In 2003, Christopher Coudron was 15 and living with his grandparents, Don and Kathy Coudron of Marshall, when he assembled a custom bike in their living room. He had picked out each piece - including Harley Davidson handle grips, a black velvet banana seat and a chain steering wheel - which had been ordered from the Internet.
It was his second such bike. He had sold the first one to fund the second bike, a better one, which ended up costing $800.
"I put a million miles on that bike," Christopher said. "Nobody had ever see one like it."
Then, six months later, it was gone. He and a friend had visited a buddy and left their bikes under some stairs in an apartment building for just five minutes when they discovered both their bikes were gone.
"We reported it stolen," said Kathy Coudron.
Cut to June 2011. Don Coudron was reading the paper about what a man from New Ulm discovered inside an abandoned storage unit in Marshall that he had just won on auction. The man, Mike Tauer, was shown in the June 30 Independent holding up a new toilet seat. But it was what was in the background of the photograph that caught Don's eye - a chrome custom bike with Harley Davidson handle grips and a black velvet banana seat.
Don called his grandson, who is now 22 and living in Montevideo with a wife, a child and a baby on the way. He told Christopher to look at the Independent website and search for the story called "Treasure Hunting" and look at the photo.
"I didn't believe him at first," Christopher said. "And then I saw the picture and recognized it right away."
"My grandson was so excited," Kathy said. "We were all excited."
The elder Coudrons contacted the New Ulm police and told them the story. The police got a hold of Tauer who was "very, very nice about it," Kathy said. "He understood."
Tauer was planning to put the bike on Craigslist, hoping to get $600, but willing to settle for $300, so the Coudrons gave him a little money for his trouble.
The bike is now back with its rightful owner. Christopher has cleaned and shined it and placed it in a place of prominence in his living room - on the wall behind the TV. His wife isn't too thrilled about the new artwork on the wall, but Christopher wants to look at it for a while and make sure it doesn't leave his sight again. He says he'll keep the bike for his kids to ride someday.
He marvels at how it came back into his possession.
"Somebody out there is looking out for me," he said.