he is OK; he crashed pretty hard on his head but he has no pain. He does have a painful shoulder, and he had some laser treatment this week to speed up the healing process. He will ride his bike tomorrow (Thursday) to prepare the GP,” Lemariey says.
Hello everyone and welcome once again to Ultimate Motorcycling’s weekly Podcast—Motos and Friends.
My name is Arthur Coldwells.
This week’s Podcast is brought to you by Yamaha motorcycles. Discover how the YZF-R7 provides the perfect balance of rider comfort and true supersport performance by checking it out at YamahaMotorsports.com, or see it for yourself at your local dealer.
This week’s episode features Senior Editor Nic de Sena’s impressions of the beautiful new Harley-Davidson Low Rider ST that is loosely based around the original FXRT Sport Glide from the 1980s. Hailing from The Golden State, these cult-status performance machines became known as West Coast style, with sportier suspension, increased horsepower, and niceties including creature comforts such as a tidy fairing and sporty luggage.
In past episodes you might have heard us mention my best friend, Daniel Schoenewald, and in the second segment I chat with him about some of the really special machines in his 170 or so—and growing—motorcycle collection. He’s always said to me that he doesn’t consider himself the owner, merely the curator of the motorcycles for the next generation.
Yet Daniel is not just a collector, but I can attest a really skilled rider. His bikes are not trailer queens, they’re ridden, and they’re ridden pretty hard. Actually, we have had many, many memorable rides on pretty much all of the machines in the collection at one time or another.
From all of us here at Ultimate Motorcycling, we hope you enjoy this episode!
