April Luu took first place last month both days at the weekend-long Spartan race in Glen Rose, Texas. Luu, who was featured in The New Falcon Heraldís Face to Face column in October, is a fitness instructor at the Woodmen Hills Recreation Center ñ and an avid runner.On Saturday, Luu was the first to cross the finish line in the womenís 13 and one-half mile obstacle race. One of the sponsors of the race, Navy Federal Credit Union, awarded her $1,500. ìThe next closest female was 18 minutes behind me,î Luu said. ìI finished in two hours and 19 minutes.î She came in 12th place overall in Saturdayís race.On Sunday, Luu ran the same race and again took first place in the womenís division; this time, she came in 17th overall. Although she was nine minutes slower than the previous day, Luu still made the record books. ìI am the first athlete to complete a ìBeastî back-to-back,î she said. ìNo one else has ever done it.î Luu said each race is labeled, according to distance: a Spartan Sprint is 4 miles; a Super Spartan is 8 miles; and a Spartan Beast is 10 to 13 miles. For Sundayís win, she received a gift certificate for a pair of shoes from Inov.Luu is training for another Spartan race in Arizona in February.
