Nova Motorcycles was born in late December of 2013. A partnership between Sayre Anthony and Pete Chilton. 

Sayre Anthony - Co-owner

Sayre’s passion for motorcycles has been influenced deeply by a mother who worked as a mechanic on European cars, an uncle who rides skateboards and dirtbikes, and an entrepreneurial father.

He went to New York City in 1997 for college, bringing with him his motorcycle and his need to fettle, and he soon found his way to Team Obsolete, the Brooklyn-based vintage Grand Prix motorcycle racing team and collection. He absorbed all he could from the assembled gurus in residence there, learning not only the intricacies of specialty motorcycle maintenance and preservation, but also cementing a life-long fascination with two-wheeled machines (and their occasional high-speed operation).

He left Team Obsolete after 5 years to finish his college education, and to work as a mechanic at Works Engineering, the Williamsburg, Brooklyn area motorcycle shop started by another Team Obsolete alum.

He returned to Western Massachusetts in 2009, and soon co-founded Madhouse Motors in Cambridge, MA. He met Pete by working on his BMW, and Nova Motorcycles was born not long after.

He holds a Bachelor’s Degree in Philosophy from NYU, and a road racing license issued by the VRRA.

Peter Chilton - Co-owner

Pete grew up in a family of wood workers and builders. He learned the ins-and-outs of fabrication from his father at an early age making wooden swords and shields with engraved handles and painted crests. He studied engineering at WPI briefly before changing course to study art and design at UMass Amherst. He also pursued a musical career, playing bass guitar and touring extensively in the US, Europe, Japan and Australia with hard-core punk legends Bane.  He also played with the groups Barrit, Ink Cartridge Funeral, and Silent Drive. 

He left the music industry after 13 years to pursue a career in design. First, teaching photography and design at Hallmark Institute of Photography, then becoming marketing manager at SealRYT Corp, an engineering and industrial products company. He also runs his own design firm providing print and web design for various clients. 

Pete has a hand in the look and feel of all the custom builds. His background allows him to listen to clients and help make their vision a reality. 

Bailey Sisson - Mechanic

Bailey grew up in a well-respected machinist family in Northfield, MA. She learned about internal combustion engines as a kid and practiced on broken motors that were ever-present in her father's shop. She realized she wanted to be a mechanic professionally when she discovered the art and pleasure of making things work perfectly.  She has a strong desire to leave things better than she found them. 

She graduated high school early and moved to Arizona to study at the Motorcycle Mechanics Institute. She graduated with a 4.0 grade average and with certifications in Kawasaki (on/off road motorcycles, atv, and watercraft) and BMW (Level 1 Technician). After graduation she moved back to Massachusetts. Bailey joined the Nova staff in the summer of 2016.

She loves animals and has a green thumb. She also plays baritone sax, bass guitar and piano. 

Isaac DiGeronimo - Logistics

Isaac has always been fascinated with how things work. He first got into motorcycles in 2015, with the purchase of a 1982 Yamaha SR250, and was hooked. He soon began gathering more bikes, and discovered a passion for the small and rare machines, like his ’57 Legnano 50, or his ’52 DMW 200, but also stretching to interesting big bikes like his ’48 Scott Flying Squirrel. In 2017, while buying a Moto Beta, he learned about classic motorcycle racing from the seller, and had to know more. By the end of that season he was on track racing a 1973 Honda SL70. Soon after he showed up at Nova for help with some seat adjustments for the racebike, and he hasn’t left since. He formally joined the staff at Nova in 2019, and handles a wide range of responsibilities for us, including wrenching, logistics, property maintenance, and bike transport. If you have a bike picked up or delivered by us, there’s a very good chance you’ll meet him.

Brook Carsten - Fabricator/Mechanic

Brook grew up in the hill towns of Western Massachusetts, where he absorbed a passion for old objects. As a young kid, his spark for powered two-wheelers started during rides on his bicycle with his dog pulling him along. When he was 18 his brother scored a 1972 xl250 Honda rolling chassis from a dumpster and a harbor freight 212cc predator engine. Brook spent a summer getting the engine running and fabricating up parts to put the motor in the chassis and turn it into a motorcycle. Loving the outcomes he got from fabricating, he decided he wanted to do more with it professionally, and ended up here at Nova in the fall of 2020. As soon as we saw the dedication and skill that went into the XL250/Predator project, we knew he was one of us, and he’s been with us ever since.

Sam Konzen - Communications/Mechanic

Born and raised raised in Italy, Sam’s passion of motors started early on after he moved to Seattle with his family at the age of 7. His first taste of mechanical work was on his uncle’s Fiat 124 Spider and old Alfa Romeos. He came to Western Mass to study Chemistry and Food Science in college and found Nova Motorcycles to be his home away from home. Initially volunteering his time to the shop on his weekends at college he’s now part of the Nova team. He rides two vintage Moto Guzzi’s (as a proud Italian should), and races a 1967 Bridgestone 175. Next on the horizon for Sam is an Aermacchi 350 racebike.