The Life and Times of Sam Luna

This past weekend I raced in my second Sugar Land Duathlon. This was my first multi-sport race last year, so I was looking to see what kind of improvement I could make. I really wanted to improve on my fifth place from last year, and beat all the "runners". The first run was set off at quick pace by the Houston Marathon winner Drew Prisner and Track State Champion Rainbolt. I finished the first two miles in 9th place. On the bike I passed all but the 1st relay and Dana Lyons and John Zuilof. I struggled on the second run and was passed by Austin Conner who took the 39 and Under win, and I finished second, dropping 2 minutes from last year. So now its off to a few road races to see how I and my new Rudy Project helmet and shades stack up against the roadies and then to the Duathlon World Championship

This is the race I have been unknowingly training for since this past December. My Goal for this year was to qualify for the USA World Duathlon Team. I went to the first qualifier of the year at Powerman Alabama. It was my first real race, and I was not physical ready for what it demanded. I learned a hard lesson, but one that has brought me a long way. Over the past few months I have been "racing", but in reality it has been training for Duathlon Nationals. I had to learn to respond to my body, and know what it is capable of. My training for Nat's has been a serious one, even my diet had to change in preparation for my only chance to qualify for the World Team. My mileage increased to 125 miles a week on the bike, 25 miles a week running plus I had to maintain my swim at a minimum of 3000yds a week. For most serious athletes this probably wouldn't sound like alot. However, I work 50 hours a week at two jobs, Printing-X-Press, plus I am a student at the University of

I Traveled to Birmingham, AL to compete in the first 2002 Duathlon World qualifier. I Competed in the 20-24 age group. The distances of the race were 8k run, 60k bike and then another 8k run. For those that only understand miles, 5 mile run, 37 mile bike and then another 5 mile run. I flew to Birmingham with my parents on the Friday before the race. Also on our plane was Jack Murray, a fellow ATC team member. Sat was spent putting the bike together and picking up my race packet and info. We drove the course to get a feel for things. The run was two loops around a dog race track. During the run there were two main climbs one at miles 1 and 3.5 and the other at miles 2 and 4.5. The bike was also two loops, however it did not have definite climbs. It was a long rollercoaster. The down hills last 1-5 miles and so did the up hills. It was possible to be going 27+ mphs for quite a time and then have to climb at 15-17 mph for twenty or so minutes. After the bike it was back out

Ok, wow this was a fun race. I usually don't race this early in the year, but since I am preparing to race in March, I figured I might as well have some fun. This race was the longest to date for me. It was a 5k run 30k bike and then another 5k run. Oh, did I mention it was COLD!! I stayed at a fiends place the night before. When I wonke up in the morning there was ICE ON THE WINDSHIELD! I did not come prepared. I got to the race sight and set up my bike. Everything was going great until the race started. I did not follow my race plans to run around an 18:30 for my first 5k. Instead I ran a blistering 17:30, puttin gme in the top 10 along with Pro's James Bonney, Dana Lyons, and Adam Reiser to name a few. As you can imagine, as much as my coach, Tad Molloy, Said, I suffered on teh bike. To start with, as I left Transistion zone, I was attempting to place my feet in the shoes that were already connected to the pedals. I knocked the shoe off, forcing me to stop, dismount my bike,