Speed through efficiency
“When we started this whole project, we didn’t start with the specs at all,” said Sergi Jansa, an accomplished trail runner who also works as a product manager for On’s Outdoor division.
That means that instead of chasing trends that determine stack height, foams and overall geometry, Jansa and his team thought about the demands of a race like UTMB, then backed into a formula they believed would give their athletes the best chance at winning.
“We looked at data that was already out there, on where the big moves are happening. And we found out that normally from Grand Col Ferret to La Fouly, if you come out first from that long downhill, your chances of winning go way higher,” Jansa says.
Just before that segment, the course climbs over 2,400 feet in just 2.49 miles — a brutal uphill that most pros tackle at sunrise, after hours of racing when the temperatures are at their coldest and both mind and body are truly tested.
So for On, designing the Cloudultra Pro became less about maximizing raw speed and more a matter of efficiency.
