A pair of local riders will be competing at the Monster Energy AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship in Hurricane Mills, Tenn., at the ranch of late country singer Loretta Lynn.

Sixteen-year-olds Koby Turner of Hager City and Wyatt McGrath of Beldenville qualified for the event, placing them at the top of their class. Koby is the son of Dominique & Angie Turner and Dawn Turner. Wyatt is the son of Jay and Tricia McGrath.

In order to qualify, McGrath and Turner needed to finish in the top-42 riders in the country in their class, going through area and regional races. To achieve the top-42 threshold, riders needed to place in the top-nine in the area race and top-six in the regional race.

Turner and McGrath each qualified in the top-six at the regional race in Buchanan, Mich., to make it to the national stage.

McGrath emphasized the importance of qualifying for the event, saying it is an “amateur-pro” race, with all of the best riders in the world competing. McGrath will be competing in the event for the seventh time, and said it is one of the coolest places at which to compete.

Turner attempted to qualify for the first time and made it. He is ready to race at the track of which McGrath spoke so highly.

Competing in around 30 events each year, this is one of the top destinations the two have competed at.

The friends’ passion for motocross started as young boys, with their parents helping them get involved at a young age. As they saw themselves improve, the passion only grew.

The two caught a taste of the adrenaline rush and have been chasing wins ever since.

“The adrenaline on the line and seeing where you stack up every race against people that are in your class,” Turner said.

When asked about their favorite parts of competing, McGrath kept it simple.

“My favorite part is probably winning, you can’t really beat winning,” McGrath said.

The event involves three 25-minute races (called motos), with the average placement of the three marking the final placement. This event will be one of the longest the two compete in, so the two have put in plenty of endurance work off the track.

“The preparation is probably the highest out of every other event,” Turner said. “You work on your endurance a lot, cycling off the bike.”

Growing up around the sport, the two always had the talent from a young age. Despite this, they have not been afraid to put in the work to compete against some of the best in the world.

“We both started super young, and we were both pretty naturally talented at it,” McGrath said. “There’s two kinds of steps. The bottom step you’re talented, but then you’ve also got to work super hard at it to get to the next step.”

Angie Kemmerer Turner, Koby’s mother, said watching the two compete in these events over the years has been special. Kemmerer Turner has watched the two become friends who have used each other to better themselves through competition and coaching.

“They’ll come off the track, ‘Hey, watch out for this line. Oh, there’s a kicker here. Take this line it’s faster,’” Kemmerer Turner said. “So, it’s kind of fun to watch them, and then watch them and then watch them joke around but still also coach each other.”

Tricia McGrath said Wyatt continues to amaze her every day.

“He just turned 16, so you can finally start competing in the 450cc class,” she said. “He worked his tail off and ended up getting a 1-1-1 and the #1 plate in the 450B limited class at Spring Creek this past weekend.”

The Monster Energy AMA Amateur National Motocross Championship spans from July 31-Aug. 1. The races will be live-streamed at https://mxsports.com/event/amateur-national-motocross-championship