A young man left paralysed by a horrific crash admitted last night: ?I really thought I was gone?.

Jason Minors, 23, broke his back and suffered life-threatening injuries when his bike left the road and smashed into a sidewalk railing.

On his way back from church at the time, he was minutes away from getting home safely.

Instead, he admits he almost died after swerving to avoid a van while overtaking on North Shore Road.

Speaking for the first time about his harrowing ordeal ? which has seen him undergo three major operations in the space of five months and now confined to a wheelchair ? Jason told he remembers nothing about medics ?bringing him back to life? in hospital after the crash.

His dad, Frederick, however, remembers every vivid detail of that traumatic Sunday afternoon earlier this summer.

?Jason lost his life for a couple of minutes before they put the oxygen in him,? he recalled. ?He stopped breathing and his body trembled and then went limp.?

Mr. Minors said that a team of doctors then surrounded his son in a frantic bid to revive him.

?I just prayed,? he added. ?And he came back. Jesus pulled us all through.?

Recalling the accident, which happened around the corner from his Hamilton Parish house in May, former CedarBridge student Jason said: ?I was on my way back from the First Church of Christ in Devonshire. I overtook two cars and there was a van in the middle of the road. It was either hit the van or avoid it. I avoided it and hit the sidewalk and then a railing.

?I really didn?t know what was happening ? it happened so fast. But as soon as I hit the ground, I knew I was paralysed. I couldn?t feel my legs. I just could not feel anything.?

With their son still lying critically injured in the road, Jason?s mum and dad got a phone call every parent must dread.

A relative of one of Jason?s workmates at the Warwick Esso Gas Station had driven past the crash.

And as soon as word reached Frederick and Cynthia Minors they raced from their house in a state of shock to see what had happened.

?We just saw him lying in the road,? said Mr. Minors, 56, a former firefighter who now works in security. ?It was upsetting and shocking.?

He said that paramedics arrived swiftly. And the patient, who at this stage was bleeding internally, was raced to hospital at ?what seemed like 100 mph?.

From Bermuda, Jason was flown to America.

There he underwent a series of major back operations, before setting out on the long road to recovery through an exhaustive rehabilitation regime dominated by weight training.

Lying in bed at his Hamilton Parish home yesterday, paralysed from the waist down, he told how he has spasms in his legs but cannot feel anything else.

He can, however, get out of bed and dress himself.

Getting to grips with life in a wheelchair, determined Jason is already talking about going back to work at the gas station as a cashier.

Asked if he was looking forward to returning to his job, doctor?s advice permitting, he replied: ?I miss work, but I?m broke as well. I just want to work and support my family.?

His mother Cynthia, 49, has said that, despite medical opinion to the contrary, she remains confident Jason will walk again.

She added that nurses who treated Jason at a Burlington hospital before he returned home in August were amazed by his positive attitude.

?They said that most people who are paralysed are so down, yet his spirits were so high. He just wants to get out there. He lets nothing get him down.?

Many people will remember Jason for his love of running. He used to run home to Hamilton Parish ? from work in Warwick ? and yesterday admitted that his lack of mobility was upsetting, but something he accepted.

?Once I walk again, you will see me run,? stated Jason, who was also a keen footballer with Vasco Mariners.

He thanked his parents, three sisters, all his family, friends and his church for their support since the accident.

His dad was out in America the entire time his son was getting treatment. Jason also heaped praise on all the doctors and nurses who had treated him in the last five months.

A Bible is located by his bed, and Jason said faith played a huge part in his life.

?I could have died, thank God that I didn?t? he said. ?I don?t remember about the nurse bringing me back to life. I had my eyes closed.

?I?m just thankful that I wake up and another day comes. I really thought I was gone and I?m just grateful to see each new day.?

Jason said the fragile nature of life was laid bare by the accident, which he blames himself for. And he urged road users to learn from his mistake and take care on the Island?s danger-strewn roads.

He added: ?One minute you have life and the next minute it can be taken away from you just like that.

?If you really love life, do not make any stupid decisions especially when it comes to the road. You have two choices: living or dying. Which one would you pick?

?When you speed, think about your families and how they feel. When you are overtaking, think about the consequences and the people you are hurting as well as yourself. It?s just a stupid thing to do.?