Cruising east on Interstate 90 through Post Falls during the warm-weather months, it's difficult not to notice the dozens of chrome-laden motorcycles parked outside a retro-styled dealership next to the Hot Rod Caf on the south side of the freeway.

On some nights, the view is made even more compelling by the hundreds of motorcycling and hot-rod enthusiasts also gathered there for concerts and special events.

That type of attention and destination-business image are exactly what co-owner Scott Lyon says he was hoping for when he and his wife, Jinny, opened what now is Road House Cycles there, at 1640 E. Schneidmiller Ave., nine years ago.

"This is my passion. This is my life. I love what I do. I love the people who come in here," says Lyon, whose enthusiasm seems undiminished by a sharp downturn in discretionary consumer spending that has forced him to trim the business's work force by more than half.

Road House Cycles sells new cruiser-style motorcycles built by Wichita, Kan.-based Big Dog Motorcycles LLC, which claims to be the world's largest manufacturer of custom motorcycles, and new Ridley brand automatic-transmission motorcycles, which Lyon says tend to appeal to riders with physical limitations. It also sells used Harley-Davidson and "metric," or Japanese-brand, V-twin bikes, such as Yamaha V-Stars. V-twin refers to the slanted dual-cylinder engine design they all have in common.

In addition, the dealership sells motorcycle parts, accessories, apparel, and gift and collectible items, and operates a service shop. It has four full-time employees, counting Lyon, and one part-time worker, which he says is down from a peak of 12 employees, 10 of them full time. His wife is president of the business, though she now works there just as needed to handle the books and help out with events, he says.

Road House has been profitable sporadically, hampered in part by the closure of a couple of American motorcycle manufacturers whose bikes it had carried, but has seen a particularly sharp drop-off during the current economic downturn, Lyon says.

"I've been whacked in the knees three or four times" by such unforeseen events, he says. The dealership had risen to where it was selling 50 to 60 motorcycles a year, he says. "Now, I'm selling 10, but that's just the economy," he says, adding that he expects sales to rebound as people's confidence about their financial well-being improves.

Meanwhile, though, the service shop has been continuing to bring in a fair bit of work, he says—some of it through an agreement he secured, after the Shumate Harley-Davidson dealership in Spokane shut down last year, enabling Road House to do extended warranty work on Harleys.

Sales of parts and accessories also have held up pretty well, he says, adding, "There's always a lot of do-it-yourselfers still doing stuff."

The new motorcycles that Road House sells feature elaborate paint jobs, extensive chrome, fat rear tires, raked front forks, sleek profiles, and overall collector-quality chopper looks, and are priced mostly from $25,000 to $35,000. The used bikes that Road House sells typically are in the $5,000 to $15,000 range, and Lyon says that's where the bulk of the sales are occurring for now.

"A lot of our customers are dual customers. They'll have one Harley and one Yamaha in the family," which led to the dealership's decision about five years after it opened to begin carrying used Japanese-made motorcycles, rather than just American-built bikes, he says. "We thought that was something that would complement what we do."

To help bolster sales and build itself into a popular destination, Road House sponsors a number of group rides that begin at the dealership, such as its annual Frosty Bunz Run, which last month drew about 750 motorcycles, and its Ride for Life, with proceeds from that event supporting nonprofit Cancer Patient Care. It also holds events on its half-acre site, such as spring and fall swap meets with live music and weekly "Thunder Thursday" gatherings, in collaboration with the Hot Rod Caf, that include live bands, riding games, and other entertainment.

Being able to promote some events jointly with Hot Rod Caf owner Rob Elder and the motorcycle dealership's location next to the popular restaurant have made for "a perfect marriage" and given an added lift to both businesses, Lyon says.

He says, "Every event that's done here he (Elder) participates in to some degree. He's a good neighbor, and it's a good fit."

Lyon, now 59, says he has been riding motorcycles since he was 16, and estimates he personally has owned around 20 motorcycles. He began riding Harleys in 1978, and soon was spending a lot of time tinkering with them.

It became my therapy," he says. "I'd fix them up. Ride them. Sell them. Fix them up. Ride them. Sell them."

He worked in parts and service at Toyota dealerships in the Los Angeles area for 20 years before he, his wife, and two sons moved to the Inland Northwest in 1996 to get away from Southern California. He began selling cars for the Appleway Automotive Group, in Spokane Valley, but found that car sales didn't fit his personality, so he applied for a general manager opening at Latus Motors Harley-Davidson Inc., the predecessor here to Shumate.

He was so confident he was going to get the job, he says, and so disheartened after dealership owner George Latus decided not to fill the position, that he decided to open his own motorcycle business. He says he decided on the location while eating at the Hot Rod Caf, and looking out the window at the vacant lot next door. He agreed to buy the land the next day, and he and his wife and another couple opened the dealership about 18 months later.

Baker Construction & Development Inc., of Spokane, erected the original 4,500-square-foot dealership building, with the dealership opening there on Nov. 1, 2001. Then, two years ago, the Lyons had the structure expanded to about 10,000 square feet.

It originally was named Easyriders Road House, and was affiliated through its licensing agreement with Easyriders motorcycle magazine, published by Paisano Publishing Inc., of Agoura Hills, Calif. The Lyons bought out the other couple's interest in the business about a year after it opened, and a year or two later had to drop Easyriders from the business name for legal reasons, Scott Lyon says.

Like the Hot Rod Caf just to the west, the dealership was modeled after an old gas station, and is illuminated at night by extensive neon lighting that wraps around the front and sides of the building. A lighted silhouette of a motorcycle sits atop the canopy.

Along with the showroom, parts department, and service department on the main floor, the dealership now has a 3,000-square-foot basement that includes a second showroom and large storage space. The main showroom is bright and colorful, with a red-painted ceiling and blue-and-white checkered floor. To keep with the motoring theme, a winding pathway that encircles the showroom is painted asphalt black with white center stripes to look like a road.

Although large, shiny motorcycles and stands loaded with black leather apparel dominate the showroom, retail displays around the perimeter offer everything from motorcycle-themed greeting cards, decals, and wind chimes, to candles, coffee mugs, and stuffed animals.

Despite the recent rough stretch for the motorcycle industry, which even has seen former stock market darling Harley-Davidson struggle to cope with a sharp dip in revenues, Lyon says he has no intention of selling the dealership and moving on to some other business pursuit.

"This is a passion. I'll ride her into the dirt if that happens," he says. "I'm also an optimist. My glass is always half full. I think we'll be OK."