Whether racing bikes or taking care of them for customers, Kenneth DeSilva has long had a passion for two-wheeled transport.

The ten-time national scooter racing champion has set up Custom Mechanics, a service and repair business, on St John’s Road in Pembroke.

His foray into entrepreneurship follows an apprenticeship at the former Cycles International in Southampton, three years at Cycle Care, and eight years at World Distributors, where as head technician and diagnostic specialist he led a team of eight.

A two-year stint as a technician/electrician with the Department of Public Transportation ended about a year ago when he became determined to chart his own course.

Mr DeSilva, 32, set up Custom Mechanics on the 500-square-foot site of a former thrift shop seven months ago.

He has taken on an apprentice, Kailen Paynter.

Mr DeSilva said: “I’ve been making it happen for everyone else for all these years. I felt it was time to do my own thing and provide a service to the island.”

He added: “I was prepared for it. All these years working for other people were pushing me towards it.

“Working for the companies I did, I was able to learn so much as far as what to do and not to do, to operate a business.”

In his early twenties, Mr DeSilva raced super scooters for the Stage Six team in Viterbo, Italy, just north of Rome, travelling from Bermuda during the racing season.

He also spent a year as a technician for the South Carolina-based KTM motocross race team, travelling to the US to support racers by maintaining race bikes and practice bikes.

At Custom Mechanics, Mr DeSilva does performance work on race bikes, including engine tuning, clutch work, engine modifications, top and bottom-end work, and track preparation.

But the larger share of his business is providing mechanical services for the huge scooter and motorcycle market, including accident repair, diagnostic testing, TCD testing, tyre repair and replacement, and key coding.

Mr DeSilva, who is from a family of mechanics, studied at the American Motorcycle Institute mechanics’ school in Daytona Beach, Florida, and has kept up his training by becoming factory-certified by leading brands Vespa, Piaggio, Asprilla, Yamaha and Honda.

He said: “Bikes have gone so high-tech now. My thing has been staying on top of an ever-so-changing industry.

“Bikes are pretty much like cars these days with so many sensors and all computerised now.”

As such, some require the attention of a diagnostic specialist.

Mr DeSilva said: “The larger companies drop bikes off to me because they can’t figure out the issues.

“I provide a service that you can’t get anywhere else at the end of the day. Anybody can change oil, but when it comes to the high-end bikes, not everyone can do it. It just gets passed on.”

A loyal customer base of everyday scooter and motorcycle riders has helped get his new venture off to a promising start.

Mr DeSilva said: “What’s carried me is all my dedicated customers who have stayed with me over the years.”

He has a customer-first approach. He added: “I follow up and ask ‘how was the service, how is the bike’?

“I follow up and make sure the customer is happy -- and that’s not something that the average store does.”