Step into Humble’s Vintage Motorcycles, and you can tell right away it’s a real-deal bike shop. It’s a place where grease stains the floor, and the front of the shop is cluttered with old bikes and vintage decor—biker girl posters, a surfboard, a mishmash of memorabilia that gives the place its own kind of charm.

But in the back, the shop, located at 1795 Launa Drive off North Townsend is all work. Hundreds of motorcycles sit in various states—some gleaming with new paint, others stripped down to their bones, waiting for a second chance. Some are just sitting in the “boneyard” in case they might have an old part.

Marty Humble walks through his motorcycle shop, which had about a dozen motorcycles scattered throughout this week. There are many, many more motorcycles throughout other parts of the Humble’s Vintage Motorcycles property. (Justin Tubbs | MBT)

Marty Humble, the shop’s owner, eats, sleeps, and breathes motorcycles. He’s been doing this for years, and he doesn’t see himself ever stopping.

“I won’t do nothing else,” he said. “I’ll retire doing this. I doubt I do retire, honestly.”

Humble’s passion for motorcycles started at an early age. He grew up around vintage bikes, spending time with his uncles who worked on them in an old chicken coop.

That early exposure turned into a lifelong obsession. “As I grew up, I always had a motorcycle,” he said. His first bike? A Benelli 65cc that he bought for $35 as a kid. From there, his collection and knowledge only grew.

He started working on other people’s motorcycles alone in an old apple shed in Cedaredge about a decade ago. The demand for his work quickly outgrew that space, so he moved to Montrose, where his wife worked, and opened up his current shop about eight years ago.

Now, Humble’s Vintage Motorcycles is the go-to spot for classic bike restorations on the Western Slope.

The shop specializes in working on all sorts of vintage makes, including Indian, Triumph, Norton, BSA and, of course, Harley-Davidson. “No one will touch vintage bikes for the most part,” Humble said.

But his shop does everything—selling, repairing, restoring, and even simple maintenance like tire changes. The shop also services modern bikes, including Yamaha, Kawasaki and newer Harley-Davidsons.

A collage of photos: Marty Humble and many of his motorcycles and dirt bikes through the years. (Justin Tubbs | MBT)

With a small (Humble, two techs and a front-desk worker), Humble’s shop stays busy year-round. “Oddly enough, we’re generally busy through the winter,” Humble said. “That’s usually when we get our full restoration stuff.”

Humble recalls one particular restoration that stuck with him. “I did a bike for a lady—it was her dad’s. She picked it up, started it right here, rode it back and forth,” he said. “All I could hear was her screaming and yelling, and I thought, ‘What is wrong?’ She came up here just crying and crying. It got to me even. She was so happy because it brought her and her dad back together.”

For Humble, that’s what it’s all about—the memories. That’s why people come into the shop, why they gaze at the motorcycles with nostalgia. Some of the bikes brought in have been sitting under a cabin porch—or in a back yard—for decades, waiting to be restored, waiting to bring back a memory for someone.

“That’s what I get out of it,” Humble said.

But it’s not just memories that drive Humble. It’s the ride itself. When asked what makes motorcycles so special to people, he didn’t have to think about his answer.

“That’s easy,” he said. “Freedom. When you’re on it, everything leaves. You can have a crappy day, you get on a bike, and it all leaves. You’re happy.”

Humble’s journey to owning the shop was, in his words, something that “just happened.” He started out in a small back building alone, quickly outgrowing the space. Now, his shop is a fixture in the local motorcycle community.

A motorcycle in front of Humble’s. (Justin Tubbs | MBT)

His passion for motorcycles even played a role in his personal life. He met his wife at a bike show and was immediately drawn to her because she had her own bike. For Humble, it’s more than just business—it’s who he is.

Outside the shop, Humble many bikes he’s acquired over time, he said he has owned hundreds. Some in the shop belong to customers waiting for restoration, others are spare bikes, and a few are simply waiting for the right moment to be brought back to life.

Humble estimates that about half of his customers are within a 500-mile radius. Some bikes are shipped in from other shops in places like California, Arizona, and Nevada. The demand for vintage restorations keeps his small shop constantly in motion.

“I don’t know how else to describe it, but I’ve got shops in Denver sending us bikes,” he said. “We’re blessed.”

Pricing vintage motorcycles can be tricky, and Humble relies on experience to gauge value. “You may find one for 100 bucks and the next guy may want 3,500 for it,” he said. “You just don’t know.”

For Humble, motorcycles are more than machines—they are living pieces of history, each with a story of its own. “We see a lot of sentimental bikes,” he said. “There’s tears, there’s smiles because of the memories, and you can’t believe the memories that come off of a motorcycle

Humble says it’s never just about fixing bikes. It’s about restoring connections,  reliving memories and having freedom.

Justin Tubbs is the Montrose Business Times editor. He can be reached by email at justin@montrosebusinesstimes.com or by phone at 970-765-0915 or mobile at 254-246-2260.