Flat Track Racers Charlotte Kainz and Kyle McGrane
Charlotte Kainz
Kyle McGrane
Two American Flat Track riders—Charlotte Kainz and Kyle McGrane—died following separate crashes at Sunday’s Ramspur Winery Santa Rosa Mile AMA Pro Flat Track race at Sonoma County Fairgrounds.Kainz, 20, of West Allis, Wis., and McGrane, 17, of Gap, Pa., were both rushed to the Santa Rosa Memorial Hospital. Kainz died on Sunday, and McGrane on Monday—both Junior American Flat Track riders passed due to injuries sustained in the crashes.
“The flat track community is tight knit, and today we are all mourning,” said Michael Lock, CEO of AMA Pro Racing. “Charlotte and Kyle were talented competitors with bright futures. Our deepest condolences go out to their families and friends in this time of need.”AMA Pro Racing reports that Kainz earned her professional license in Pro Flat Track in the GNC2 class during the 2015 season. She won her first GNC2 Semi this year at the Black Hills Half-Mile and brought smiles to the faces of everyone she met in the paddock.Kainz crashed during the second turn of her heat race at 12:18 p.m. Sunday. According to her social media posts, she had just celebrated her 20th birthday, and her mother had died earlier this year.AMA Pro Racing reports that McGrane joined the Pro Flat Track ranks in the GNC2 class last year and showed promise both on and off the track. McGrane was born in Gap, Penn. but had a growing fanbase nationwide with Main event appearances and a Heat race win at the 2016 Law Tigers Arizona Mile. McGrane’s crashed occurred during the final lap of his afternoon race. He crashed coming out of turn four.Two separate funds were set up on GoFundMe to help the families with travel and medical expenses:
Hello everyone and welcome once again to Motos and Friends, the weekly podcast brought to you by Ultimate Motorcycling. My name is Arthur Coldwells.
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In this week’s first segment, Editor Don Williams takes the smallest BMW ADV bike on an urban adventure in Los Angeles. The BMW G 310 GS is a full size motorcycle with a modest engine, so of course we wonder if it is a little too underpowered and might struggle. Don put it through its paces and gives us his take.
In the second segment, Neale Bayly and Kiran Ridley have returned from the Ukraine to Paris where Kiran is based.
Kiran is an award winning photojournalist, and as an accomplished documentarian, he has covered stories as diverse as drug smuggling around the Mexican border, to the devastation of the Australian Bush Fires, to the tragedy of the Mediterranean migration crisis. Neale and Kiran reminisce about their motorcycle adventure in the Ukraine, and their observations and experiences with the incredibly resilient people of Ukraine, who have been put through such brutal hardship.
