A CLOSER LOOK - Shock Therapy

One of Best In The Desert’s sponsors, Shock Therapy, is a Phoenix, Arizona-based UTV suspension specialist that has become a powerhouse in the aftermarket UTV industry. Through the highest quality product development and service, Shock Therapy has solidifi ed its place in the racing community as well as the hearts of the UTV weekend warrior. Growing up in southern California with a father who raced AA fuel altered, Mickey Thompson as a neighbor and SoCal hot rod legend, Pete Chapouris’s son as a classmate, Justin Smith always had horsepower on his mind. “Horsepower was the driving force at the time. Anything fast was the goal. Pushing vehicles to their limit was an obsession,” stated Justin. Through his teens, Justin built race engines in his garage, while most kids had paper routes. Drag racing on the weekends

Justin Smith putting his product throught the ultimate test by racing in the Pro Turbo UTV Class.

and building engines after school was the norm. But one ride in a class 8 truck changed all that. “Suddenly speed at a quarter mile at a time was replaced with hair on fi re straightaways, punctuated with panic stops for hours at a time. I was hooked.” For the next few years, Justin dove into the engineering and geometry of suspension design to perfect the marriage of horsepower and suspension that off -road racing demanded. Sand cars, pre-runners, class 10, class 8, class 1, and Trick Trucks were some of the arenas that he pursued. When the great recession of 2008 hit, Justin lost everything. At the same time, his wife, Jeanette, broke her back in a boating accident. When things looked to be at their worst, the birth of Shock Therapy began.

Justin said, “Jeanette could no longer go for a UTV ride. It was just too rough, so the goal became tuning the suspension in such a way that the chop was plush, and the bottoming was nonexistent, so she could ride again.” Soon, she could ride again, sometimes for hours on end, even with two feet of titanium in her back. Friends heard about the improvements. Then, customers and racers heard as well. With the addition of Ernie Ely running the day-to-day operations, Shock Therapy was born in Justin’s three car, home garage on the outskirts of Phoenix in 2014. Fast forward eight years. and the company has grown to 70 employees, a massive 40,000 square foot headquarters, and over 50,000 customers. As the company grew, the addition of many products to the shock tuning line facilitated the need for manufacturing. Fabrication was already a part of the shop, but the need for speedy development required more equipment, specifi cally, CNC machines. With the addition of Jason Krause in the CNC department and over fourteen CNC machines, Shock Therapy makes all their own parts, controls their supply chain, and keeps quality parts in stock when others cannot. “The ability to sketch an idea on a napkin at lunch, send it to the shop, have a CAD drawing that day and make parts tomorrow is invaluable. With the addition of new models and needs many times per year or even per month, it is paramount that we can develop instantly to keep our edge in the marketplace,” Jason Krause remarked. Designing your own parts are only as good as the testing and protections in

Keep that nasty, gritty, super-fine off-road racing dirt completely out of your fuel.

No other fuel filter offers maximum protection like the FST

Uniquely designed, race-proven FST Fuel Filter filters to 4 microns.

FST Fuel Filtration Equipped Winners:

Trick Trucks Ryan Arciero Adam Householder Kevin Thompson Tim Herbst

ClassClass 61006100 Dustin Grabowski Brent Fox Pierce Herbst Terry Householder Justin Blower

New Filter Shield protects your fuel filter from flying rocks & debris

FUEL FILTRATION More Info: www.FSTperformance.com 407-323-0122

place. With over twenty-four patents, Shock Therapy leads the industry in new products. Testing is very important as well. The Shock Therapy Off -Road Racing team is as much a race team fi ghting for wins as it is a test bed for all Shock Therapy products. “We test every single day. Whether it’s new UTVs with shocks and springs or new products, everything we do has seen thousands of race miles before our customers ever know about it. It is a mission that Shock Therapy lives by,” Justin commented. In this age of supply chain roadblocks and cash fl ow issues, most companies fi nd that inventory is very important. “You can sink your business quickly with too much inventory just as easily as you can with too little.” With this in mind and 2008 looming closely in the back of Justin’s mind, all of the equipment and inventory at Shock Therapy is paid for. Say hello to Justin at Best In The Desert events, and watch for more exciting new products from Shock Therapy. Be sure to check out their website for complete information: www.ShockTherapy.com