Now enjoyed by more than 14 million viewers Video Travis Pastrana Gymkhana which came online at the end of 2022. The outlandish jumps that the action sports champion displays here would not have been possible without a company from… Hengelo!

So you plan to A fully converted Subaru station wagon, powered by a 862-horsepower four-cylinder boxer engine and all-wheel drive system, to shoot a video showing the most outrageous stunts and jumps. Where do you call first? Believe it or not, but the correct answer is: Hengelo (Gld.)!

Gymkhana-Subaru with Reiger mufflers

Reiger Suspension, the leading supplier of shock absorbers to many rally, rally and rally champions, has been there since the late 1970’s. Vermont Sportscar, the company responsible for building Pastrana’s “Family Huckster,” also knows where to get (probably) the best dampers in the world.

Vermont Sportscars typically builds “regular” rally and rallycross cars based on the Subaru Impreza, which Travis Pastrana, among others, appears at the start of various (cross) rally events in the United States. Vermont Sportscar also regularly uses Hengelo shock absorbers for these cars, says Reiger’s Sjors Busscher.

It can withstand huge raid jumps

“When we received an order from America to supply dampers for this project, we made a kit based on our best rallycross model. Huge leaps have been made in this sport, especially in America, so they are usually designed for that kind of power.”

“On the one hand, we try to make the dampers as light as possible with aluminium, but of the best quality to keep them from breaking. These dampers usually last an entire rallycross season, so they have to survive a single video recording, even if they get hit by a lot. of stress.”

dampers that can absorb hard landings

In light of the things Pastrana wanted to do with his Subaru in the video, the dampers were modified slightly by Reiger compared to the standard ones. Busscher explains: “In rallycross, you’re mainly looking for traction and good confidence for the rider to be fast, but for Gymkhana you mainly want to smooth out really hard landings. For example, we can make the inner double-piston a little bit harder for this.” .

Amazed at what the dampers can handle

Despite the fact that Reiger dampers are known for their indestructibility (it is no coincidence that almost all the eminent participants in the Dakar Rally use them), Busscher was sometimes amazed at the torture that they survived during the filming of the Gymkhana video.

“Of course we do our strength calculations with a good safety factor and we have 100 percent confidence in our product, but for example in the part where the car comes out of a deep puddle at high speed (about 6 minutes in the video, ed.), we also had to see If everything is the same.

Are you interested in the same dampers that Travis Pastrana has in his Subaru? Anything is possible, but keep in mind that the prizes start with a fabulous five-figure amount! Of course, Reiger also has more affordable groupsets.