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We've covered the NBA lockout, of course. At least one listener, Scott Dillman of Ballston Spa, New York, wishes we hadn't.

"Who cares?" he wrote. "I won't miss the season at all. College ball is much more interesting."

During my conversation with Charlie Pierce last week, Charlie made fun of Rob Sloan, the Brit who'd finished toward the top of a marathon by riding a bus nearly to the finish line. Alan Silverman, who lives in Stone Ridge, New York, felt Charlie was a bit hard on Mr. Sloan.

"Recent archeological findings prove that Phidippides, the original marathoner, also took the bus," he wrote. "And SHE was pregnant at the time."

Fascinating.

Several listeners e-mailed to say they'd enjoyed the story about rowing on the reclaimed Cuyahoga River in Cleveland. Jeff Bendix of Cleveland Heights wrote:

"While I was aware that people were doing it, I had no idea how many, or that major racing events were coming here. But couldn't you have come up with something other than Randy Newman's 40-year-old song, especially since the whole premise of the story was that the river is now clean enough for rowing competitions?"

Mr. Bendix, we searched for a song about how clean the Cuyahoga is. No luck.

We get lots of comments and questions about the music on Only A Game. The easiest way to learn about that same is to visit the Only A Game website and click on the article "Music On Only A Game," though I'm not sure that blog mentions that I regard Randy Newman as a genius.

My conversation with Melissa Holbrook Pierson, the author of "The Man Who Would Stop At Nothing: Long-Distance Motorcycling's Endless Road," inspired Dave Pierson to e-mail. I don't know if he's related to the author, but Mr. Pierson writes that he used to ride as many as ten thousand miles a year. He remembers that when he told his great aunt from Texas that he'd ridden across the U.S. "to see some of the country," she smiled and replied, "I expect you saw more than you needed."

Apparently Dave Pierson is also a master of the literary form that surfaces each year just before the Super Bowl on Only A Game. He opened his e-mail with:

To haiku, or not.

Whether 'tis better to write,

Or, forbearing, end.

Do you think he's hoping that after eighteen years, we will retire Super Bowl Haiku?

Dave, thanks. I hear you.

But Super Bowl Haiku stays.

Take a week off, pal.

You can express your feelings regarding that or any other issue by contacting us through our website. You can leave a message on the listener line by calling 617-353-1860. You can also find us on facebook and follow us on twitter.

This segment aired on October 22, 2011.

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