Some Marathoners Run to Own Drum

It’s the New York Marathon today, and Paul Daugherty of Newsday writes: “The marathon is the most democratic of sports, so it stands to reason some of the 22,000 will be a little off center. You want crazies? We got crazies.

“We got eight guys from the West Coast who will run together as one, a human caterpillar. We got Kim Alexis and four Portuguese electricians named Carlos, Antonio, Luis and Rui.

“Rui?

“We got Albert Lucas, ‘a world champion juggler,’ who will try to run the course while juggling three weighted balls. And we got Noel Johnson, who is 88 years old and has run 15 marathons.

“Noel has written a book called, ‘A Dud at 70, a Stud at 80.’ ”

It doesn’t happen often, but when separate stories on the wire are unaccountably interposed, the results can be comical. This is from the Associated Press:

“Fry said any team that beats Indiana will have to contain quarterback Dave Schnell, running back Anthony Thompson and 100 Americans, Europeans and Japanese stranded at a Chinese army truck stop 14,432 feet above sea level in Tibet.”

Trivia Time: Kevin Moen is the answer to what trivia question? (Answer below.)

Now-it-can-be-told Dept.: When Minnesota pitcher Les Straker batted for the first time this year in the World Series, he used a bat that was prepared by batting coach Tony Oliva.

Oliva told the Baltimore Sun that the bat included a soft pad because Straker said his hands hurt when he hit the ball. Oliva was asked how many bats he prepared.

“One,” he said.

“What if he breaks a bat?,” Oliva was asked.

“He won’t,” Oliva said. “He won’t because the ball won’t hit the bat.”

It didn’t.

He hadn’t played all year, but Jim McMahon wasn’t calling on Mike Ditka for any help on the last two scoring drives in Chicago’s 27-26 win over Tampa Bay.

“I told him I was going to call all the plays,” the Bear quarterback told the Washington Post. “I told him, ‘Put in the players you want because they’re not going to come out.’ ”

Add McMahon: Said Ditka: “Nothing’s changed with him. He’s not going to do it the way you tell him or the safe way. He has no regard for doing it the pretty way. On his touchdown, he went in headfirst. He plays like a guard or a tackle.

“I remember looking at him when I took him out of the Super Bowl game. He went and sat on his helmet. The pad that was supposed to cover his injured buttocks was hanging out. His shirt was out, tape was hanging off him, he was bleeding. He looked like a warrior. He probably plays a lot like Butkus did, I guess.”

It-had-to-happen Dept.: Said ESPN’s Bruce Devlin as Mike Reid teed off in the $3-million tournament at San Antonio: “Boy, he sure does drive it straight.”

In the water.

Trivia Answer: He was the Cal running back who ran through the Stanford band at the end of the five-lateral kickoff return that beat the Cardinal, 25-20, in 1982.

Quotebook

Jim Rooker, former Pittsburgh Pirates’ pitcher, on Manager Chuck Tanner: “He used to have a bedcheck just for me every night. No problem. The bed was always there.”