SANTA CRUZ — Lloyd Anderson went down at the right place.

Running in the Santa Cruz Sunrise Rotary Firecracker 10k Monday, Anderson of Fremont suffered a heart attack and fell early in the race near the pool at Harvey West Park.

Before he hit the ground, he was in the hands of the Aptos/La Selva Beach Fire District. Captain Jeremy Gilbert was running with six other from the department. Gilbert caught Anderson, 74, before he hit the pavement.

"I saw him start to stumble and he kind of bounced off a car. I tried to break his fall," Gilbert said.

Gilbert said Anderson was still breathing for about a minute before going into respiratory arrest.

Paramedic Mike Kretsch ran to the first aid station to grab a defibrillator while paramedic Ryan Peters performed chest compressions. Sunrise Rotary member Charlie Verutti had brought his own defibrillator to the race, almost as an afterthought.

Captain Mike Martin, paramedic Trevor Dirksen and firefighter Rick Molinar also assisted in reviving Anderson. Kretsch shocked Anderson and the team was able to restore a heartbeat at the scene and send him to the hospital.

Their job done, the Aptos-La Selva Beach team continued the race. All six finished at 1 hour, 15 minutes, 53 seconds. After the race, they lobbied for a time adjustment.

Anderson, who was running the race with his daughter from Washington, was in stable condition at Dominican Hospital Monday afternoon.