Thanks. I was reading a bunch of comments locally basically saying the Baron's tail was designed too small for these upgraded engines making the window of recovery irresponsibly small, especially in hot/thin 115° air.
But this video says the controls as seen on the ground are in a position to aggravate a spin, though the presenter can't be sure the impact didn't jar the control surfaces into those positions. Some are now speculating that the DPE waited too long to intervene and suggest that social dynamics of having a company employee as the examiner/instructor & a company executive for a student might explain a hesitation to take control.
Regarding the Reno Air Races I expected there to be some danger (like with air shows), but to average more than 1 fatality every 2 years seems quite a bit more risky than any other extreme sporting event. Since a majority of those accidents occurred after planes broke apart during extreme mid-air maneuvers, I wonder if an even more thorough tech inspection could prevent some of the crashes. Or whether a higher altitude course might give a g-loc'd pilot time to recover. Or whether some autopilot safety system might detect a lack of pilot inputs and take control.