I knew the level of competition would be much higher this time, as many of the drivers here are top off-road racers and champions. Because of that, I knew I had to step up my preparation. To be honest, I felt much better prepared coming into this event thanks to the experience I gained a few weeks earlier in Phuket.

Understanding the track conditions ahead of time always helps with preparation. I also did some research on what the European team drivers were running, and most of them were consistently using 3-hole shock pistons. That became my starting point for the shock setup.

For this race, I added one important option part to my otherwise box-stock car: the Slipper Eliminator (#324103). I felt this would be beneficial for 17.5T spec racing. I also upgraded the electronics, switching from the XR10 Legacy ESC to the XR10 G3X.

Friday practice was fairly average. Then, David Ronnefalk sent me a message and shared some setup advice on which direction to go with the car.

With his help, I immediately felt more confident in the car and was able to drive the track faster and with better consistency.

Key Changes

Increased front caster to 5 degrees
Raised rear hubs

I also went back to the standard shock pistons and oil, which further improved the car’s overall balance.

In spec racing, the electronics setup is just as important as the chassis setup. Initially, I faced an issue with power fade, which caused inconsistency when clearing the jumps. Thanks to my tech support, Matt Gonzales, for helping solve the issue.