Exhibit to highlight art of prosthetics

WEST VALLEY CITY — It's not an easy thing to learn how to walk — again — at 62.

But after surviving a horrific accident in 1991, Tom Riley did just that.

While on a pre-work jog near his Centerville home on a dark, December morning that year, Riley was crossing an intersection when a city garbage truck unexpectedly backed down a hill and struck him, crushing his right leg under the large, dual rear tires.

Riley had a dozen surgeries attempting to save his leg during the next eight years, and when those efforts didn't achieve the desired results, he decided, with the help of his medical consultants, to have the limb amputated.

Today, thanks to technology advanced by a European company with Utah ties, Riley is a mobile, active 72-year-old who loves to work in his garden and has adapted to the prosthetic device so well that he can walk wherever he wants, unhindered.

The medical miracle of artificial limbs will be at the center of the debut Innovation Gallery exhibit at The Leonardo when the Salt Lake City science, technology and art center opens its doors in April 2011.

Alexandra Hesse, associate executive director of The Leonardo and the head of the Innovation Gallery exhibit team, said showcasing the "precision and beauty — or science and art" inherent to the creation of prosthetic limbs, coupled with the personal stories of triumph over adversity by those who use them, fits her institution's goals perfectly.

"This state is teeming with innovation and companies advancing technology that changes lives," Hesse said. "Featuring a process that is so innovative and being performed right here in Utah helps put the state and Salt Lake City on the map."

German company Otto Bock HealthCare has done business in Utah since 1958 and has operated a design and manufacturing center in West Valley City since the '90s. The company designed the high-tech artificial leg that helped Riley regain mobility and will team with The Leonardo for the prostheses exhibit.

The Bock C-Leg that Riley has been using for about six years is a wonder of high-tech materials, hydraulic valves and microprocessor technology. Nate Williams, the company's international projects manager, said the leg does something previous technology couldn't accomplish: It thinks.

"The microprocessor is constantly evaluating leg movement, pressures and joint angles," Williams said, "and making adjustments to optimize its performance."