Sal Ruibal has been with USA Today for over 22 years and as a sports reporter for that paper covers cycling, the Olympics and various other sports. He spent time with slowtwitch to share some of his experiences.
Slowtwitch: Sal, we appreciate you taking time to chat with us.
Sal: Glad to do it!
ST: As a sports reporter you clearly cover all sports, but you seem to have a passion for cycling. What came first?
Sal: I've been riding bikes since I was a boy (Schwinn Sting-Ray) but have also been a reporter of sort sort all of my life. My father used to say I was not born in a hospital but was tossed onto our front porch. My passion for bikes really developed at the University of Colorado in Boulder in the early 1970s and exploded when, as a U.S. Army journalist, I was stationed in Germany and saw what bike culture really looked like.
ST: Do you still have that Sting-Ray?
Sal: No. I pulled a wheelie on it and front wheel flew off! That's how I learned to manual. I got a big-boy 24" Schwinn after that.
ST: What other bikes do you have in your garage or home?
Sal: I have a decent collection, ranging from an early Ritchey rigid MTB with purple anodized bullmoose bars and moto-style brake levers to a John Stamstad Trebron Team Chevy Trucks alloy hardtail with color-coordinated Cane Creek rims and headset cap. I also shelter a rotating cast of review bikes that stay for a while and then move on. I'd rather not get too specific about my bikes for security purposes. The best ones live in a safe house at an undisclosed location, guarded by former Delta Force commandos.
ST: Let us move on to another topic then. How do the articles at USA Today get assigned? Do you automatically get to cover most cycling related stories?
Sal: Cycling is one of my beats. I also cover the Olympics and action sports. I pretty much determine what I will write in those areas, but also get assignments in college sports and other areas.
ST: How often have you been to the Tour de France?
Sal: Six times: I went to Le Tour from 2000 to 2005. I was the editor for the Tour coverage in 1999 when Debbie Becker was the reporter.
ST: Spring Classics or Tour de France? What do you prefer?
Sal: As a reporter, nothing beats the Tour because of the history, travel, food, etc. As a rider, I prefer the Spring Classics. Belgium, in some ways, reminds me of my youth in Northern Colorado, with the raw spring weather and the smelly farm fields.
ST: How often have you been to Ironman Hawaii?
Sal: I have been to Hawaii to cover high school football but never for the IM. Triathlon has always been on a different beat than cycling, perhaps because of its separate Olympic status.
ST: Have you had a personal interest to go to Kona and see what that race is all about?
Sal: Of course, it is a huge event that influences the world. I'd also like to compete in XTERRA in Maui. The expense of covering a single-weekend event in Hawaii is considerable and in these times I would rather the money go to keeping a colleague employed.
ST: Of all the races you have covered, which one was most memorable and why?
Sal: Stage 15 of the 2003 Tour de France. Lance's crash and subsequent charge to the finish was incredible. I was perched on the edge of a rocky cliff in the mountains overlooking the final miles to the finish. I could hear the roar of the crowd echo through the valley before I could see him with my eyes. When he appeared at last, it was like a dream. Kristen Armstrong, then Lance's wife, told me that, to her, he seemed to be riding like a dolphin leaping through the waves. That was a very good description.
Runnerup: 18th stage of Le Tour 2000. Lausanne. Salvatore Commesso and Alexander Vinokourov do track stands a few hundred meters from the finish line, then sprint. Commesso wins!
ST: How much has the cycling coverage changed at USA Today since you started in 1987?
Sal: I was hired to be a business editor, but went to the sports department in 1988 to help with the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, S. Korea. (I had been stationed in Korea and spoke a little Hangul). The LeMond era was covered by Debbie Becker. I started covering mountain biking in 1995 in anticipation of its debut at the 1996 Olympics in Atlanta and took up the sport at that time. I had been an amateur equestrian for many years (dressage, eventing and jumping) and MTB seemed to be a similar athletic endeavor. The Lance years were a big boost for the sport I got to come along for the ride. When Lance retired in 2005, cycling became more of an Olympics beat. Now that he's back, our coverage of the Grand Tours, Classics and other racing has resumed.
ST: Beyond the amount of cycling coverage, what else has changed at USA Today?
Sal: The transition from print to digital has had a big impact. As the paper-paper has diminished, the digital coverage has opened more opportunities for blogs, galleries, etc. concerning cycling. But the resulting economic changes have left less money for travel, so while out breadth has increased, our ability to personally report from the scene has diminished.
ST: What other changes do you foresee?
Sal: More involvement from readers who will be able to post their experiences with us as amateur journalists from events and locations that we can't afford to travel to.
ST: Are you good with your predictions when it comes to sports? For example how accurate were you the last few years with the Tour de France winners?
Sal: During the Lance years it was easy. Not so easy after, especially with the disruptions caused by various doping scandals. I thought Contador would win the 2009 Tour and was not surprised by Lance's podium finish.
ST: So who will win the Tour in 2010?
Sal: Hard to say at this point because I haven't seen what shape the Astana and Radio Shack teams will take for the Grand Tours. Today, I would say Contador because of the difficulty of the course. Lance had trouble with mountaintop finishes in 2009, but you can never count him out because he has great determination and ferocious competitive instincts. Contador will have to beat him strategically. Their battle may weaken both teams and allow a third to sneak in for the win.
ST: Drugs in sports, what are your thoughts?
ST: More serious and widespread than we think, more insidious and technologically superior to current detection systems.
ST: Cycling clearly has clamped down hard with drug testing, but has that taught other sports to adopt a “Don’t ask, don’t tell” strategy?
Sal: The U.S. major leagues would prefer for it to all just go away, a sentiment probably shared by many fans and sponsors.
ST: What changes would you like to see?
Sal: Um, lie detectors? The anti-doping system needs to be funded so that it can keep up with the cheaters and their big bank accounts. Teams and organizing bodies that can't control their doping problems should face serious economic sanctions to eliminate the money they use to facilitate cheating.
ST: Which cycling magazines do you read?
Sal: All of them. I am a voracious reader. I also read web sites, blogs, reader comments, all of it. I think I am a pretty good synthesizer of information, so the more the merrier. I keep a warm spot in my heart for Dirt Rag magazine because I am an East Coast mud-roots-rocks type of mountain biker.
ST: Did you subscribe to them or do they just come to your work?
Sal: They appear in my mail. I have no idea how or why.
ST: Any other magazines you like in print or online?
Sal: Roleur, for the art and culture of cycling. I'm a constant reader of the major cycling websites.
ST: How much riding do you do these days?
Sal: This is the winter of my discontent. The Mid-Atlantic region has been very wet, cold and icy since early autumn. I hate the indoor trainer. I try to do long rides at least twice a week. I live very close to two very nice mountain bike parks, so I can just jump on a bike and ride trails. But if I ride the muddy trails now, I will have to deal with ruts once they dry out. Respect the dirt. My long term goals are the 2010 US endurance (24 hour MTB) championships in West Virginia and perhaps Paris-Brest-Paris in 2011. As I get older my races get longer. But the vast majority of my riding is just for fun.
ST: You mentioned XTERRA earlier. Will we see you at a triathlon?
Sal: I've run several marathons and endurance trail races, but my swimming is not strong. I would have to spend a lot of training time in the water, but I'd like to become a better swimmer. Maybe I should get one of those bouyant wet suits!
ST: What kind of music do you enjoy?
Sal: Vintage punk. Italian opera. Old Bob Dylan.
ST: What was the last book you read?
Sal: "A Million Miles in a Thousand Years" by Donald Miller.
ST: Where do you see yourself in 5 years?
Sal: Well, I just turned 56, so I hope I'm still working for USA TODAY. I've spent the last 22.5 years here and it’s a bully pulpit for cycling. If I'm not here, I'd like to coach mountain biking. I've had many great coaches over the years, beginning with Ned Overend and including Marla Streb, Gene Hamilton, Jason Tullous and the original USA TODAY Mountain Bike crew.
ST: Is there anything else we should know about you?
Sal: I'm the luckiest man in the world.
(ed)
image 1: Sal in Beijing during the Olympics
image 2: Sal and the Specialized Angel a few days before the 2007 Tour of California
image 3: In Mallorca January 2009 (© Andrew Hood)
image 4: On top of Mont Ventoux in July 2005
image 5: Mountain biking in VA 2008
