Seeing newer riders crashing in the canyons inspired Kristina “Krissy” Teskera to want to make it easier for motorcyclists to get out to race tracks.
Teskera and her boyfriend, Rafa Meneses, founded Moving Moto, a Mar Vista-based motorcycle transportation service in April.
“We started to take our friends, and they always pitched in,” Teskera said. “I was like, ‘You know what? There are so many other people, not just our friends, who don’t have a truck, don’t have a hitch and don’t have a trailer. Let’s offer it, and let’s see how it goes.’”
Teskera said motorcycle newbies are attracted to the canyons’ winding roads, but they aren’t skilled enough to control their bikes.
Moving Moto provides a pickup and drop-off service; they collect the bike in the morning, get it to the track, and transport it back to the person’s home. Riders can also drop and pick up their bikes at a designed location.
The couple transports motorcycles to local track days at Buttonwillow, Chuckwalla, Streets of Willow, Sonoma, Willow Springs, Thunderhill and Laguna Seca raceways.
They sometimes work on a case-by-case with customers that need special arrangements, such as transportation from outside of the Santa Monica/Westside area.
The couple has a 7-by-14 enclosed trailer that has room for five larger bikes. They can also fit a smaller bike in the back of their truck.
“It’s a safe environment, so there are no cars,” she said. “There are no traffic lights. It’s a circuit, so you go all the time in the same direction.”
“Let’s get those people out there and give them the opportunity to work on their skills in a safe environment.”
Teskera is newer to the scene. She moved to the United States from Germany eight years ago, and began riding about four years ago, during the pandemic.
Teskera has a background as an administrative assistant for a nightclub owner, and she repaired her boss’ motorcycles.
“I fixed three of his BMWs, changed the fuel pump, changed batteries, thanks to YouTube,” she said. “I was always into cars, but then when I started working for my boss here, it just came together… I was proud of myself. If I fixed them, then I should ride one. I found someone in Long Beach who was giving private lessons. I rode with him three weekends for two to three hours, and then that was the point where he was like, ‘You got it. Just get your license, go and have fun.’ I got my license, and now here I am, running a motorcycle transportation business.”
Krissy Teskera and Rafa Meneses of Moving Moto.
Meneses has over 15 years of experience riding bikes. The pair met during Teskera’s first track day.
She said that seeing new riders being unsafe prompted her to want to make it easier for them to get to local track days.
“I would rather give them the opportunity to ride with organizations, where they have classes, where they have groups,” Teskera said. “So, you don’t start off in a group where people are really fast, and you are super slow… It’s A, B and C groups. You start off in the C group.”
Through the classes, riders can develop skills such as braking and maneuvering their bikes and build from there.
“California is a mecca for motorcyclists,” Teskera said. “We have a lot of tracks here, so there’s a lot of people who have the same passion for it.”
Along with providing motorcycle transportation, she likes to help usher newcomers into this community. She invites them to sit with her in her pit area, which is shaded by canopies.
“It’s kind of like you go camping with friends, but you have your motorcycle with you,” she said.
The couple also answers questions about riding and motorcycles in general. Teskera said they often get asked about where to find a reliable mechanic or what shop to go to for parts.
She and Meneses also usually develop close relationships with the people for whom they transport motorcycles.
“It becomes really familiar,” Teskera said. “We are like a little family… I feel weird when I say ‘customers’ or ‘clients’ because they’re our family. They’re our friends.”
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