On a Sunday afternoon with a broken bike a Couch surfing host was truly needed so I got online and found another person in Billings with a phone number listed.
After a brief explanation of my situation, success. John was willing to put me up, although I must admit he sounded like I woke him from a nap. He's a programmer living alone in a nice little downtown apartment. It was perfect. When he offered to cook I suggested adding some of the items I had in my continuously warming cooler. By the time we were done choosing ingredients there was going to be more food than we needed. Perfect opportunity for him to invite some friends from Kyrgyzstan who were here on a summer work program. Kyrgyzstan is a small country south of Kazakhstan and east of Uzbekistan which reclaimed independence after the collapse of the former USSR. John had lived in Kyrgyzstan with his family and then alone for a few years so speaks slightly rusty fluent Russian. He is a rare individual indeed and still only mid-twenties. We had a very pleasant evening and cultural exchange.
Monday morning John headed off to work and I headed off to find a fix for the KTM. After using the car jack to hoist the bike on the carry rack still attached to the back of the truck, I was able to remove the back wheel. Now to find some bearings. None of the open motorcycle dealers had a clue and the KTM dealer was closed on Mondays. After a quick Internet search to find the right parts, I headed to a local bearing manufacturer who had multiple sets handy. They directed me to a machine shop two streets away for installation. It all seemed too easy. After a few hours of exploring town I headed back to the shop. Great news - they hadn't touched my wheel. Apparently after trying a hammer and punch (silly of me to think a machine shop would have any type of bearing puller) they were afraid to damage it and stopped. I guess I'd have to wait until Tuesday. That would mean convincing John to let me stay. Luckily, he was very accommodating. Tuesday morning I headed to the dealer to suggest I borrow some tools and do the job myself. They declined and said they could do it - in the next 4 or 5 hours. Deciding to be a pushy customer I hung around and whined, achieving absolutely nothing. Eventually they started the job and with my watchful eye got it done without completely destroying (although they made a valiant effort) my wheel. All's well that ends well and my bike was back together that night.
Instead of ditching me the next day John suggested I stay for Shakespeare in the Park on Wednesday evening, followed by a trip to the Drive-in with some of his friends. That was fine with me. To add to the fun, we unexpectedly attended a BBQ with his work for lunch. So many new people, it was great. It was also a very busy day.
Thursday was another invite to watch John and his friend Bill go paragliding. It is an incredibly peaceful event never to be missed, improved upon only by participating yourself, which unfortunately I was not qualified to do. After all this, eventually I would have to leave for fear of John kicking me out so decided Friday would be the day.
This afternoon, with joy in my heart I head off to the Grand Tetons via the Beartooth Pass and Yellowstone. I say farewell to Billings with many thanks to John, Doug, Andy, Jacob and the plethora of others, knowing it will not be the last time I visit this wonderful place and its thoroughly enjoyable people.
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