Your first star interview

Mike Piazza for the college rag. Talked to him for 10 minutes in the Mets dugout; there's a photo of yours truly listening to the future Hall-of-Famer answer a question with his hands wrapped around a bat and Jay Horowitz nervously on a phone in the background.

 

He was a good dude, making time for a one-on-one with a college shithead when he did not have to.

 

Nolan Ryan at age 19. He was still with the Astros, but I did the interview in the visiting dugout at Dodger Stadium. After talking to him for 20 minutes, I also interviewed Mike Scott and the pitching coach who was talking to me as Yogi Berra was nearby. In addition to all of this, I wandered over to the Dodgers' locker room and I was able to talk to Don Sutton, who was rehabbing and in his last year of pro baseball. Talked to Sutton about Ryan and came away pleased with the info I got. Kinda cool now to think I was able to talk to two Hall of Famers and, if I'd wanted to, could have at least introduced myself to Berra.

 

Michael Jordan when he still had hair. And Stan Albeck was his coach with the Bulls.
The rise to super celebrity status had just started but it was clear he was headed in that direction.
Nice guy.

 

Force may be the best interview in all of sports... Ever...

Plus, he remembers everybody...

 

I've done phoners with NASCAR crew chief Ryan Pemberton and Kyle Petty. The coolest was a one-on-one at a charity event with The King, Richard Petty.

Pemberton and Kyle Petty was very nice to a small-town reporter and I think it was terrific to give me some of their time for the interview. Richard Petty has all the substance that even non-racing fans know: the big cowboy hat and belt buckle, the 300-watt smile, the omnipotent sunglasses, but he's also a very down-to-earth nice guy.
It was a great experience.

 

Mine was a fella named Herschel Walker, who was playing in the USFL and I was stringing for a New Jersey paper.

Donald Trump also traipsed around looking for exposure, too.

Walker seemed like a nice guy but had already perfected the boring interview.

 

Herschel was a great guy, always had a smile, always had time ... rarely said anything worthwhile.

 

I've only had a handful of opportunities, as I am at a small town paper with no major sports teams in the market....
however, in january i drove to buffalo to see the canucks and sabres, so i could interview Canucks D man kevin bieksa, who grew up in the area our paper serves. I actually ended up going twice. I arranged it through the media guy, who said come at practice and i could have time.. so i did that, but he didnt skate during practice, so i came back for the game at night. I was nervous going down to the room and totally felt out of my element, but it was an awesome experience and my "first". Since he knew I was coming, he made time for me (while he changed and chowed down chicken wings). I felt bad though cuz while we were talking the equipment manager put away all his stuff even tho he wasnt undressed. Afterwards I did the scrum with Coach VIgneault, too. I gambled and didnt pitch in a question cuz all I wanted was stuff about Bieska. Kindly after the scrum was over he took a few minutes to talk to me one on one which was nice.
Outside of the sports zone, at other events, ive been fortunate to meet guys like Ken Dryden and Darryl Sittler.
I also followed up with Bieksa last week at, of all places, a tIM hortons on his season and such.
at my twice weekly paper i dont get to do solely sports, but stuff like that just really makes me itch and cant wait to make that move

 

Kyle Petty is great. He did a meet and greet at one of our local casinos. We had a nice little run with these things a while back, with Pete Rose, Petty, and Dale Earnhardt Jr. when he was in the Busch Series.
Anyway, I got to sit down in the casino's restaurant with him for about 15 minutes. Answered every question, including a couple about Adam's death, without hesitation. And, toward the end of the interview, he even told a TV guy to hold on so I could sneak in that "one last question."
That, right there, earns him extra points in my book

 

Was Bieksa ever a Grimsby Peach King?