Getting the bike at 8am!!!!! Photos and such to come!

The all important folder full of papers that will allow me personal and permanent access to my bike.




---Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Alex....that's good news.....finally moving in a positive direction.....wishing the best

Hickery

__________________
http://motorcycletherapy.blogspot.ca/

Hahahahaha.

YEA RIGHT!

Of course, things will not go as planned, but who here makes plans anyway!? Not me, that's for sure!

Today, Friday morning at 8:10am, I was waiting in front of the Lawyers office, waiting to be picked up for our Scheduled 8:30am hearing...

The outer door that opens to the street was open, but alas, his door was closed.



No sooner had I been waiting for 5 minutes or so, did his assistant show up. Shake hands ,buenas dias, etc. I followed him into the office, and he asked me what I needed. Instantly, without another word, I realized that my hearing would not be that morning... Guess what? It didn't phase me! HAHA

I told him that the lawyer had asked me to come at 8:10 am for my audiencia (court hearing). He looked at me with a bit of an unsettled look, like he didn't want to ruin my day, and told me that he wasn't sure it was happening that day.

He went over to the lawyers desk and opened up the drawer to remove the date book that was inside, He opened it up and scanned it for my name "ALEXANDER MICHEAL SMITH" (Pronouced Al-eex-onder Mik-eye-ehl Es-smeeth)

He didn't find my name in the planner, but he did see the note on the table instead.



You can likely read this other than the word "Martes" which is "Tuesday". It would appear that I now have a scheduled audience on Tuesday, November 1st.

Shortly thereafter, the Lawyer arrived, telling me what I had just heard as he was on his way int he door. Not pausing to speak even for a hand shake.

The Audience (Court Hearing) had been suspended until the 1st of November upon request of the other parties lawyer. They had some evidence to demonstrate, or so it would appear. Mr. Lawyer man seemed nonplussed, and told me not to worry. I didn't worry, and I still am not.

And so. I wait.

On the way back to the hotel, what seemed like every 14-18 year old high school student was out in the streets, in a formed parade style conglomeration, marching against violence. Complete with a drum core.

Well, I paused to listen for a little bit, and bought some fruit from my favorite fruit vending lady. Of course, Gringo in all his "casi" 2 meter tall, long ass hair (by local standard), shorts and flip flop wearing attire, was on display to the hundreds of high school students walking/marching in the streets.

Then began the hooting and hollering. "WHOOOOOOOAAAAA".... "WHOOOOOOO"..... "WHEEEEEEEEEEEE".....
"HEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEY"..... Etc.

The girls were Cat Calling me, whistling me down 9aged 14-18) while the guys were yelling sounds at me. EVERY SINGLE person in the street was looking at me.

So. I waved. And...They...Went...Ballistic!

One girl even had the courage to come up to me and hand me a flyer. A guy did the same 30 seconds later but was too late. I don't know if it's because I am white, super tall, or a combination of it all (probably the latter), but these people really like to call me out.

And so there you have it. I wait more. Party tonight. Why? Because it's Friday.


--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Today I took the bike with the right side box strapped to my top rack, to a shop down the road.

They pointed me further down the road, so I kept going.

My goal was to get my right pannier case bashed back into a "rectangle" rather than a diamond.

$3.00 later, and I had a functioning side bag again. It's not pretty, and it surely isn't perfect, nor does it look good... But it will suffice.

They also gave me a screw for my left passenger peg bracket as one apparently vibrated loose.

Then I replaced the 4 plastic screws that hold my visor and face shield on my helmet. Two of the 4 plastic screws were missing, and the remaining two were cracked. Though I don't like the sound of it metal on my helmet, but I replaced them all with metal bolts. I'll be hard pressed to every find plastic screws down here. I know have 4 gold colored shining 8mm bolt heads on my helmet.

During the to the mechanics, I noticed something again, that I had noticed yesterday when riding back from the motorcycle shop. My front brake rotor was "hiss, hiss, hiss'ing" as I rode at slow speeds. It was hard to hear at higher speeds due to engine noise and increased frequency, but a quick glance down at my rotor showed a wobble...

So, I rode to the Motorcycle Shop. I told them what was going on, and they asked me if my wheel was not true. I told them that it COULD be the problem, but that I think the rotor is warped.

So the assistant hopped on my bike, and took off down the road. 1st, 2nd, 3rd, WHACK!

The masterlink in my chain (the original one, and not the one I made yesterday) broke loose, and the chain separated.

Luckily, the chain barely piled up, and didn't bust a case or anything so severe as that. It did make a small mark on the case, but barely even a scratch.

The guy walked my bike back, and we found the problem. Of course, there are no 525 master links available, and I don't have any. So the same story goes. The o-rings on one side of the chain were ground down, and a 530 link went on the chain.

And he went for another ride, coming back with confirmation that my front brake rotor is warped, and look, there, you can see where it hit the cement; where that big ass gouge it.

SHIT.

I need a new front brake rotor, and the closest one is in Guayaquil, Ecuador, a 4 hour bus ride away. I would seem that I will be going on a bus one of these next few days.

UNLESS one of you happy sons-of-guns has a spare front '96+ DR650 Front brake rotor for CHEAP? Parts here in Ecuador have a 100% import tax on them. That's a $200 brake rotor...

ProCycle sells a replacement for $106. Does anyone else sell them. Ebay has a bunch of weird "chinese" looking front brake rotors for $60-$90.

Damn it, now I need a front brake rotor.

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

another good installment of your trip.

Glad things are going the right way, accept for the brake rotor, is this the brake caliper??

hope that you get your part ready for Tuesday, when you hopefully get the ok to leave.

Take it easy mate.

Pete.

Around here, everything speeds up on the weekends. That means, heading off to the big city of Cuenca which is home to over half a million people, and this particular weekend is the weekend before Halloween. So, my weekend went like this.

Friday, the Euro girls asked me if I wanted to go to dinner in Cuenca. Of course that sounded good to me, regardless of the fact that I had eaten 30 minutes ago. And so, less than an hour later, Charlotte and Lison arrived in the back of Gabby’s car, I hopped in and off we went, headed for dinner.

It was then, in the car, that the girls informed me that we would be going to dinner, and then going to a Karaoke bar. Well… Ok then.

First was dinner. I had a chicken burrito. It doesn’t compare to Mexico, but it was good.



It just so happened we sat next to a group of fellow gringos, all in Ecuador as part of the same group of Peace Corp volunteers. It just so happens that they know my friend from University, Alex Helpenstell, who is 423km’s north of me in the jungles of Ecuador. Small world eh?



After dinner we hopped back in Gabby’s car, and headed back to Azogues, to pick up Gabby and the girls’ coworkers, and hit up the Karaoke bar. We had 7 people in a 2 door hatchback. It was RIDICULOUS.



There is another woman, out of frame, in the top left corner. I am the only man.



There she is!



And where do you suppose we ended up? Hahah. At Elvis Disco Bar and Karaoke!



I think Charlotte was a little excited! Don’t you think?



They were happy to be there. I was uncertain…



The dance floor that see’s it’s action between sets of Karaoke songs. Again, I’m not so sure about this…



The girls are getting their groove on!



And by then end of the night, we were the only ones there. I had sang, “We Will Rock You”, “Staying Alive”, and “Roxanne”… We Will Rock You, was my favorite.



At two a.m., the owner of the bar who apparently was from Brooklyn, and only sang Elvis songs, closed shop, and we all piled back in the car to get back into town. And that, was Friday night.

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

The same thing happened last night, Saturday the 30th. The girls suggested meeting at the bus terminal and catching a bus into Cuenca to have dinner. It was the last bus of the night, so we’d be taking a taxi back to Azogues afterward.

The bus left at 7:15, and arrived at 8pm.



We had dinner at a Mexican joint in town. While there, Charlotte got a call from Gabby. She was coming soon in her car. It seemed like we’d have a ride back that night, sweet. Well, while at dinner, we sat at a table for 4. Charlotte was across the table from Lison, and I was to the right of Lison. Twice during dinner, Charlotte left the table to answer a phone call. And it was during that time, that assumedly the person sitting behind Lison and I lifted her purse from where it hung on her chair, leaving with it unnoticed, when no one could see it happening.

It was when we stood up to leave having paid our bill that she realized it was gone. She swore she didn’t leave it on the bus, or in the taxi we took from the bus station to downtown. It simply disappeared.

So off we went to the Internet Café to use a phone booth to call her credit card company to cancel her card. Other than that, only her camera was of any importance. Damn it all.



Shortly after, Gabby arrived and off we went to a bar where we would meet with her friends. We each had a drink and the drinks were terrible. Soon enough Gabby’s friends arrived, we paid our bill, left, and walked to the next place; which as I’ve discovered is one of Ecuador’s favorite past times, a Karaoke bar.



And, like all good Karaoke bars, after each table has had its round of 3-4 songs, the dancing begins.



And basically, all Latinos can dance. The guys gave the girls a good work out, and we all took our turns helping to empty the two pitchers of Mojitos that graced the tables.



And that was how Saturday night went down; with too much singing, too much dancing, and too many loud noises until 4am. Damn I was tired that night!

When Sunday came around, I didn’t wake up until noon and I was still tired even then. I didn’t do a lot until about 6pm besides go eat some chicken. Apparently there was some outdoor music festivities going on down the road in the parking lot of the old bus terminal, and the Euro girls invited me.

While I was waiting for them to show up at the hotel to lead the way, I was happy to feed this dog the remnants of my chicken meal.



On the way to the “concert” Charlotte had a good idea for a photo. In respect to the “no nudity” rule, they covered them up.



Half the city was there, and the music sucked. I’m not a particular fan of Latin music, but I know how to appreciate someone that can sing well. And well, from what I’ve heard, and from what I’ve experienced, these guys enjoy people who can’t sing that well! What I have seen them do however, is rock out on any instrument in particular. Music is part of life here, and it’s bred into them. Very many people can sing well, but I have yet to hear many that are particularly GOOD. But it’s the mood of the people that counts the most, and they were all in a good mood, and we had a good time.



Here in the mountains for the past month, it has been rare that a particularly nice sunset graces the sky. Tonight however, it was nice.



After the show, it was off to the Italian restaurant that serves me my favorite ice cream. The girls each had pizza and I had an ice cream. For some reason, I wasn’t hungry… After their pizza, they shared an ice cream as well.



Then, it was back to the music for a little while. That turned out to be an entertaining aspect of the night! Apparently a person so tall as myself makes for a spectacle in a large group of people here where the average height of a man is 5’2” to 5’6”. Did I mention that Charlotte is 5’11” and Lison is about 5’6”? So, the three of us stand at height, a head over, and head and shoulders over the average person here.

That was enough to warrant 7 different people to come up to me and ask for photo; two of which offered and insisted that I have a shot of Rum and Coke.

Well then. If I must!

And another shot of the crowd.




And with that, weekend Festivities come to a close!

Tomorrow is a rest day, and I’ll take the bike out for a test ride to make sure all is well. Tuesday is the hearing for my case, and if I have it my way, Wednesday will see me exit Ecuador after a full month here in Azogues, Ecuador!

ONWARD!!!

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

And it was surely a damn adventure! Ahah!

I took the bike out of the garage at about 4pm with the goal of giving it a good ride up into the mountains. I figured I’d be able to tell if there was anything wrong with the bike, especially the front brake rotor.

So, off I went to the gas station 2 blocks down the road and filled up with just about 3 gallons of gas for less than $4.50. Gas is $1.48 for Extra and $1.98 for Super. I don’t need super, so Extra it was.

For the next 5 miles I pulled over every 6 minutes or so, and checked the brake rotor. It was never too hot to touch, and never more than slightly warm. Good news so far.

So, I took the first left hand turn that looked promising and headed East uphill, into the mountains. A few minutes later, I paused for a photo.



And a few minutes later, I paused for another one.



Son of a bitch! First the rear started to act shaky, but I was on a dirt road, but then I stopped, looked, and realized my rear tire was flat. Damn it. Well. I rode a flat about 50 yards up the hill and around the corner, and asked the two nice women sitting on the steps of a corner store where I could get a puncture repaired.

They told me to go up the road, to the internet café and no further. Well… Ok.

So I went up the road, to the internet café, and asked some working men across the street where I could get my flat tire repaired, and they told me to go into the internet café. Right, well, ok. In I went.

Yea, we can help you says the man, and yelled something, and a Mom and younger son came out. Just up the hill there, to that building with the grey doors, they said. We’ll help you there.

And so the sage begins. With a cement building block and three 2x6’s the bike was put up on its bash plate and the bike’s rear end was in the air. In my excitement to ride off into the sunset tonight, I had left with only my two standard tool kits. One is for removing the wheels and tires and patching flat tires, and the other is for everything else. Well, that just means that I didn’t bring my pump, my tire patches, or anything else for that matter.

However, what faced me was NOT a motorcycle shop, but a bicycle repair shop. It wasn’t under equipped though, and between the 15 year old Paul (Pah-ool) and I, we had it covered.

First step was to remove my rear wheel to get to the tire. Having ridden a ways on a flat tire, the bead had been broken, and using my tire irons proved to make easy work of getting access to the tube. And so it went.



With this HUGE compressor, we checked the tube for leaks. We found one, and it wasn’t too big. Nothing else seems to be an issue. Excellent.



Paul, grabbed a patch from the shelf and began his search for glue…. And he came up empty handed. He looked to me, and told me that he needed to go to town and to get some glue for the patches. I could wait in his home (the internet cafe) while he went and when he returned, we’d fix my tube. I asked him how long he thought it would take. About an hour and a half he said. OK!

I’m not going anywhere with a flat tire, I F-ed up in the first place and didn’t bring my own equipment, into the mountainous towns of Ecuador, and well, an internet café is as good a place as any to be stuck for an hour and change!

So the bike was left where it was, up on it’s make shift stand, the wheel, tire, tubes, my tools and helmet were locked behind the door, and I walked down to the internet café with the Mom (who’d been overseeing everything) and off went Paul on the next bus into town.



By the time that Paul got back, it was pretty much dark. The lights in the shop were dim at best, and we went to work. He had a Dremel Tool at his disposal with a little sanding disc on it, and he went to work lightly sanding the area surrounding the puncture while his mom watched curiously.



With the tire inflated slightly, he busted out his glue (he only bought one tube in town…), and smeared it on gratuitously, covering the area well. Then, we waited a bit. When the glue had become sticky rather than runny, he squared up the patch over the puncture hole, and using a screwdriver with 5 or 6 washers in the shaft, pressure rolled the patch to secure it.



After that, it was a simply 5 minute wait before we aired up the tube looking for any other leaks. With none found, we set about putting the tube back in the tire. Almost as an afterthought, but likely due to the numerous punctures I’ve had on this trip, a stuffed my hand in the tire and checked the inner section for sharp objects… Sure enough, I felt this little bastard stuck in the tire. I had to use pliers to get it out.



Shortly thereafter, the tube was in, tire was seated on the rim, tube filled up, and wheel was back on the bike. When I asked my partner in crime Paul, what the charge was to fix the flat, he responded with “I don’t know.” Well, Paul was a nice kid, and unlike many people that would have told me I was out of luck; this young guy spent nearly 2 hours going into town on the bus to come back with glue to patch my tire.

Was he impressed with me? I don’t know. He sure liked to ask questions about my trip. And unlike nearly all of the other people that ask me questions, not one of them was about how much my trip cost me, or how much my bike cost me, or how much money I saved, or how much I earn from my job. Instead he asked me how I like traveling. Why I was doing it. Where I had been, where I was going, and where my goal destination was.

A tire patch job in the town of Azogues, costs $2 when you bring your bike to the mechanic. The mechanic does all the work; he removes your wheel, removes the tire, removes the tube, patches it, reinstalls the tube, seats the tire, and reinstalls the wheel. He provides the tools, the work space, and the knowledge and he earns two dollars.

This guy Paul could patch a tube, had a compressor, and had patches, while I provided the rest of the ingredients along with his help. They were my tire irons, my knowledge of motorcycle tire removal (not so impressive) and my methodical process that were used. It was joint operation.

When I asked him the charge, and he told me “I don’t know,” I was giving him the opportunity to run the show. He didn’t take it, but I understand. The guy is 15 years old and is face with a 24yr/old, taller than a tree gringo who rode his motorcycle from the states. He doesn’t know what to do. So, with only $2.85 in my coin bag, and one $10 bill and two $20 bills in my wallet, I handed him the ten dollar bill. He looked at me like I was crazy. I told him that I knew that a normal shop charges $2-$3. I told him that because he was so willing to help me, and spent 2 hours of his time going out of his way to solve my problem, and gave me a place to rest while he did so, that his actions deserved to be rewarded. I told him not to think twice about it. He smiled, and didn’t complain.

Furthermore, while I was there, his mother gave me three pieces of a local fruit of which I don’t know the name. When Paul came back from town, and we were in the garage patching the tube, he gave me a dried fruit bar, because I must be hungry having waited for him. Paul asked me where I was staying that night, and I could tell that he was going to offer me a place to sleep. I had my room at the hotel and told him so, but his intention didn’t go unnoticed.

Paul was nice kid, and because of all the people that have supported me on this trip thus far, I was able to enjoy the pleasure of supporting this guy as well. Meet Paul.



From here, it was an easy ride down the mountain, on the same road, with no turn offs all the way to Azogues. Having walked around most of the entire central area, I soon came to a road that I recognized. From there, I headed to my favorite chicken joint that was still open at 8pm, and had a 1/4 chicken on the spot, and ordered an 1/8th to go. I munched my food, and too the rest back to the hotel.

Tomorrow, Tuesday, November 1st at 8am, I have my second and final court hearing. Mr. Lawyer Man called me while I was in the mountains, and reminded me to meet him at 7:45 at his office to ride to Biblian where the audience would be held.

Wednesday will see me cross the border into Peru, headed South.

Onward amigos.

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Today, this morning, I had my second court hearing, which took all of 15 minutes. This is how it all went down.

8:15am, The Judge explained why we were all there.

8:17am, The Prosecutor told us what the case was all about, and the circumstances involved. This included the location of the accident, the time of day, the events leading to the accident, the accident itself, the proceedings after the accident, the drunken status of the pedestrian, my black Suzuki motorcycle, and my North American self.

8:20am, The other party's Lawyer stated their case and tried to defend the status of the drunk pedestrian, stating that he was within his rights, and that the fault was with me, the motorcyclist, and they asked for damages.

8:25am, My Lawyer defended my innocence, stating I was within my rights, could not avoid the accident, and the pedestrian was drunk and crossed the highway non-prudently thereby causing the accident. He stated the police report decision that I was not guilty of an infraction of any sort, and that there was no one to prove otherwise.

8:30am, Then the Judge closed the current proceedings, stating that he needed to talk to his superiors, and we went to intermission.

I go to meet my lawyer at 2:30 this afternoon for the rest of it. He believes that I will be free to leave tomorrow without any problems.

I'm hoping so.

I'm going to pack my luggage, and find a laundry shop...

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Best of luck to you. I look forward to the next instalment of your travels

__________________
If you think you are too small to make a difference you have never spent the night with a mosquito.

Hope your on your way soon.... this ride reports has had me glued to the internet lol

Cheers
Geordie aka Will

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

Hi Alex,

Yahooooooo! I had a huge smile on my face when I watched your video this morning Alex. Congratulations. Now my Father side is going to come out. Please take it easy on the bike. You haven't been riding for ages so just ease off a little and remember that you are very vulnerable. Maybe just back the fun meter back down into the green zone.



Enjoy the rest of your trip. I'm hanging out for your next report.

Cheers from Down Under,

Simon.

Whammo Bammo!

Thanks for all the replies everyone! I am on the road again, and am in the deep south of Ecuador.

I rode 180 miles today after leaving at 10:40am, much later than anticipated, after packing all my stuff, and saying goodbye to the ladies that own the corner store.

At about 2:30, I was tired, so I pulled up this mini dirt road offshoot that some construction workers had paved to lay a 3¨ waterline into direct contact with a mini waterfall.

I hung out there, eating some chips, and took a nap. I fell asleep for like 15 minutes, then got up and took off. 3.5 hours later, I found myselft 2.5hrs from the Peru border crossing at Macara.

My front brake rotor repair job didn´t hold, and I am beginning to wonder if it fact there is a small deflection in the axle, and I only aggravated the issue by reefing on the brake rotor.

So, I emailed a fellow rider named Frank that is waiting on a rear shock for his R1200GSA in Lima, and asked him if he could please help me find a replacement rotor, and possibly a front axle.

If any body wants to call up Lima, that would be cool too!

In a small town, I saw two Suzuki XF650 Freewind. They are nearly the same bike, and share the same frame (nearly) and same front hub/brake rotor. (though it´s on the right vs left side).

One bike was with a BMW F650 and KLR650, all Ecuadorian.

I stopped to speak with them and asked the XF650 owner if he new where I could find the parts. He and the other two guys all whipped out their smart phones and started making phone calls and texts. No one got a response. Ecuador is basically shut down for 3 days due to holidays and such, so the earliest I could get a part would be Friday. I can ride the bike to Piura, Peru about 5-6 hours away, and find it there, but it might take a few days.

From what I´ve noticed, the brake doesn´t cause me a problem, and the rotor is NOT touching the caliper. It´s just wearing more on the right side brake pad every rotation.

I´ll ride the bike to Lima, and sort the problem there.

And for now, I´m going to go eat food, and go to bed, so I can leave at 8am fully rested.

Internet cafe and me being tired means no photos today.


ON THE ROAD AGAIN!!!

--Alex

__________________
NJ, NR, NBTTN

The journey continues. Tuesday November 1st, 2011. Day 215.
The day my freedom to leave the country of Ecuador arrived; it was celebrated informally after the hearing by going out to breakfast with Mr. Lawyer Man. I tried to buy him breakfast, but the guy refused to let me pay, and in fact, never charged me a dime for his work. The Judge had just told us that he needed to consult with his superiors, but that meant little to Mr. Lawyer Man, as he was confident that the final hearing would be in my favor. He was eventually correct.



However, I still would need to return later that afternoon for the “final” verdict. In the mean time, we were close to Julio Cesar Guevara’s (aka, Mr. Lawyer Man) auto-body mechanic that was working on his Ford Explorer. As it turned out, Javier, his assistant (and brother and law) was driving the vehicle with his wife, two daughters, and two nieces when they had an accident, involving a tree, and rolling over on its right side. Julio told me that they all exited from the rear window, but were all completely fine!



After that, Julio (Lawyer Man) dropped me off at my hotel, with instructions to meet him at 2:15 to go to the Judges office for the latest news. Back at the hotel for a few hours, I received a phone call from Julio that involved him telling me to go to the Judges office on my bike, to get the papers for Migracion, because he was busy and couldn’t help right then. I didn’t have any idea what I was really doing, but I knew my way, so I got on the bike and headed for Bilblian 3 miles away.

Into the building and up the stairs like every other time I had been there, and into the open door to the Judges office. “Hola!” I said, before further explaining that my lawyer had sent me to collect a paper for Migracion. I got the paper, and that is the one you saw in the video if you watched it. I call it the “I’m FREE” doctrine. And that is what it turned out to be; for my bodily person.

After that, I had to go to the Migracion office at the Police station and give him a copy of the paperwork. I held onto the original for border crossing purposes, and that was it. I was told that the paper would allow me to leave without any issues potentially resulting from overstaying my original 10 day visa allowance that I received 32 days prior. Before I left the judges building though, I took a reminder photo of the place that served justice to me.



Ah, sweet personal freedom, and about as good as I have looked in 210 days. Kristi said so.



After that, you’ve heard the story. I went out and got all sorts of odds and ends taken care of, while still maintaining my “cheap bastidge” token at hand.

I went for a with the euro girls that night as well, and we had French fries at a local restaurant. I told them each that they should leave with me and travel south, as I didn’t feel like going alone. They declined! After that, it was time for bed.

And the next morning, I drug all my crap down 3 floors to the garage below, and loaded up the bike. Finally ready, it was another reminder shot of my time in Azougues, Ecuador; 32 days.



Packed, ready to go, and looking good.



THUMBS UP! I’m out of here! Almost!



Before I could leave though, I had to stop and see my favorite ladies here in Southern Ecuador, Aida and Inez, along with their mother Javiera, and their helper Diego. Here I am sitting in the chair they brought out for me. Aida will contend that I am now her family, and I must call her when I get home (I have her phone number). Further, I must bring Kristi when I marry her. And bring my family the gifts she gave to me to give to them. Damn. She was pouring out the love!

So, please meet my 3rd family other than my own. (#1: Kristi’s, #2: My best friend of 18 years Kevin’s. #3: Aida and family)



And to give you an idea of what I look like in comparison.
From left to right we have the helper Diego (dark blue), one of the sisters Inez (light blue), a friend of the family (orange), the Mother of the sisters sitting in the chair Javiera, a friend of the family (light green), and finally Aida (purple). Of course, there I am standing with them all, none of which come to my shoulder!



Well, then it was time to leave Azogues, much later than my planned departure of 8am. I left at 10:30, and hit the road. It was totally awesome. About 4 hours later, after a gas stop, a pit stop for a snack, and another gas stop, I pulled over because I was beginning to get tired. Eyes were droopy etc.

I passed this little waterfall with a dirt road leading up to it at first, but decided better, and turned around. 200 meters of dir t road had me underneath it, occasionally wiping mist off my sunglasses. Awesome.



It was as I left the hotel, after 32 days I realized that I was gloveless. Yes. I had no gloves. Neither my summer weight gloves, nor winter weight gloves were anywhere to be found. Maybe they were never found when my bike got dumped. The pannier did get ripped off, and the lid busted up, and things went flying BUT my gloves were on my hands still. So where did they go? I believe a police officer has them right now.

Well, being gloveless felt like being naked. I didn’t like it. And my hands were cold as hell because it was raining, and I was at altitudes up to 3000 meters. Heated grips helped, but these mini minimart sacks do much better! No road protection, but I wasn’t cold any longer!



As I sat there, I was tired. Sitting on my ass for the past 30 days conditioned my ass to sitting in the saddle for hours, but not my body. I’ll have to get used to this again. Nap time!



This is where I came from. The southern mountains of Ecuador really offer some stunning views; more of that to come.



You can see here the type of weather I was experiencing that day. The sunshine was trying to push through the clouds, burning off the fog, yet failing to win.



What’s up everyone!?



I found this scene particularly nice, so I stopped to take a picture of it as well. You can see rays of sun light coming down in the valley between the mountains on the left with farmland on the right, all surrounded by forest.



Well, somewhere in this ride, I made it to the town of Loja, and got lost for about 35 minutes, driving around looking for the exit. The VERY FIRST one I had fad looked fishy so I didn’t take it. 35 minutes later after asking police men and taxi drivers, I was back to where I had been. Damn it.

It was 40 minutes later that I stopped for the day. I saw two Suzuki XF650 Freewinds in a small town that was unusually busy due the holidays. This one belonged to a guy riding with his two friends that were on other bikes, a BMW F650GS and a Kawasaki KLR650. This Blue Freewind is a 2002 model.



Some of you other DR650 riders will be interested to see the DUAL carbs. As the bike is apparently a 2 piston bike? That is new news to me! I thought it just had dual carbs like an XT550 or something! The man swore it had to be two cylinders though.



I need to recheck that, because the 47hp motor fits directly into a DR650 frame. The motors are identical on the outside from what I could see. The exhaust was the same, the oil sight glasses, the sumps, the stator covers, the clutch covers, the starter covers, the sprocket covers, etc. The oil cooler was placed differently, but so what!?



I took the opportunity to ask the owner of the Suzuki Freewind where he gets his parts. He lamented that he gets his parts in Loja, 40 minutes back in the direction that it came, but that also due to Ecuadorian holidays, I wouldn’t be able to find parts in Ecuador until Monday. Alas, but front brake rotor isn’t too bad. It’ll be ok.

On their advice I stayed at a cheap motel and used the internet next door, called my dad for 3 minutes ($.50/min) at a calling booth, Kristi for 4 minutes, and got some grilled meat across the street. After that, I spent about 30 minutes shooting the shit with a store owner that spent the last 11 years living and working in Spain, Monday to Friday, as a cleaning lady, which she said she prefers to working in Ecuador, as it she works 7 days a week. She came home with enough money to buy a house in Loja, which she’s renting on a 2 year contract while living and working in the smaller town further south, out of the mountains. I bought a razor and a couple bottles of water from her. She was a nice lady.


To be continued...

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NJ, NR, NBTTN