If anyone should know a great running shoe when he sees one, it’s Cyle Sage.
If you’re into triathlon, you probably recognize his name. There are some serious scalps on this bio. He won national sprint-distance triathlon titles in 1989 and 1992. He captained the U.S. Navy triathlon team and represented the Navy on two U.S. Armed Forces World Championship teams. He served as coach of the U.S.A Junior National Triathlon Team from 1999 through 2001, and was twice honored by the U.S. Olympic Committee as its Developmental Coach of the Year. He also holds a masters degree in Health Education with a focus on exercise physiology. He’s got a cool name, too. The “C” is pronounced as “K.”
These days Sage coaches St. Leo College men’s and women’s cross-country and swimming teams as he prepares to launch a new running shoe, which he and his group have spent five years and $1.5 million developing.
“We’ve been told that it will revolutionize the shoe market,” he said. “Nothing this dramatic has come along in a while.”
The name of his company is Glide’N Lock. The concept is a shoe that provides 360-degree cushioning and stabilization. Conventional running shoes absorb vertical impact but horizontal impact is transmitted through the runner’s body. The Glide’N Lock design functions a little like an airplane landing gear to absorb impact from every angle.
Sage said the company spent months making its case and going through a host of shoe designs, some as old as 100 years, before the U.S. Patent Office finally approved (here’s a diagram). He said limited studies demonstrate that the design significantly reduces the kind of momentum that produces chronic injuries. People with shin splints, for example, can run comfortably in these shoes.
Sage, who owns Glide’N Lock’s U.S. distribution rights, said his team includes MS Brugg, a Swiss engineering company, and 3M Corp. A Korean manufacturer will produce the shoes and probably begin shipping in time for spring 2008.
Sage plans to begin by marketing to runners at big events and expos in an effort to create viral growth through the website. In time, he said, the company will approach small, specialty retail stores that cater to hardcore athletes, then find its way to mass merchandisers like Sports Authority and Dick’s. Ultimately, he said, the shoe has potential to reach a much broader market of people who work on their feet, such as security personnel, retail clerks and hospital employees.
“You know those fatigue mats people stand on when they’re working?” he said, “These shoes are like wearing those on your feet.”
Who knows? With a little luck, St. Leo College might just have the next Phil Knight on its hands.