here hadn’t been the faintest
warning for Rob Burdett.
He was a fit, clean-living
47-year-old out for a routine Sunday
ride with his Cranleigh CC club-mates.
“Apparently, I was climbing up Ranmore
Hill, a mild drag I’d done a 100 times
before, and I just went” — “apparently”
because he has no memory of the
dramatic events of that day in March
2015; the entire ride is a blank.
I meet Burdett in a central London cafe
— he works nearby as an executive pay
consultant — to hear his story as pieced
together from witnesses.
“The group I was riding with saw me
come off my bike, as did a guy driving
along behind me in his car. I was lucky
he did.”
The guy in question was a trainee
nurse named Michael Chaplin — or
‘CPR Mike’ to use the nickname he was
about to earn. “He drove past me,” says
Burdett, relating Chaplin’s account, “and
initially assumed I was a newbie who’d
stopped and forgotten to unclip. But he
decided to look in his rear-view mirror.”
The scene reflected to Chaplin was a
rider on the ground not moving, with
bystanders gathering around him.
“The others weren’t giving me mouth-
to-mouth because they thought I was
breathing, but in fact it was only agonal
breath — basically my last gasps.”
Chaplin realised the seriousness of the
situation and took control, administering
CPR until the ambulance arrived.
Sussing that Burdett was in serious
trouble, the paramedics shocked his
heart and called in the air ambulance.
With his phone still recording to Strava,whose contact
details had been
jotted down by a
club-mate.
“I sent him an
email saying I’d
love to meet you
but completely
understand if
you’d rather not.”
Chaplin replied: he
would be delighted.
They met at a
country pub a few
weeks later.
“I walked in and
there he was sitting
in the corner. It was
bizarre meeting the
person who saved
my life.
“I think I asked
him whether it was
OK to talk about
what happened, as I was still trying to
piece it together. I must have thanked
him 100 times.”
Burdett learned that Chaplin was not
only his guardian angel but also a fellow
cyclist and kindred spirit — allowing a
further gesture of gratitude.
“Mike was made an honorary member
of our cycling club, I bought him a club
jersey, and we rode together for the first
time a couple of months later.”
Remarkably, Burdett was back on his
bike just six weeks after leaving hospital.
“On reflection, it was utter madness,” he
admits, “but it was that psychological
thing, needing to get back on the bike, to
put what had happened behind me.”
Doctors reassured him that the bypass
had successfully replumbed his heart,
medication would guard against new
blockages, and he could safely resume
his usual riding routine. Burdett has since
felt reinvigorated: last year he racked
up more miles than ever, including a
week-long tour in the Pyrenees and a
5,000-mile fundraiser for the Surrey Air
Ambulance (justgiving.com/rh-burdett).
Cycling has gained a heightened
significance and he now rides with a
redoubled sense of gratitude for the
freedom of the open road.
“Whereas before I’d take it all for
granted, now when I’m riding along
I just think, ‘I’m cycling — I’m not dead;
it’s a lovely day, the roads are dry...
Bloody hell, this is fantastic!’”the stricken KOM-
hunter was about to
log some impressive
data: a die-straight
line (see picture)
from Dunsfold
in Surrey to St
George’s Hospital,
south London,
hitting a max
speed of 132mph.
The first thing
Burdett remembers
is “coming-to in
hospital with a tube
down my throat,
surrounded by
doctors and family
telling me I’d had a
cardiac arrest.
“I was pretty
discombobulated,
to say the least.
I had imagined
having an accident before, but never a
cardiac arrest — that was something that
happened to other people.”
Still woozy from the effects of
medication, Burdett grappled with the
new reality now dawning on him.
“Apparently I kept repeating, ‘Cardiac
arrest? Bugger me, that’s dramatic!’ I just
couldn’t believe it.”
Hospital tests promptly diagnosed a
blocked artery — a shock to Burdett,
who had assumed his active, healthy-
eating, non-smoking lifestyle was
keeping him in prime cardiovascular
fettle. Two weeks and one double
heart bypass later, he was back home.
Speaking to others who’d been with
him on the ride, Burdett learned about
the decisive intervention of ‘CPR Mike’,Photo: Chris Catchpole
Mike Chaplin, 36, was driving to an MTB
race when he noticed a rider ahead topple
off. He pulled over and leapt into action...
“There were quite a few people already
with [Rob] when I arrived on the scene, but
they were trying to put him into the recovery
position. Although I’m quite a shy kind of
person who’d normally sit on the sidelines,
in this instance I knew I had to step in. I
started doing CPR and carried on for about 10
minutes until the paramedics arrived.
“It was a strange journey to the race afterthat: I didn’t know whether to go home, pull
over and cry or just continue. So I think I did a
bit of everything, before deciding it was better
to carry on than freak out. In the end, the race
didn’t go too badly: I finished second.
“At about 9pm that evening, the phone
rang and it was Rob. He said he’d survived the
journey and was waiting for surgery.
“Looking back, it’s strange... To say it was a
‘privilege’ might be the wrong word, but it was
certainly — regardless of the good outcome —
a very emotional experience.”‘I’m no hero, but I knew I had to step in’
Would you know what to do?
JOnly eight per cent of patients
survive a cardiac arrest, and less
than half of bystanders intervene.
Rob Burdett was lucky: Mike Chaplin
knew CPR and took swift, decisive
action. Would you know what to do?
The British Heart Foundation lists
six life-saving steps:
JShake and shout: gently shake the
person’s shoulders, ask “Are you OK?”
and shout for help.
JCheck their breathing. If they’re not
breathing, open their airway by tilting
their head back and lifting their chin.
JCall 999.
JGive 30 chest compressions.
JGive two rescue breaths.
JRepeat until the ambulance arrives.
For a fuller explanation, visit: http://www.bhf.
org.uk/heart-health/how-to-save-a-lifeDavid BradfordCycling Weekly | February 8, 2018 | 47