Sage's first ultra in 2 years- Canyons 100k Saturday - April 23,2022 Auburn, CA

Honestly not an awful result - I figured there'd even be a small chance he DNFs given he hasn't raced in two years and had a health scare that required major time off.

Not sure where he goes from here though. Does he go into all-in race mode again? It's going to be a long road back and there's a ton of new talent that came online since Sage's glory days. Also he's getting older and presumably the health scare could still be weighing on him.

Or does he just do a few token races a year and focus on content and coaching? Not sure that carries him through to retirement.

Yeah honestly not terrible as a rust buster, after so much time off and the health scare.

I imagine he goes all in on racing...why not? He can balance that with content and coaching, and it increases his appeal to his audience. I wonder if he will focus on mountainous 100 mile races where any lung damage he did have will be less of an issue. Have to imagine he still wants some solid cracks at UTMB and maybe Hardrock.

Sounds like he is all in on UMTB this summer. I guess we will see how that goes. The thing is he never was all that great a distances over 50mi before. So it is going to be hard for sure. It may be the only option though as the top end is not likely to come back.

He should go to law school.

I doubt he goes all in on racing. It costs $$ to run competitive ultras across the US and Europe. With all that's happened in his life the last couple of years, flying to 10 different locals this year with no chance of winning prize money isn't really in the cards. He's got to pick a few races that are on Hoka's dime. Even if he is done racing at an elite level he's still a good ambassador for the company.

Back to front

Hoka's road shoes really suck the big one.

Not sure about their trail offerings.

Hoka trail shoes tend to get really great reviews across the talent spectrum, from racehorses to plodders.

Just look at the podium @ Madeira Ultra Trail 3x Hoka

The trail shoe offerings from Hoka are great

Sage looks worn out—like a one week old pair of cliftons……. Take care of yourself sage

I always like to see people with solid track careers move over to trail racing. It gives good context for those people who love to spout off about trail running being a walking contest. Here's a 3:53/13:15/sub-28 guy with incredible longevity (still ran a 3:57.5 mile last summer at age 35), and it's not like he's demolishing the field. Big trail events are more competitive that this board wants to admit.

Trailrunning is a total different sport than track. And ultra trail is even more different. Most track runners will be not good at this.

Where do ultrarunners poop?

Portapoties, under bridges and culverts, behind bushes and sometimes in real toilets.

Trail Running and Ultras require distinct and different skill sets from those of track and road racing. Not all fast track guys are adapted to the ability to run long distances especially when vertical climbing and descending is a key skill in order to do well.

It will be interesting to see how Garrett Heath does as he progress to the 50K and beyond. I assume the reason he chose not to pursue running the roads and eventually the 'Thon is that he didn't think his speed would translate better in the longer distances.

I hope Sage didn't try to comeback too quick. Obviously he knows his fitness, but perhaps a 25K or 50K might have been more advisable instead of a 100K. He's always been a good climber, but has struggled in the longer distances. I think he should reconsider the UTMB this year and aim for some US 50Ks and maybe Pike Peak 'Thon in September. Would love to see a Sage vs. Seth matchup.

But wouldn't they lose a significant amount of time, get passed by a competitor, and lose the race? So during a trail race, to save time, do they poo themselves or just poo directly on the course to create an obstacle for competitors behind them?

It’s actually an awful result from a sponsored runner. You need perspective. It’s a disaster.

He re-upped with Hoka earlier this year so he's still a sponsored athlete for a few more years. Hoka have a bunch of non competitive older people on their roster, but more importantly, they now sponsor the broader UTMB series.

Target races like UTMB are probably a good idea. Even if you struggle with the distance, it's an anything can happen race where a lot of the speedier top guys drop, and it becomes a war of attrition where just grinding to the finish can get you a respectable placing. Worst case he'll see out his years competing in the various Hoka/UTMB races around the world in kind of an ambassador role. Either way I'm glad he's healthy and able to do this again. He seems like a good dude and I wish him the best.

My 2 cents anyway.