James Riemer didn't return from the National Veterans Wheelchair Games with any gold medals.

The Butler resident didn't pick up any made of silver or bronze, either.

"I came close," Riemer said with a chuckle. "I missed out on a bronze in bowling by two pins."

Riemer, 57, competed in bowling, using a ramp and hand controls, motorized slalom using hand controls and air guns. He placed fourth in the masters division in the first two events.

It's not about winning for Riemer; it's about doing.

He was drafted during the final year of Selective Service, spent two years in the Navy and two years on active reserves, but was never called to serve in Vietnam.

While working as a building contractor in Butler in 1985, he fell off a roof and became a quadriplegic.

"I passed out while I was up there. To this day, I don't know why," Riemer said. "Then I fell off the side of the roof.

"I've adjusted and moved on with my life. ... But it took a while."

The National Veterans Wheelchair Games certainly played a role.

The games came to Pittsburgh in 1998, and Riemer decided to check them out. He's been a part of them ever since.

"The whole thing just grabbed me," he said. "From that point, I didn't care where the games were being held. I was going."

Riemer has competed as far away as Alaska and California. This year's games, at which he made his 10th appearance, took place in Spokane, Wash.

The event been around for 29 years and attract more than 500 athletes each year. The games serve as a multievent sports and rehabilitation program for military service veterans who use wheelchairs for sports competition because of spinal cord injuries, amputations or certain neurological problems.

Riemer receives care at the VA Medical Center in Butler.

"I've gotten more (mobility) back than the doctors originally thought I would," he said.

And he has won medals at the games before. Riemer once bowled a 250 using a ramp.

"It's harder than it looks," he said of ramp bowling. "You have to line the thing up perfectly. I switched to a lighter ball and it seemed to help me."

Since 2000, Riemer has served as the coordinator for the Keystone Paralyzed Veterans Association.

Part of his duties is fundraising so he and other paralyzed Pennsylvanians can compete in the games.

"We took 13 or 14 guys from Pennsylvania this year," Riemer said. "We've got 300 members in our association, so I'd like to see more get involved."

His most challenging work is upcoming. The National Veterans Wheelchair Games are in Denver next year and will be held in Pittsburgh Aug. 1 to 6, 2011.

""We're already working on that one," Riemer said of 2011. "We need something like 2,500 volunteers. To get everybody in our association involved will be more than worth the work."

Since he debuted in 1998, Riemer has missed the national games only once.

"A lot of the same faces show up every year," he said. "Renewing those acquaintances and meeting people is worth the trip right there."