Our coach had just three don'ts. He mistakenly assumed common sense as common among his high school runners, so we were only told of these rules after being caught breaking them.

Don't drink too much (alcohol, the legal age was 18 back then), don't play tackle football and don't run the marathon.

We generally ignored the first two demands even after told to cease.

The third, I obeyed. I was one-and-done with 26.2 miles. Despite being in great shape, my legs were sore for days afterward.

We thought he'd be proud.

“;Idiots,”; coach Frank Franco said when told we'd run the Honolulu Marathon a few weeks before track practice started. “;You guys messed up your training pattern for the entire season.”;

I was so inconsistent anyway that I doubt it factored into my spring track results. But it may have affected some of my diligent and talented teammates.

One of the things you don't realize when you're 16 is you need recovery time after a strenuous event. This is especially true following a marathon, regardless what shape you're in. The human body is just not designed to run that far, at any pace, even if you're in condition to cover 3 miles in 17 minutes.

So what to make of Boston Red Sox pitcher Hideki Okajima?

Every year, a celebrity or two runs among the masses. Actress Kelly Hu and ukulele virtuoso Jake Shimabukuro come to mind as recent examples. But, as far as anyone can recall, never an active pro athlete from another sport. This all-star set-up man is the first.

By the way, we're pretty sure this Hideki Okajima is not the Hideki Okajima who has already run Honolulu a couple of times, finishing closer to the front than the rear. That Hideki lists Honolulu as home, and is a different age than the pitcher, who turns 33 on Christmas.

The marathon is a paradox. The training for it, if done the right way, is good for you. The actual event itself is not (physically, anyway).

Okajima's left arm is worth millions of dollars. But if it's true that a guy throws with his legs, what's the value of those limbs? Should they be risked pounding the potholes of Oahu?

Good questions for the Bosox brass and, of course, Mr. Okajima - if we get the chance. He hadn't arrived by yesterday, perhaps still carbo-loading in a Tsukiji sushi bar with Daisuke.

Pitchers run as much as they throw at work, but this is extreme. It reminds me of Russ Francis, who had it written into his NFL contract that he could skydive and wrestle on the side.

I'm sure Okajima has trained well, planned it all out and will return to the Sox in great shape for spring training, the better for it all.

But, then again ...

Okajima dons race No. 37 on Sunday, same as the one on his Red Sox jersey.

Weren't those the digits of Bill “;Spaceman”; Lee, another Boston lefty prone to the unconventional?

It's starting to make sense.