Ode to Performance Rally

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AUTHOR: Clay Moore, Mideast Regional Sales Manager, Ecore

A question that often comes up when I am giving presentations at design firms or with end users is: "Out of all the flooring that Ecore makes, what do you recommend?"

It can be a difficult question to answer, and it depends on the application, customer needs, and limitations of the space. That said...I find myself continuously landing on Performance Rally as the best overall flooring product that we make at Ecore.

Performance Rally 
Rally is an engineered floor comprised of a 2.5mm skin of Vulcanized Composition Rubber (VCR) fusion bonded to a 12mm VCR performance backing. The result is a 14.5mm thick floor that comes in 4-foot-wode glued down rolls or an interlocking tile format.
Cross section of an ECOfit Plus floor.
Rally is unique from other surfaces because it offers 3 distinct benefits to the people that interact with it: safety, acoustics, and ergonomics. Or, what I like to say: Rally offers a prescription for comfort.

Ergonomics and the Clean Eating Energy Exchange
Whether a traditional health and fitness application or an active work environment, Rally provides enhanced performance while mitigating fatigue. The key is the balance of force reduction and energy restitution, which results in a dynamic energy return that forces the user to stay off their heels and on the balls of their feet.

“Eating clean” is a phrase you hear a lot today. The fundamentals of eating clean include consuming more whole foods and less processed options. The science says that whole foods give your body the energy and nutrition you need, without the extra fluff; almost like a cleaner energy exchange of fuel for your body. The great thing about Rally is that when people interact with the floor, a similar “clean eating” energy exchange is happening. Let me explain… 

Rally is an almost perfectly balanced floor because its force reduction measures 35.4% and its energy restitution measures 53.7%. Why are those numbers important and what do they mean?

Force Reduction & Energy Restitution
As the foot impacts the surface it deflects, absorbing energy.
Force Reduction is all about absorbing the energy of an impact, but the key is absorbing the right amount. A surface with a higher percentages of force reduction (really soft surface) requires the body to use more energy for stabilization. Too little, and the surface is hard and taxing on joints. With a force reduction of 35%, Rally is right in that “clean” energy exchange range, where the body is saving energy and enjoying the benefits of a soft surface.
Energy restitution. Stored energy is released into the athlete moving forward.
In contrast, energy restitution deals with how much energy is being returned to the body. For context, concrete returns 77.2% and sand returns 0.50%. If too much energy is returned, it is fatiguing on joints (concrete is hard on joints). If too little energy is returned it is fatiguing to muscles (sand is too soft). Rally is tailored to sit in that cleaner range of energy restitution at 53.7%. Together these numbers – force reduction of 35% and an energy return of 53% – create a beautiful balance for an overall clean energy exchange. Rally is accepting energy, managing it, and returning it in an efficient way to benefit the body!

Safety
In addition to being ergonomic, Rally also offers these safety benefits:

  • Is slip resistant wet or dry
  • Can reduce the risk of injury from a fall
  • Quiets the environment for healing and focus
  • Enhances staff well-being by mitigating fatigue

Overhead view of a pharmacy with Ecore floors.

Acoustics
The third benefit Rally provides relates to acoustics. With two layers of VCR fusion bonded together, this engineered surface significantly reduces the noise caused by impacts, such as high heels hitting the floor or a cart rolling down a hallway. 

Floors like Rally are designed to manage this energy. The energy created from the impact has two general transmission paths.

  1. In-room Impact Noise – sound level in room where the impact occurs
  2. Transmitted Impact Noise – sound level in adjacent room, typically below impact


To learn more about in-room impact noise, watch this video.. To learn more about transmitted impact noise, visit the Ecore Acoustics page.  

What also makes Rally unique is that it is a versatile floor that can be used in a wide variety of applications:  ECOfit Plus used in a gym

  • Retail
  • K-12/Higher Ed
  • Selectorized Strength
  • Clinical/Labs
  • Therapy/Rehab
  • Childcare/Play Zones
  • Free Weights
  • Public Spaces
  • Cardio
  • Functional Training
  • Olympic Style Lifting
  • Tracks


If you're not convinced by now that Rally is the best floor we make at Ecore...I don't know what else to say!

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