Spokane Valley Harley dealership set to open anew

The owners of Lone Wolf Harley-Davidson, in Coeur d’Alene, plan an August reopening of Spokane Valley’s Harley dealership, finally buying the assets of the previous owner who filed for bankruptcy last year. Greg and Beth Ernst paid about $4.3 million to buy the equipment and assets of Shumate Harley Davidson, which closed its doors in 2009. The Ernsts’ Spokane Valley store, at 6815 E. Trent Ave., will be the only full-service Harley dealership in Spokane County. The purchase included the equipment and assets of a second Harley dealership in Lewiston. The Spokane Valley store will be called Timber Wolf Harley Davidson. It will open Aug. 17 with a formal opening day scheduled for Aug. 28, said Greg Ernst. The sale concludes a large portion of a massive bankruptcy filed by John Michial Shumate, a Tri-Cities businessman. In 2004 Shumate acquired the Spokane Valley store, buying it from previous owner George Latus. Shumate filed for bankruptcy in 2009 after closing his three dealerships in Lewiston, Spokane Valley and the Tri-Cities. After he filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy, the case ground on slowly, involving dozens of creditors including the Washington State Department of Revenue. Another company, Ride Now Powersports, of Phoenix, showed interest in buying the Shumate assets but later backed away. Greg Ernst said he has sold off a large number of 2009 Harley motorcycles from the Spokane Valley and Lewiston stores. “Those new motorcycles were about three-fourths of all product (in the two stores),” Ernst said. The used motorcycles were moved to the Lone Wolf shop in Coeur d’Alene, but some will come back to the Valley store once it reopens. “This allows us to open the Spokane Valley store with new, fresh product,” he added. The Ernsts started the Coeur d’Alene store in 2008. The Ernsts have no plans to reopen the Lewiston store anytime soon. “We’ll wait until the Spokane store is up and running,” Greg Ernst said. The Spokane Valley store will operate Tuesday through Sunday and rely on a staff of about 25, he said.