The Life and Times of Sam Luna

Ok, So the good thing about digital cameras, lots of pictures, the bad thing about digital cameras, lots of pictures. For your viewing pleasure, our pictures ! I will write up about the places to visit over the next couple of weeks. Enjoy!

I will post a full trip update asap, but here are a few quick pics. The weather has been great, no rain! We have seen Paris, Milan, Bellagio, Lake Como, EICMA and 6 Day track racing with Paulo Salvodille and Fabio Sacchi! Bonjourno!

Over the weekend Bike Houston put on a great event, the Midnight Moonlight Ramble . I had the pleasure of riding the 20 mile route with some good friends. The ride starts and finishes at the George R. Brown Convention Center and takes you through the Galleria area and down Memorial and Allen parkway for a scenic tour of Houston. By the way, the ride starts at 2 AM with the festivities beginning at midnight. The ride is for everybody, Hard Core Roadies, Nob heads, sub-culture messengers and families with tow-alongs. Pics of Team Moose . Thanks to Dakine for the Moose head!

So staying at hotels and working out can be tough. Here are some outside options that I have found: Atlanta – Tribble Mill , Lawrenceville – 10 miles or so of single track trails. There is also a couple of miles of paved path for road bike riding. Grapevine – Rockledge Park , Lake Grapevine – Single Track MTB riding and trail running. The trail is 9 or 10 miles in length, so great for long runs or rides. Fort Worth – Trinity River Trail – Miles of paved trails for riding that goes from outside Fort Worth all the way into town. Arlington – River Legacy Park – DORBA maintains a 3 mile loop of singe track trails. OKC – Lake Hefner - Lots of paved trail around the lake, water stops every couple miles. Tulsa – Tulsa Cedar Creek Trail – Tulsa maintains paved trails for riding and commuting. Very hilly portions.

I spent this past weekend at the Hotter’N Hell 100 . On Sunday Morning I competed in the Wee-Chi-Tah 10k Trail Race . It was simply Muddy, I hope to get some pictures soon to show. I had a great race having spent Thursday-Saturday Working the Expo standing on my feet. I finished 2nd overall in the 10k race getting out kicked in the end. This makes me 1 for 3 in Wichita Falls. In my college days, I enjoyed competing in Collegiate Bike races. In my last year of college MSU held the regional collegiate qualifier for Nationals. I thought I would give it a go and see if I could qualify. It was over Easter weekend so the whole family loaded up and we drove out to Wichita Falls. The first day was a 4 loop, 80 mile bike ride. The first loop in, I was done, ka-put. The next day was the Crit, so I focused on it and got a good nights rest. The next day, 5 laps into the crit, I was off the back, 10 laps in and I was sprinting for a prime for the “last 3 guys on the course”. I won the prime and I

The wagon needs new wheels, horses, heck a complete overhaul. I completed the Darnd’st Du , same distances as my first Frost yer Fanny Du years ago, back then I went 17:30, 47 ish, 19:33, that was a 5:40 mile pace for the first 5k, 23.5 for the bike and 6:19 for the second 5k… total time was 1:26:14. My times weren’t even close, but I know with time it is possible. I knew the race would run be over 1:30 total. I also knew I have not done any training over an hour, so my body would not be adjusted to the time of racing. I took the first run out comfortably in 6:30 pace to run a 20:19 first 5k. That was the 20th fastest 1st run. The bike was painful. My body recognized the lack of training. I used to have my “comfortable pain” and my “push hard pain”. All I had on Sunday was PAIN. My bike avg of 20.5 had me finishing the 30k bike in 55:41. 38th fastest on the bike. The second run was just hanging on. 7:09 pace for a 22:20 5k, 21st fastest. So pretty even across the board. The race itsel

It has been a while since my last post, and even longer since my last tri. I dusted off the shoes and helmet and did a local tri in San Antonio that has been around for over 25 years, as the website says. This was the 5th race this year, and was a 400 meter pool swim, a 12 mile bike and a 5k run. The pool is 50 meters, the bike course is a 3 mile loop, 4 times, and the run is out and back. The swim: Lets say they will need to fill it up before the slides open at 1pm! I drank my fair share and was reminded with every stroke why I should get in the pool more than once a year. Enough Said, swim to the bike! The bike: I have a habit of finding new ways to add onto bike courses I am not familiar with. The course is a circuit, 4 laps, 3 miles each. So by the last lap there are triathletes everywhere. I was seeded 6th in the pool swim, so I was actually third to hit the water with evens starting on one side, and odds on the other. The 20 sec interval put me a minute behind the first person in

So I decided I needed to get a baseline for where I am at now. I have been running 2-3 times a week and riding once a week. I signed up for the Freedom 5k in Sugar Land and had a great time running. I made a rookie mistake and forgot to double knot my shoes, so I stopped at the start of the second mile to re-tie my shoes. I went out pretty easy and was able to get by a few people over the last half mile. The first mile was a bit long, the second mile was short, the 2 mile mark was dead on, along with the 3 mile and finish. I ran a little to hard on the second mile to make up for my shoe and paid for it on the 3rd mile. My splits Mile 1 - 6:17 Mile 2 - 5:48, 12:06 Mile 3 - 6:21, 18:28 Finish - 18:54 Full Results Check out more pics here from RaceShots.

endurance camp day 2 125 Originally uploaded by the.lunas Check Out Penn State Swimmer Jamie Keily showing how to turn a Buoy in Open Water!

Day 1 - 50 min run at Huntsville State Park, 9 runners, 9 different routes, 1 picked up in a car, 1 Dirt tasting session :) - 30 min swim in the lake, 1 muddy bottom Day 2 - 30 miles of hills - 30 min run - 40 mins of swimming pictures are here more to come!

So at the end of 2007, the Fort Bend TriPsyclones bestowed upon me a very prestigious awarded of the Best Athletic Supporter . (kind of like the one guys wear!) This weekend, again I did my best to be the best support available. I drove a couple of friends training for Ironman Brazil out to Smithville, 110 miles away. They rode their bikes through 3 hours of rain and 6 hours of headwinds to complete an EPIC ride! John and Ned, my hats off to you! Great Ride! Video of the ride, comments and the finish are Here . The phone battery died so some of the video cuts out. The picture isn't too great, but hey its better than nothing.