For the benefit of the guys that didn't get to drive the truck last Saturday (Don because of the hangover and Steve because he was at work):

El Chivo is a little stiffer in the front after the shock rebuild. It wants to carry the front end off of the ground a little more than before and that makes it so you can skip the front accross the whoops a little easier while keeping the rear on the ground to avoid shock loading. . .so, yeah, it is faster.