The world of fly fishing is no stranger to new fly rod releases from Sage. There may be no brand that makes more of an effort to keep its lineup of offerings fresh and new than the Bainbridge Island, Washington-based rod maker. Most new rod releases (for all rod makers, not just Sage), however, are born solely new of designs—whether new rod tapers, new models tuned towards specific fishing applications, new componentry, or so on. They aren’t the product of major advancements in materials or other technologies. But this week, a few months shy of 6 years since it introduced KonneticHD technology in its current flagship rod the Sage X, Sage teased the fly fishing world with—judging by the video the company released—a new technology and new rod it is confident will be “revolutionary.”
It’s important to note that those aforementioned design achievements in between so-called “major” rod releases are often every bit as, or sometimes even more, important than material advancements. But, when rod makers make leaps in their materials technology, the effects are felt for years to come, as those new materials and the possibilities for further advancement in design that they introduce reverberate for years through the rest of the company’s lineup of offerings.
Over the years, Sage has made no secret of the alleged special relationship it has with the aerospace industry, thanks to the proximity of its Washington state manufacturing facility to Seattle, home to aerospace manufacturer Boeing. This relationship, according to Sage, gives the rod maker access to cutting edge materials and technologies.
Those cutting edge ingredients, according to Sage’s new video, are once again the driving force between its latest and greatest — its new, eighth-generation “R8” technology and its new R8 CORE lineup of rods.
The video points to new graphite fiber technology as key element in the new R8 technology which when combined with Sage’s special “juice and juju,” as materials scientist Steve Greist refers to it, allows Sage to build the new R8 CORE — and certainly many other rods to come.
Another message that comes through in the video is the fact that Sage believes it has engineered the R8 CORE lineup to be a versatile one, given that it visits with Sage ambassadors and other anglers that have been testing the R8 CORE in a wide variety of angling challenges — from delicate dry fly presentations, to flinging heavy nymph “junk rigs,” to hucking big streamers on heavy lines — who suggest the new R8 CORE excels at all these tasks.
One thing is certain, a bevy of additional information about the R8 technology and the R8 CORE lineup of rods is no doubt around the corner. In the meantime, to learn more, check out the video below.
