Stalking the V&T
No, I was not stalking. I was riding. Another was the stalker, and I’ll get to him in a bit.
I had decided to ride out to Washoe again this morning. I had originally planned and early ride, but…didn’t. If I’d left earlier, my day might have been somewhat different, but who’s to say?
Anywhoodles, I head out later than I want, and as I cross Coombs Cyn Rd along Murphy heading to the V&T, I see a fire truck backing out. I didn’t think much of it, figuring they are doing some sort of exercise on the trail. As I ride north a bit further on the trail, I come across a fireman walking. I ring the handy bell on the bike as I approached.
“Anything up ahead I should look out for?” I ask the fireman.
“There’s an elderly gentleman who’s in some distress up there. Can you do me a favor?”
“Sure.”
“Can you ride up to where he is, and come back and let me know how far up?”
“No problem.”
I head out, at a bit quicker pace than before, since, who knows, time might be of the essence. I get about 1/2 kilometer further up and come across a man and a boy coming my way on bikes.
“Is there a man up there in distress?” I ask.
“There’s a guy sitting on a rock,” is the reply, “but his color is good, and he seems to be breathing okay. There’s a woman with him, too.”
“How far?”
“About another 1/4 mile.”
Cool. No emergency, but still, timeliness can still be an important factor. I thank them and go.
As I round a turn I see figures along the side of the trail. One on her knees. (I’ll call her “Viv”.) Moving up and down. The other figure, I’ll call him Bob, is on his back in the dirt. Oh, shit.
In seconds, I get close enough to see that she’s doing chest compressions. “Do you know CPR?” Viv asks.
I make a snap decision. “I do, but there’s a fireman 5 minutes back walking. I’m going to give him my bike!” I call over my shoulder. I figure getting professional help here quicker is the best course. (Was that the best decision? I don’t know. Through the lens of hindsight, I think I’d still do the same, though. She was strong, and seemed in control of herself, and I was confident she could keep it up for a few more minutes.)
I pump the pedals hard as I reversed my direction. I haven’t gone this fast on a trail on a bike in a really long time. In less than a minute, I am to where the fireman is still walking.
“Cardiac arrest!” I call as I jump off the bike. “Take it!”
He hops on and starts cranking. I follow at a trot.
When I get there, he is on compressions. He asks if I could jump in so he can do some coordination on the radio. Of course.
I drop down, and slide in. Pump, pump, pump. I’m going about five minutes and he asks if I need a breather. “I’m an endurance runner. If you have things to do, I can keep going for a long time.” I answer. No bravado. I’m truly not feeling the least bit gassed and I could go on for a long time. He gets back on the radio.
He and I do switch off, and eventually two paramedics arrive from the south with their backpacks full of gear. Now there are three firemen: two paramedics doing what it is they do and the original responder going gofer and handling coms. At one point, one para was trying to hold a drip bag while doing other stuff, and I said I could be a bag hanger as good as the next guy. So that’s what I do: hold and squeeze an IV bag to get and maintain a fast constant flow.
Twenty more minutes pass. Bob has gone from occasional agonal breaths when I was pumping to none. From fibrillation that the paramedics saw when they first attached leads to asystole. By this time, Viv has gone with the first fireman to guide the four wheeler up from the Children’s Home access, leaving me alone with the two paramedics. And Bob.
The lead paramedic pulls out his cell phone and calls a doctor. He walks a few feet away and has a brief conversation. He returns, and said the doctor called it. Bob had been under CPR for at least 30 minutes by this time, asystole and unresponsive to the injections and shocks.
Yeah, that stalker? He’s that dude in the hooded cloak carrying a scythe. Turns out the Grim Reaper was stalking the V&T today. I just happened to see his work.
Epilogue notes: Some added information that I found out when I talked to Viv (I caught up to her further up the trail after I left.) Apparently she and Bob talked a bit. He said he was having a hard time catching his breath, and was light-headed. She suggested he call someone, so he called his wife. They agreed to meet at the trailhead. After he continued to not feel well, he agreed to call 911.
Okay, peeps. If you’re feeling short of breath and light headed, take it seriously.
Wow. What a morning! So good of both you and "Viv" to remain with him. My father had a heart attack on his way back home from a hike in 2020. Somebody found him and called 911. He survived in ICU for 7 days before succumbing to it. While I got to see my dad before he died, he was in terrible shape and he suffered while in ICU—not due to poor care, but the injuries from the fall he took combined with cardiac arrest were dire. I hope Bob passed knowing that caring humans were there for him. I am eternally grateful to the strangers that helped my father. Amazing how an agile and vital human being can take that turn so quickly—clearly, it was the stalker.
Omg Steve, how awful. I’m sorry you had to experience that, it’s not fun. Good on you for knowing cpr and lending a hand where you could. Was not expecting that ending while I was reading. 🥲