I got up at 7:00 a.m. to have breakfast on time, unaware that Mihail had postponed our meeting to 9:00 a.m. Katia was surprised to see me with coffee in hand, as I had not received the updated instructions. At about 9:30 a.m., Mihail picked us up, and we headed to a friend’s house to borrow a trailer in exchange for a couple of beers. We waited for over 40 minutes because the friend, having stayed up late, had overslept. Once he was awake, we navigated a labyrinthine parking lot with a very low ceiling to retrieve the trailer.

The journey to Mikhailovsk

We left Ekaterinburg at 11:00 a.m., heading toward Mikhailovsk, where Ruslan was waiting for us. It was his mother’s birthday, so we needed to arrive on time. The drive took about two hours, though. Just like the previous week, we were stuck in traffic near Revda for a while. Without making any additional stops, we arrived at around 1:10 p.m.

At the back of Ruslan’s house, I saw my bike and wondered how he had managed to move it there. The only way was outside, and the uneven ground would have made it difficult. I later learned the bike slipped away while maniobrating. The first thing I did was compare the new part to the old one, and they looked identical. My friend Graham had told me that the original model had an aluminum part that was prone to breaking. Later, they modified it to be made of steel, like the one I had.

Unexpected challenges

Ruslan had told us the nut was loose. When discussing the origin of the problem, there were only two possibilities. Either the nut had loosened and caused the pulley to break, or the pulley had broken first loosening the nut. Changing the pulley took significant effort because Ruslan was reluctant to loosen the wheel axle and belt tension. However, in the end, he had to adjust it slightly, as the tension prevented the change.

We replaced the oil and the filter. When Rusland had previously inspected it, he found solid debris in it. The most challenging task remained: loading the bike onto the trailer. Meanwhile, Mihail was repairing the car’s right front headlight, which we had noticed was not functioning while in the parking lot.

Loading the bike: a near disaster

With Ruslan’s brother joining us, we had five people maneuvering the bike onto the trailer. The metal ramp was too small, so we added a wooden one. Mihail instructed that no one should sit on the bike during the process. We positioned ourselves strategically: one person on each side, two at the back, and one on the trailer.

As the bike reached the halfway point on the trailer, the wheel’s torque caused the metal ramp to slip, making the bike fall onto the trailer’s edge. While we held it in midair, Ruslan’s brother quickly retrieved the ramp and used it to guide the wheel onto the wooden one. Finally, we managed to load the bike without further issues.

We then spent a long time deliberating how to position and secure it. After initially tying it diagonally, we decided to reposition it to be aligned with the trailer’s axle instead.

Shipping the bike

At around 3:00 p.m., we left the workshop and headed back to Ekaterinburg. We stopped at a café to eat and warm up, as we had only had breakfast. At first, the cold wasn’t noticeable, but after two hours on the road, it started to take its toll, despite Mihail’s repeated reminders for me to wrap up.

To avoid traffic, we took a detour through Bitimka. Once in the city, we went straight to the transport company. Since Artiëm had first requested the shipping quote, the price had changed three times. After completing the initial paperwork, we unloaded the bike at the warehouse at around 7:00 p.m. We almost had another disaster, as the bike was misaligned with the ramp and I was the only one counterbalancing the trailer from the opposite side. By 7:40 p.m., we had made the payment, marked all items to be shipped with the bike, and were ready to leave.

A late celebration

Before heading home, we stopped at a gas station to pay Mihail for fuel. It felt excessive to spend 3,000 rubles (€30) to refill 56 liters of gas after driving just under 300 km. Having the price difference in mind, I hoped to be much less. Back home, we quickly changed before Mihail dropped us off at Andrei’s house, Artiëm’s older brother, to celebrate ‘Driver’s Day.’

We were very late. The gathering had started around 5:00 or 6:00 p.m., and we arrived past 8:00 p.m. There, we met Andrei’s friend Georgiy, and we spent the evening chatting until after midnight. Andrei was convinced that I had a guardian angel, as my breakdown had prevented me from getting caught in the snow on the road.

He also shared a concern about his daughter, who lives in Porto, Portugal. She feared having children because the government could take them away and deport their parents. I made a mental note to look into this later because I was not aware of it. Fortunately, Portugal amended this in 2020 giving citizenship to those newborns.

Shortly after midnight, we left. It had been a long day, and Artiëm had to work the next morning. Tomorrow, we will start looking for travel options for me.