Cyclists are by nature an introverted bunch. They spend most of their time training alone on the bike, so it is no wonder that some of them are less than savvy in dealing with the media and fans. But others seem to willfully go out of their way to be condescending and rude to media representatives and eager fans.
Lance Armstrong was famous for brushing off his public when they sought autographs or sound bites. He changed a bit following his cancer diagnosis, but still remained cool when dealing with the media. It seems that many veteran American cyclists today subscribe to the same arena as Armstrong: keep the media at arm's length and generally ignore your fans.
Amongst today's high profile American veteran's, there seems to be an arrogant air surrounding some of them. Riders like Levi Leipheimer and Bobby Julich have long been known to keep their distance from the press, offering milque toast answers to questions. This isn't to say they are rude, but neither is extremely accommodating either. The same can be said for George Hincapie, who no doubt learned from Armstrong over the years.
The worst of all the Americans though when it comes to dealing with the media and fans is, without a doubt, David Zabriskie. A strange man to begin with, Zabriskie blatently disrespects journalist's questions, often answering with only one word and a wry cynical smile. A famous story relates that he once gave an entire interview in song . . . much to the dismay of his PR people surrounding him at the time.
The strange thing is that Zabriskie should realize that in almost every instance, the media are looking only to compliment and spotlight the time trial expert. He rarely receives tough questions, yet refuses to act cordially no matter the environment. Perhaps the media should take an alternate approach with the Utah native.
One wonders if Zabriskie would be so terse when asked if he was a part of an systematic doping program at CSC? Or whether he feels he is viewed as a one trick pony incapable of winning anything other than his nation's national time trial? Maybe he would have more to say when pressed on why he isn't with CSC any more? Could it be because Bjarne Riis gave up on him, realizing that he isn't mentally strong enough? What would he have to say about his apparent accident-prone riding style, or how it felt to crash in the biggest bike race in the world while wearing the yellow jersey? Or worse yet, if the media declined to ask him any questions at all.
The above questions would undoubtedly leave Zabriskie cautious when dealing with the press, but the fact is that no one has ever asked these question of the Garmin rider. Instead, he is asked to speak generally about the composition of a particular race course, how it feels to win his nation's time trial championship three times in a row, or who his team will work for in a particular race. He takes these powder puff questions and mocks the journalist interviewing him with one word monotone answers. Not only is he disrespecting the media, but he is disrespecting the fans in attendance, his sponsors, the racer and it's organizers, and the sport of cycling.
Perhaps DZ should pay attention to his teammate Christian Vande Velde. Vande Velde is eternally positive, seems always to be smiling, and always has a moment for fans or the media. Even though he is one of the best American riders, he doesn't behave like it. Perhaps he realizes that the fans, race organizers, sponsors and media are the very people making it possible for him to ride his bicycle for a living, and the least he can do is give them a few moments of his time with well thought out responses to easy questions.
And he isn't the only one who does it the right way. Tyler Hamilton, Fred Rodriguez, Andy Bajadali, Burke Swindlehurst, Neil Shirley, Chris Wherry, Aaron Olsen, alex Candelario, and Chris Horner all are known for their easy going style and willingness to speak openly and honestly with the media and fans. It doesn't take much to please the American fan base and media, and each of the riders mentioned above seem to know this. Not only that, but the shelf life of a cyclist is a short one. Around five years from now, no one will care what DZ has to say, the media and fans will be long gone.
Every rider has a legacy, and an important part of that legacy is their personality. Barry Bonds is hated more for his gruff attitude with his fans and teammates than for his drug taking and lying, while Marco Pinotti is known more for his easy going friendly attitude than for his results. If Zabriskie doesn't change his public persona soon, he'll find himself a negative foot note in the annals of American cycling, remembered as a stand-offish lout instead of a super-talented cyclist.
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12 comments:
I adore Dave Zabriskie, and have thoroughly enjoyed every wry interview he has given. Some of us are wired differently, and conversation in that type of situation does not come naturally. If you've ever read his blog, you see that he is very heartfelt, thoughtful, insightful, and hilariously funny. Clearly, writing is a more comfortable medium for him, and I would hope you take the whole package into consideration.
Granted, I've never been directly on the other side of the microphone, but in every video I've seen, he has never come across as rude to me. I strongly believe he does not deserve this kind of bashing, and urge you to step back and take a different angle, and maybe you'll see a shy guy doing the best he can.
You're wrong, I will always care what he has to say, because it's often brilliantly written and I'm always glad to have had the chance to read it.
I wouldn't go so far as to say I "adore" DZ, but I too enjoy his interviews. I find his single word responses are often a direct answer that is sometimes lacking from other interviewees, who avoid or talk around questions.
I enjoy your blog, but have to say I disagree on this one.
I wouldn't go so far as to say I "adore" DZ, but I too enjoy his interviews. I find his single word responses are often a direct answer that is sometimes lacking from other interviewees, who avoid or talk around questions.
I enjoy your blog, but have to say I disagree on this one.
I am with you on this one...I dont always agree with some of your points and sometimes there have been some historical errors, but this was right on the money. DZ needs to be there for the fans. I could care less that he is three time national TT champ when he can barely utter a word during an interview.
When I asked Dave about DZ-nuts it gave us both something to laugh and talk about. Later at a party, we joked again. It's the interviewer's approach I'd guess and a reflection of the changing media.
It's not just the traditional mags that can break news or get a story anymore and athletes now have their own outlets, instead of a few gatekeepers. DZ can do his own quirky podcasts, be himself, blogs, funny products or whatever and worry less about saying the right thing to a reporter so that reporter likes him.
Having known Dave since he was 17, I can tell you without a doubt that it's truly his shyness that gets in the way. His defense mechanism is Andy Kauffman-esque comedy, which I have and certainly continue to enjoy. He's one of the funniest guys I've ever met.. along with one of the most cynical!
I certainly wish at times I had the balls to let my own brand of eccentric humor loose in an interview, but frankly, I just don't have the audacity.
So, it's my plea that you cut him a little slack and trust me when I say that he's really not trying to ridicule the interviewer nor the interview.
BTW, keep up the good work here. It's refreshing to get a different perspective from that offered from your run of the mill www's.
Sincere Regards,
Burke Swindlehurst
I've had several impromptu interviews with DZ and I've had no trouble and Neal Roger's daily journals with him also show that he's fine with answering questions with lengthy responses. He's just not terribly interested in answering the hackneyed rhetorical questions like, "are you going to win today's TT?" I've been to enough press conferences and watched the terribly bored faces of the cyclists to know that they'd rather not answer these questions either.
As for how he treats fans, he's one of the few big stars I regularly see outside the trailer posing with kids and making them smile.
You are wrong about DZ. He's shy and he uses humor and wry answers as his defense mechanism to deal with what is for him an uncomfortable situation. You should not take it so overly personally when it is a mere factor of his natural personality. How would you like to be judged so harshly for your own personality type? People who tend toward introversion are all too often judged very harshly and cruelly by the majority of American society who far too narrowly define normality as being outgoing and talkative. If you've seen DZ's blog or his video interviews over the years you would realize that he has very interesting insights into the world of cycling and life in general. Yet if you approach him in the wrong way with the same old questions and an attitude that expects him to be someone other than his own quirky self, he will shut you out in response to feeling pressured with your wrong expectations of him. The truth is that he is very funny and thoughtful, and he does not deserve to be the target of such an attack as you have subjected him to in this post.
I have to disagree with your comments about DZ. My take is that it is his style of communication that makes him one of the most accessible and interesting riders today. His career highlights are very up and down, I agree, but in reality this just makes his story that much more interesting to me.
If you wanted an interview, all you had to do was ask.
-Dave Z.
I'm a few months late to the party but I don't have much to say other than, "Man, you got it completely wrong when it comes to DZ. You've got to learn to keep your eyes, ears and mind open."
Wow. This blog couldn't be more off the mark. Dave Zabriskie is one of the most fan-friendly and accomodating pro cyclists I have ever met. I've never seen him turn down a an autograph or picture request.
In terms of his dealings with the media, he may not be as "media savvy" as his teammates like CVV and Tom Danielson, but is that cause for criticism? He brings an element of humor to interviews, and cannot be descbribed as milquetoast as you accuse some others of being. What do you want, milquetoast, brusque, entertaining, or just what your notion of media-friendly is?
Clearly you have some axe to grind against Zabriskie. Why, only you can answer...but refuse to do so truthfully. Taking shots at his cycling ability is ludicrous. He is one of the most successful U.S. cyclists of all-time, and is only improving his all-around riding.
If you hope to stir up some interest in your blog with this post, I can see that you have probably failed. Yawn...
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