It's not unusual for complete strangers to chat like old chums at Ironman Coeur d'Alene, so when the guy sidled up on my right, leaned on the fence and started a conversation at the intersection of Second and Lakeside, I didn't think much of it. "Why aren't you out there?" he asked. Before I could answer, my daughter, Elena -- as quick as I am bald - quipped: "He finished five minutes ago." The guy laughed. "And look at you, not even sweating," he said. "What about you?" I asked, glancing at him briefly before catching the second-place men's runner dashing in front of us. "What are you up to?" "I stopped by to tell you I like your shirt," he said. That shirt is the pride of my pro sports wardrobe: a navy blue Chicago Cubs T-shirt with the word LEE in red above the number 25 on the back. Derrek Lee is one of my all-time favorite Cubs, a giant of a team leader who won the National League batting crown in 2005, was twice an all-star and three times won the gold glove at first base/Mike Patrick, Coeur d'Alene Press. More here. (AP file photo: In a 2005 game against San Diego, Cub star Derrek Lee, left, congratulates a teammate)

Question: Have you ever met one of your sports heroes?