Q&A With Today Show Co-Host Willie Geist

Geist with Bram Weinstein and Carson Daly at Belmont Park. (Photo courtesy of Stephen Panus)
Willie Geist is co-host of NBC’s “Today” and the co-host of MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.” He is also a contributor to NBC News programs and to the NBC Sports Group, where he reports for NBC Olympics and NBC Sports Network. In addition to his television duties, Geist hosts the video blog “Zeitgeist” on nbcnews.com.
Geist is the co-author of Good Talk, Dad: The Birds and the Bees ... and Other Conversations We Forgot to Have available here.
Geist graduated from Vanderbilt University in Nashville where he was contributing editor of the school newspaper, The Vanderbilt Hustler. Geist lives in New York City with his wife and two children. He is a Thoroughbred racing fan who was lucky enough to be present at the 147th Belmont Stakes and witness American Pharoah's Triple Crown.
Name:
Willie Geist
What I do for a living:
Host of NBC’s Today show and MSNBC’s Morning Joe
How and when I was introduced to Thoroughbred racing:
My first memory is of Sunday Silence’s run for the Triple Crown in 1989. The deal was closed the first time I went to the Kentucky Derby in 1995.
My favorite racetrack:
Churchill Downs
My favorite Thoroughbred racing event:
Now that I’ve witnessed a Triple Crown win in person there, it has to be the Belmont.
Other sports/teams I follow:
Pro: Yankees, Giants, Knicks and Nets. College: Vanderbilt (where I went to school) and Illinois (where my parents went).
What I would like to see more of in Thoroughbred racing:
A reason for the public to be roped in beyond the three big races.
What I would like to see less of in Thoroughbred racing:
My losing tickets.
Three words that define what Thoroughbred racing means to me:
Beautiful (the animals). Thrilling (the races). Heartbreaking (when your horse gets nipped at the wire).
First Thoroughbred track I ever attended was:
Meadowlands. I grew up in northern New Jersey.
Favorite all-time Thoroughbred:
Secretariat. I still get chills watching the Belmont on YouTube. 31 lengths.
My personal best moment in the sport of Thoroughbred racing:
Seeing American Pharoah win the Triple in person.

Great time enjoying historic sports day @BelmontStakes with @WillieGeist @CarsonDaly @bramESPN pic.twitter.com/V5olN93fJX
— Stephen Panus (@Man_o_PR) June 6, 2015

Best racetrack food can be found at:
Saratoga (I hear).
My favorite jockey:
Eddie Maple. He’s a legend … and my buddy Iver’s dad.
My favorite trainer:
Bob Baffert. Happy he finally got his Triple. And those shades, man.
My Heroes:
Mom, dad, and late grandparents.
Person in Thoroughbred racing I’d like to have dinner with:
Would have been Chic Anderson, just to hear him narrate my meal. “He’s moving his fork to his mouth like a tremendous machine!!!”
My philosophy on life:
Take life seriously, but not yourself.
Favorite quote or motto:
“We talkin’ about practice … Not the game. We talkin’ about practice, man.” –Allen Iverson, 2002
Favorite animal other than a horse:
Tiger
Favorite non-Thoroughbred racing sports event I have attended:
The Masters
Favorite food:
Chicken quesadillas
Favorite vacation spot:
My backyard.
Favorite city:
Other than my runaway No. 1 home city of New York? New Orleans and Paris.
Favorite musician/band:
Rolling Stones, Jay Z, Eazy-E, and Dierks Bentley.
Favorite all-time movie(s):
Impossible question, but “Boyz n the Hood,” “Goodfellas” or “Blazing Saddles.”
Favorite TV Show:
Right now? Veep and True Detective.
Favorite hotel:
Gurney’s in Montauk, N.Y. for good times family fun.
Websites I visit daily:
Too many to list. Wall Street Journal, New York Times, ESPN.com among hundreds of others.
GEIST WITH JAKE PANUS AT THE BELMONT

Photo courtesy of Stephen Panus
What I drive:
Jeep Wrangler.
Pet peeve:
When the table at a restaurant is wobbly. I cannot continue until I’ve shoved a couple of Sweet ‘n’ Low packets under the offending leg.
Favorite movie about horse racing:
Seabiscuit
Which actor would play me in a movie:
Cedric the Entertainer
Alma mater:
Vanderbilt University, Nashville, Tenn.
Favorite radio shows/channels:
Howard Stern since I was a teenager in New Jersey. Also, BackSpin on Sirius/XM.
Best book I recently read:
“Good Talk, Dad”, the New York Times bestseller now out in paperback!
Favorite memento:
Anything my kids make for me.
Favorite dessert:
Key lime pie.
Favorite drink:
Bourbon and a splash of ginger ale.
Favorite scent:
Cut grass.
GEIST

Photo courtesy of Willie Geist/NBC
What I like about my job:
Every day is different, and the people we get to meet and spend time with.
Favorite tech gadget:
New Apple Watch, a nice birthday gift.
Twitter Handle:
@WillieGeist
People I follow on Twitter:
Nearly a thousand ranging from famous comedians to obscure economists.
No. 1 bucket list item:
Win the Triple Crown as the first, 6’4”, 210-pound jockey in racing history.