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Gene Duval was hit by a truck while riding his bicycle last December, and his midsection was crushed by a rear tire.

Hours later, he decided he wanted to ride again.

Saturday at El Tour de Tucson's 35-mile ride, Duval, 59, will ride competitively for the first time since the accident. He'll be one of about 8,500 riders in the group of El Tour cycling races, which make up the largest participatory sporting event in Southern Arizona.

It will mark another step forward for Duval, who rode his bicycle about 6,000 miles a year — and did El Tour's 109-mile race nine times — before his injury.

"That never entered my mind, that I was never going to ride my bike again," he said. "That's what kept me going — to get back on my bike and to the point where I was."

Duval, who has lived in Tucson for 36 years, was riding home from breakfast last Dec. 3 at about 7:30 a.m.

He was passing Amphitheater Middle School, near East Prince Road and North First Avenue, when a pickup truck pulled into the parking lot — and right in front of him.

"I thought I was in trouble," he said.

Duval swerved right in an attempt to avoid a collision, and his front tire hit the curb.

He was thrown from the bike, and the pickup's rear wheel rolled over him.

An ambulance driving down Prince minutes later pulled over, and he was rushed to University Medical Center.

Duval had fractured his back, ribs, sternum and pelvis. He couldn't lift his legs and was confined to a hospital bed.

He later had surgery to fuse his spine from the thoracic 10 to the thoracic 12 vertebrae.

An open wound on his arm became infected with methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus, commonly known as MRSA.

Doctors spent three days draining the wound and pumped Duval with antibiotics.

"It's been a long and slow process," he said.

Duval spent a total of 38 days in two hospitals. Two sisters from Oregon spent about a week in Tucson immediately after the accident.

Carol Grierson, a nurse, handled the medical issues; Alison Heimowitz spoke with insurance companies to make sure his medical bills would be covered. That was complicated, as a dazed and injured Duval was originally cited for riding his bike on a sidewalk — something he did not do.

Alison also promised to ride in El Tour with him.

"That was part of the deal," she said. "When he was first in the accident, they told him if he walked again, it would not be without assistance, and the chances of him riding a bike again were slim to none — and that he should wipe that off the list of things he wanted do.

"We started talking a little bit more about bicycling. It became clear this was one of his goals.

"So we'll ride together. If there are any problems during the ride, I'll be there."

Duval used a walker or wheelchair until March, when he started to walk with a cane.

His twin brother, David Duval, was in charge of leading his brother's rehab.

"I took him to the park to walk," he said, "or the mall when it was cold and rainy. I wouldn't let him slack off."

Gene Duval said he feels "maybe about 85 percent now."

His limp becomes more prominent at the end of the day, when he's been on his feet as the banquet supervisor at the Doubletree Hotel. He returned there full time in August.

Duval began riding again in July, his back aching after a mile or two. Now he rides up to 50 miles per week.

"Even now, I still have a little bit of paranoia that it's going to happen again," he said. "I've always been a defensive bicyclist. I've never taken for granted that a motorist is going to see me.

"I've always been extra careful in that respect. Other than that, there's not much that you can do."

Duval, who does rehab workouts three days a week at Gold's Gym, would like to ride in Cycle Oregon next year.

But he needs to get through El Tour first.

"That whole piece of showing emotion is really difficult," sister Alison said. "For him, it's in part because it means a lot. If for some reason he's not able to finish the race, that makes it a little more difficult for him.

"I definitely think the ride means a lot to him."

His orthopedic surgeon told Duval that he should be 100 percent healed within six months. But making it 35 miles Saturday would make him feel that way.

"I guess the meaning would be," he said, taking a breath, "that I'm pretty much back to normal — that things are really looking up, physically and mentally."