Word spread within hours – there would be a raffle to benefit custom bike-builder Steve Rex, whose midtown Sacramento business had suffered a setback since Rex was badly hurt in a high-speed bike crash.

Everything came together in a day or two and there would be little more than a week to sell the $10 tickets. The idea arose when a customer spotted Rex, 46, in his Arden Park neighborhood, sitting in a wheelchair pushed by his wife, Peggy.

Many, including Steve Rex himself, wondered if enough tickets would be sold to at least cover the prize he had put up – a $2,500 custom bike frame and fork welded and hand-finished by Rex once he was healthy enough to return work.

The drawing was Saturday, and the tally, it turns out, was beyond belief: $29,000 and counting.

Money poured in locally and from throughout the country for a bike builder whose reputation has flourished since he opened his business in 1987.

The low-key and agreeable Rex, who attended the drawing on crutches, was moved to tears. He still gets choked up thinking about what happened.

"It's hard not to be flattered. I'm really flattered," he said this week.

Asked about the groundswell of support, Rex said he likes to think it stems from the way he has conducted himself, that people like the idea of a business driven by pride and craftsmanship.

On any given day, a customer could wander into Rex Cycles and spot the owner in the back of the shop, welding steel tubes into high-end bicycles for hours on end.

When the business was on Capitol Avenue before it moved to E Street earlier this year, the shop never had heat or air conditioning, and Rex was either bundled up in a thick wool turtleneck or light cotton T-shirt, depending on the season.

"I would hope that is a big part of the message and the lesson we can take from this, that people appreciate that kind of business, the kind of thing that I do, and acknowledge that commerce is part of the community," said Rex, who earned a degree in economics and philosophy but has never held a job outside of the bicycle business.

Rex, who is also a top-notch cyclist, crashed Nov. 15 during the well-known Saturday "river ride," a highly charged training event that draws many of the top competitive riders in the area. Riding in a pack some 50 strong, Rex had no time to react when two riders ahead of him touched wheels and went down hard at 30 mph.

Rex broke his left hip and elbow, both of which required surgery. Within a week, his 17-year-old daughter, Sadie, fell into a backyard fire pit at a friend's party and suffered serious burns on her arms.

News of the crash spread quickly, thanks to various e-mail lists. That's also how word of the raffle got around. In no time, scores of cyclists were calling the shop or dropping in to buy tickets.

"I'm amazed," said Dave Burke, who came up with the raffle idea, thinking he might raise a few thousand dollars. "It speaks to how well Steve and his family are respected in the cycling community."

Though the Rexes seem to be taking the largesse with equal doses of appreciation and awkwardness, those who know them say the generosity is well deserved.

For several years, for instance, Peggy Rex, a registered nurse and a fixture on the American River bike trail, has spearheaded a charity ride to raise money for the American River Parkway Foundation (ARPF). To date, the ride has raised more than $100,000.

"They're such givers. It's just awesome," said Jim Jones, the ARPF founder. "They're an awesome partnership. They have given so much."

About 75 people attended the raffle drawing Saturday. Steve Rex added another $2,500 prize before the winning numbers were drawn.

Call The Bee's Blair Anthony Robertson, (916) 321-1099.