The Man in the Arena
Sabrina Little’s thoughts on the trap of single-mindedness to which runners can fall victim.
Katie Schide and Ludovic Pommeret won the Hardrock 100! Read our 2025 Hardrock results article and watch Katie’s and Ludo’s interviews for more of the race story.
Sabrina Little
Title: Columnist
Location: Newport News, Virginia
Social Media Links:
Website | Twitter | Instagram | LinkedIn
Expertise
- Topics of Expertise: Trail running, ultrarunning, ethics, classical philosophy, moral psychology, character education
- Amount of Expertise: A lifelong runner with 18 years trail running and ultrarunning. Sabrina has been an iRunFar columnist since 2018 and a “Psychology Today” contributing writer since 2024. Her first book, “The Examined Run,” was published by Oxford University Press in 2024. She has published articles in academic journals including “Theory and Research in Education,” “Journal of Philosophy of Education,” and “Journal of Value Inquiry,” and popular publications including “Bloomberg,” “Aeon,” and “Women’s Running Magazine.”
Education & Certifications
- Education: Doctorate, Philosophy, Baylor University; Master of Arts, Philosophy of Religion, Yale University; Bachelor of Arts, Philosophy and Psychology, College of William and Mary
- Years of Professional Experience Relevant to iRunFar: 8 years of academic and public writing
- Awards or Recognitions: Emerging Education Policy Scholar, Graduate School Cross-Training Fellowship in the Natural Sciences
- Other Relevant Positions, Current or Past: Assistant Professor at Christopher Newport University; previous academic posts at Morehead State University and Baylor University; trail and ultrarunner for HOKA and DryMax; former head cross country and track coach at Live Oak Classical School (6 years)
A Word from Sabrina Little
There is a rich tradition of inquiry about virtue, vice, flourishing, and suffering in Philosophy and in the Humanities. This tradition has been a great resource in my own running, so I would like to share it with others. My personal interests include trail running, ultrarunning, reading, baking, spending time with my family, and telling jokes.
Character Matters
Sabrina Little reflects on the importance of character and building good habits as runners.
Moral Monsters
Sabrina Little asks the running community to consider how we think and talk about cheating in sports.
Character and Competition
Sabrina Little wonders about the character we can build through competing with others.
A Discourse on Freedom
Sabrina Little writes about what freedom from both external and impediments looks like in running — and life.
Rooted and Responsible
What responsibility do we have to ourselves, our community, and the earth, when we find ourselves rooted in place?
The Grumbling Hive
Sabrina Little talks about the grumbling ever-changing hive of trail running and ultrarunning.
The Order of Loves
We can love running, our family, and our jobs; but the order in which we love and dedicate ourselves to each of them may change.
The Trappings of Magnanimity
Sabrina Little explores the virtue of magnanimity and how to avoid its vices in running.
Performance-Enhancing Vices
Sabrina Little tells us about the vices that can enhance our athletic performance, but may impede our character development.
Running and Technology
Sabrina Little discusses technology’s positive and negative effects on running.
The Vices of Perseverance
Sabrina Little examines the virtue of perseverance, and what happens if we practice it in excess in our running.
Mere Admiration
An essay by Sabrina Little about the value of imitating the good qualities of those around us.
Performance-Enhancing Virtues
Sabrina Little’s essay about how virtues might help you perform better as a runner.
Toughness Reconsidered
An essay about appropriately balancing toughness and softness in our running.
Running on Pride: The Vice of Superbia
Sabrina Little writes about superbia, or the vice of pride, in competitive sports.
Persevering in Place
After college, I lived in Washington, D.C. for a year, working as an intern and taking a few courses. One […]
