The Lynnwood Cycle Barn - Circa 1983-1986
From 1983 through 1986 I worked for the Lynnwood Cycle Barn in Lynnwood Washington and it was one of the best motorsports experiences of my life.
We developed a nice little niche sportbike following during my time there and it really kicked off my getting into and riding sportbikes.
The shop itself had been on the corner of Hwy 99 and 188th for years and I had bought parts there during my time in the military at Ft Lewis
The three floor building still stands proudly in front of the new store which sits directly behind the old store.
I was hired as a parts counter person and after purchasing a Honda VF500 Interceptor I worked at developing one end of the department into a kind of sportbike heaven.
We carried things like Dainese. Speedmode, Sinisilo, Frank Thomas leather, Ray Racing, Alpinestar boots, Jollisport and Spidi gloves, Raask rearsets, Dynojet kits, the list of oddball racing stuff we carried was tops in the area.
We also sold more Metzeler tires (which were the sportbike tire in this era) than any other dealer on the West coast. Back in those days Bob Gregg and Garry Gallager (EBC today) were the guys running Metzeler out of Edmonds, Washington.
Over time we built a huge following with sportbike rides happening nightly and on weekends.
The shop also hosted the Iron Butt rally the first two years as a checkpoint. What few pictures I took during the first event are posted here.
It was during this time that my ex-wife decided she'd had enough of the marrried life, the bikes and the motorcycle industry and bailed.
With her out of my life and nothing tying me down I began to seriously explore the Western USA. While Toren and I had ridden most of the good stuff in Washington, we continued to explore maps for twisty roads to wander off to. Sometimes it was worthwhile and sometimes it was a bust. During this period Toren and I found what we both deem the best sportbike road in the USA that we have ridden, that being the run around Mt St Helens. A 100 plus mile long spectacular winding high run on glass smooth pavement. While in the area the run up to St Helens is another twisting must do ride. The scenery or lack of (most of it was blown away by the eruption in 1980) is spectacular. The hundreds of burnt and bare standing trees a reminder of the power of the earth.
In 1986 the sportbike industry was growing at a snails pace compared to today and I came to the realization that if I was going to be able to afford to own high end bikes and travel/ride all over the country I needed to make more money and I accepted a job with Magnolia Hi Fi which became yet another valuable learning experience.
Over the years Cycle Barn Motorsports owner Jim Boltz and I have stayed in touch and he has been gratious enough to hook me up at his Las Vegas XPlex karting facility as well as bringing Karoline and I out to Seattle to see the new store a few years back. Jim still treats me as good as he did when I worked for him and I think thats a very cool thing. We have something in common.
When I look back today I learned a lot from my time at the Cycle Barn. I was given a pretty free hand in developing a market for something I loved and it made the money less of an issue. We had a great staff, Rhoda, Scott, Rocky, Jim Earp, Al all made it fun experience. And I have to say I especially enjoyed hanging with Jim Earp and his Harley mentality. I learned a lot abut the Harley lifestyle from him. I met a lot of people along the way and had some of the best sportbike rides of my life in Washington.
I rode with hundreds of customers. Almost every night some kind of ride was organized and off I went with a group of customers. As much as I remember the downer of my divorce, I remember all the people, the riders who gave me the energy to move forward with my life and there were a whole lot of them!
A big thumbs up to Jim and Jennette Boltz who have taken a small Husqvarna dealer and turned it into a major player in the motorcycle industry.
CLICK HERE if you would like read more on my Washington State adventures
