This American Rad Rider instructs newbies and performs stunts for leading ladies

Riding motorbikes on America’s east coast is a bit more constrained compared to the vast openness of Western Canada’s backcountry. But speed bumps like that don’t deter Crystalmarie Asteria, RiderCoach for Motorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF), instructor for Advanced Driving & Security, and VP of GIG Motorsports.

“Sadly, there aren’t very many places to ride in Rhode Island so we have to travel elsewhere,” she said. “The only legal riding is at the Rhode Island Trials Club if you’re a member. Most of our riding is done on private land with the consent of the landowners.”

Fortunately for Asteria, there’s a state up north that serves her purposes.

“We are registered in New Hampshire and the trails up there are pretty awesome once mud season is over,” she said. “New Hampshire is the most popular riding terrain as the areas south of that are pretty limited. The trails are rocky with lots of elevation changes, roots, and sometimes mud. I feel like Northeast riding is more technical than some other areas of the U.S. and the terrain changes drastically within just a half an hour’s drive. For example, some trails in the middle of Connecticut are full of sharp rocks and shale, which makes them a unique challenge, while the Dunbarton trails in New Hampshire change from sandy whoops to mud to roots, rocky river crossings, and steep climbs in less than a mile!”

This state-hopping, trail-blazing motorcycle riding instructor didn’t even grow up around motorsports, but that hardly prevented her from her calling.

“I’ve always loved motorcycles but no one in my family ever rode,” Asteria said. “My mom always told me that I could never have a motorcycle. Now that I have multiple bikes, she says I’m giving her more gray hair, ha ha! I started on the street and transitioned over to the road course within the first year. I became strictly a track rider for a while and then I discovered dirt and trials later and absolutely fell in love.”

In a radical twist of fate, Asteria landed the role of stunt double for Ashleigh Cummings, the lead actress in AMC’s NOS4A2 (an American supernatural horror drama television series). Asteria even obtained a SAG AFTRA (Screen Actors Guild - American Federation of Television and Radio Artists) card in the process.

“That was a pretty amazing experience that, if not for riding, I would never have been able to do,” said Asteria. “The experience of riding in and of itself is pretty amazing, but what’s better is the people that you meet. You all have different backgrounds and thought processes, but you come together for the love of dirt biking and it’s just awesome. We’ve gone on some amazing trips we wouldn’t have otherwise and seen some places that are only possible to view on two wheels. It’s just an awesome hobby that I can’t speak highly enough about.”