California Highway Patrol officers Frank Paramo, left, and Craig Williams interview Jordan Rapp, who was the victim of a hit-and-run, at St. Johnâs Regional Medical Center in Oxnard on Monday.

SHARE Marco Garcia-Ortiz is a suspect in the hit-and-run crash. Chief Petty Officer Thomas Sanchez and Jordan Rapp stand together at St. Johnâs Regional Medical Center. Chief Petty Officer Thomas Sanchez

By Adam Foxman

Chief Petty Officer Thomas Sanchez was preparing to deploy to Afghanistan when his training for the battlefield helped him save a life at home.

Sanchez was heading home to Camarillo from Naval Base Ventura County on March 23 when he found Jordan Rapp, a professional triathlete, lying in a pool of blood. Authorities said a driver had collided with the bicyclist near CSU Channel Islands, then apparently left him for dead. First aid administered by Sanchez, a Navy Seabee, likely helped save his life, authorities said.

Rapp and his family agree, and when Sanchez stopped by the hospital Monday, they had a chance to thank him one more time before he leaves for the war zone.

"He's a wonderful human being," Rapp's mother, Diane Rapp, said of Sanchez. "I just feel like he's going to be a part of our family forever."

Six days after the crash, Rapp, 29, of Thousand Oaks was still awaiting surgery for some of his injuries, but he was sitting up in his bed at St. John's Regional Medical Center in Oxnard and plotting his return to racing as relatives watched over him.

The reigning champion of Ironman Canada and Ironman Arizona, Rapp was training for a half-Ironman distance triathlon in Oceanside. He started the day with a 2.5-mile swim and 30-minute run near his home, then headed out for a bike ride along Lewis Road, he said. He had ridden the route many times before and felt it was safe.

The last thing he remembers before the crash is riding his time-trial bike on the last high-speed interval of his workout, he said. His memories pick up two days later when medical personnel were removing a breathing tube.

According to the California Highway Patrol, Rapp was heading north on Lewis near University Drive about 5:45 p.m. when a driver made a left turn from Lewis directly in front of him. Rapp was thrown to the ground after he hit the left side of the vehicle and shattered a window, officials said. The driver fled the scene.

Sanchez was driving home when he saw a vehicle stopped on Lewis, he said. As he drove up, bystanders asked if he knew first aid.

Sanchez saw Rapp lying face down with a pool of blood around his head, apparently unconscious, he said. Some bystanders were calling 911, but medical personnel hadn't arrived yet and no one was tending to Rapp, so Sanchez went into action.

Trying to avoid moving the injured man, Sanchez looked under Rapp's body and saw an open wound on his neck. Working with gauze from a combat vest he had in his car, the 16-year Navy veteran applied pressure to stop the bleeding until paramedics arrived, he said.

While he has seen combat during two tours of Iraq over the past four years, he had never before been the first responder to such a serious incident. Sanchez downplayed his involvement, however, saying he just did what he could to help. He credited paramedics and doctors with saving Rapp's life.

"I just happened to be there to, you know, apply some first aid," he said. "Those guys are the ones who saved his life."

Rapp, his family and CHP officers, however, said Sanchez played a key role. In addition to numerous injuries to his face and shoulder, Rapp had two jugular veins severed by glass from the vehicle and had lost more than two liters of blood, he said. "I am alive today because Chief Petty Officer Sanchez did all the right things," Rapp said.

Ventura CHP Officer Frank Paramo said Sanchez's slowing of Rapp's bleeding "gave him enough time, based upon my experience, to get to the hospital and survive."

CHP investigators tracked down leads that led them to a suspect. Investigators knew a nearby berry ranch let workers out between 5 and 6 p.m., so they asked if anyone had called in sick the next day, Paramo said. After getting information about the one absent employee out of 160, CHP officials put out a bulletin about his van. Oxnard police found it, and evidence including Rapp's blood confirmed it was involved in the hit-and-run, Paramo said.

Investigators now believe the driver, Marco Garcia-Ortiz, 27, might have fled to Mexico.

Rapp praised the CHP and hopes the suspect is brought to justice. More importantly, he wants the incident to raise drivers' awareness about the need to be careful around bicyclists.

Sanchez stopped by the hospital several times to see Rapp while making final preparations to leave for Afghanistan. The first time, Sanchez offered Rapp's mother a handshake ? and she gave him a hug instead.

"What can a mother say when you meet the man who saved your son's life? It's pretty overwhelming," said Diane Rapp, who traveled from New York state to be with her son after his injury. "I was just so grateful he was there and he knew what to do and he wasn't afraid to act."