Change Table Design - TIMEOUT

Hi...
I need to alter a table and change the length of one of my fields. I have a couple million rows in the database already and I am getting timeouts when I try to save it after changing the length of the field.
Is there any way to set the database timeout differently for a session in Management Studio.

I have set the Remote Query Timeout property to 0(Unlimited), but my session in SQL Mgmt Studio still gives me the timeout.

If there is no solution to this, can anyone think of something better than this....
SELECT * INTO temp from mytable
DELETE FROM mytable
(Modify Design of mytable)
INSERT INTO mytable SELECT * FROM temp
?

Well, thanks in advance for any help!
-Greg