A messed up Sunday ride

I've lived with an irregular heartbeat issue for a while now (known about it for eight years). As a cardiologist in Milwaukee explained after a battery of tests, it's wiring issue that can create a feedback loop to put your heart in overdrive. It's well-known, and since my first episode (on the Port Washington hill in July 2000--I rode home after it, Dave may remember chasing me down that day) I've only had two or three more, the last one three years ago (at the Wisconsin State Road Race in Spring Prairie). But today was another one, triggered the usual way (intensification of effort, in this case accelerating up the "Stichtse brug" near Huizen). On the way down I started to feel the symptoms: slight pressure on the chest, slightly more difficult breathing, and a loss of power and energy. I limped behind our little group for a few miles, then decided that it would be better to get off. Problem was, it was also pretty chilly (I hate Dutch summers!). Sitting down sweaty and a little cold to begin with made me even colder. We also had a doctor on the ride who suggested the same thing my cardiologist in Milwaukee had advised: if you're near an emergency room during an episode, see if you can get a EKG made because that will provide more precise information on the kind of wiring problem. There was a hospital not too far away, and we rode there doing about 15 m/h. When we got really close, however, we came upon a railroad crossing where a freight train was blocking the way. So we had to take a 10-15 minute detour, and at the end of it, I suddenly began to feel better--not great, but better. Stupid train. At the hospital, the machine didn't show any significant deviation any more, but they took me up to cardiac care anyway. When they took my temperature there, it was 35 centigrade, a good two degrees below normal (and this was after I had been inside for 15 minutes or so). No wonder I felt crappy on the way in. The cardiologist who came to see me turned out to be a bike racer too. He confirmed the story from my Milwaukee cardiologist (and mentioned a race for September 7--which I will not enter) and thought it good to do a new series of test, just in case we can get more information. I doubt if there will be anything significant, given the way I beat up on myself on a regular basis, virtually always without any problems. I felt good under the hospital blanket, also because the nurse had gotten me a cappuchino (Dutch health care!). And it was nice to meet another bike racer, in spite of the unusal circumstances. What wasn't so nice is that this thing screwed up our Sunday ritual, less than five miles from the habitual coffee with apple pie. I'll have to make it up to the guys.