What's more awesome than learning about Greek mythology on Columbus Day? Nothing.
Tantalus was a son of Zeus. From what I can tell, he lived in the underworld and was crabby. He had a son named Pelops. Tantalus is famously known for cutting up Pelops, boiling him, and serving him to the gods as a sacrifice. Yummy, right? Well, the gods caught on, were grossed out eventually put the poor boy back together. But the moral of the story? Tantalus was bad. He was associated (obviously) with cannibalism and human sacrifice. So he was PUNISHED in true Greek mythological fashion - he had to stand forever in a pool of water with a low-hanging fruit tree above him. Only whenever he reached up for fruit, the limbs climbed higher so he couldn't reach them. And when he bent down to get a drink of water, the pool receded so he couldn't reach that either. It's where we get the word tantalize - temptation without satisfaction. Go figure, huh? This turned out to be an English lesson, too! Lucky you!!
Why do I share this story, you ask? Welp, Tantalus is also a road in Honolulu. It's way up in the hills and a bunch of famous people/ambassadors/rich oil barons have residences up there. It's the home of the Tantalus 10-miler, which I ran yesterday morning.
Taking On Tantalus
First, here are some internet pictures that I found to represent what happened yesterday a.m. Taking pictures was not on the agenda, and you'll soon learn why....
Looks LOVELY, right?! Killer views, lots of shade, what more could you ask for on a run? Well, let me illuminate you, dear readers. This race was 10 miles (duh) and the first 4 1/2 were uphill. And then the next 5 were downhill. And then the last 1/2 mile was uphill. I'm not exaggerating. It's a fact. The elevation incline is 1500 feet. It lived up to everything a road named Tantalus should - it was deceptively alluring, grueling, cruel.
And yet...
BOOM!!!
"What's that?!" you ask - well, it's my 2nd place ribbon, of course! 2nd in my age group! Bwahahahahaha! TAKE THAT you evil, evil race! I OWNED you and got a friggin' RIBBON! I haven't won one of those since the 6th grade science fair! UGH!!!
Also, my good friend Kale who stuck by my side even when I KNOW he could have totally left me in his dust won a ribbon, too! 3rd place in his age division. Are we BA or what?
There are supposedly going to be pictures posted of the "awards ceremony" woohoo! If/when they become available, I will for SURE be throwing them up here.
Also of Note
This was a small race - whereas the readiness series races can have almost 1,000 runners, this one had MAYBE 150 (hence, my epic ribbon capabilities). They didn't have a huge spread full of gels and muffins at the end, but they did have the best damn Mountain Dew of my entire life. I swear, it's my new favorite post-race beverage.
Also, much like last year at this time, I'd like to give a high-five to Christopher Columbus for being mistakenly credited with finding the Americas and getting me a day off.
Cheers!
You Rock, Ashleigh!
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