Lowe’s Test Sessions Topped by Rookies
Written by John Davison · May 2, 2006
The first day of open NASCAR NEXTEL Cup testing at Lowe’s Motor Speedway unveiled some interesting items. A pair of rookies, Denny Hamlin and Clint Bowyer took their Chevrolets to the top of the charts in testing. The day was not completely uneventful however, as Paul Menard was the first to taste the SAFER barrier. Menard slapped the wall in Turn Two after what spotters reported might have been a right front tire problem. It was eventually learned that something on the car had rubbed through the right front tire, causing the crash.
Not long after the track went green again, Joe Nemechek spun and backed into the wall in Turn Four. Then Brian Vickers joined the club, spinning without hitting anything, soon to be joined by Denny Hamlin who spun without hitting anything and eventually by Kurt Busch who suffered a ‘tank slapper’ down the back straight before slamming the wall with the nose of the No. 2 Dodge. Busch drove the car back to the garage 
and was soon testing the team’s second chassis. Paul Menard and Martin Truex joined in the spin cycle, crashing their cars without receiving any personal injuries. None of the drivers who hit the wall were injured in the day’s tests.
Early in the testing, several drivers were heard complaining that the track felt greasy. They said that when the front tires started ‘chattering’ in turns, that no amount of slowing and correction would eliminate that until the car was on the next straight. Methodical testing of different spring and shock absorber setups eventually resulted in significant speed gains, with most teams picking up two or three mph before the day’s testing ended.
By the end of the first session, lasting from 1:00 PM to 5:00 PM, Kevin Harvick topped the charts, with a best time of 29.897 sec/180.620 mph. Fairly close behind him was second finisher at Talladega Tony Stewart, just 0.023 sec back at 29.920 sec/180.481 mph. Jimmie Johnson was another seven thousandths of a second behind “Smoke” at 180.439 mph.
“We made just short runs,” said Carl Edwards during the dinner break. “So far the tires look like they’re not wearing hardly at all.
“We’ve just been kind of getting our car set up for the race track, seeing what kind of springs we can run,” added Edwards. “Everybody’s asking about the tires, so far the tires look like they are not wearing hardly at all-at least in the short run. I don’t know how they’ll do on real long runs, but I think they’ll be fine. The track is really smooth. It’s amazing how smooth they got it.”
2000 Coca-Cola 600 winner Matt Kenseth added that “the tire’s probably harder than the race track,” adding “I feel like I drive it a little bit different than before the track got ground. We’re just creeping up to it.
“The track is really nice. They did a nice job paving it,” said Kenseth. “It’s going to eventually be the same old Charlotte. The tire’s pretty hard, probably a little harder than the race track. I don’t think we’ll blow any tires. But the tire’s hard and that’s something that we’ll have to deal with. The track is really nice and I think the race is going to be fine on it.”
“You can’t be as aggressive,” he said, describing the driving style on the new pavement.
“The track paving job, as far as I’m concerned, is pretty darn good,” said Kyle Busch, who received a cake and a bottle of champagne from track officials in celebration of his 21st birthday. “It’s excellent. It’s very smooth out there. The tires, I feel they are a little too hard for what we’re trying to do out there, but Goodyear tried to bring a tire that would last and help slow us down because that’s what NASCAR wanted. Overall I think we’re going to accomplish that.”
“They say it’s like a four-wheel drift on Speedy-Dri” said one team spotter early in the session.
The evening session, ending at 9:00, saw the time sheets totally upended, with rookies Clint Bowyer and Denny Hamlin topping Tony Stewart. Bowyer’s fast time was a lap of 29.365 sec/183.892 mph, with Hamlin just 0.015 sec slower. Tony Stewart was third in the session and for the day, at 29.393 sec/183.717 mph, followed by Carl Edwards’ lap only two thousandths of a second slower. Ken Schrader ended the evening in the top five, just another six thousandths behind Edwards.
Showing driver and fastest lap:
1. Clint Bowyer, 183.892 mph, 29.365 sec
2. Denny Hamlin, 183.799, 29.380
3. Tony Stewart, 183.717, 29.393
4. Carl Edwards, 183.705, 29.395
5. Ken Schrader, 183.667, 29.401
6. Jeff Gordon, 183.611, 29.410
7. Casey Mears, 183.418, 29.441
8. Kevin Harvick, 183.343, 29.453
9. J.J. Yeley, 183.324, 29.456
10. Kyle Petty, 183.200, 29.476
11. Matt Kenseth, 183.163, 29.482
12. Mark Martin, 182.896, 29.525
13. Dale Earnhardt Jr., 182.883, 29.527
14. Jeff Burton, 182.797, 29.541
15. Ryan Newman, 182.791, 29.542
16. Greg Biffle, 182.716, 29.554
17. Jimmie Johnson, 182.667, 29.562
18. Johnny Sauter, 182.599, 29.573
19. Dale Jarrett, 182.513, 29.587
20. Reed Sorenson, 182.506, 29.588
21. Jamie McMurray, 182.469, 29.594
22. Jeff Green, 182.408, 29.604
23. David Stremme, 182.395, 29.606
24. Scott Riggs, 182.205, 29.637
25. Elliott Sadler, 182.131, 29.649
26. Tony Raines, 182.113, 29.652
27. Joe Nemechek, 182.039, 29.664
28. Mike Garvey, 181.977, 29.674
29. Robby Gordon, 181.916, 29.684
30. Kyle Busch, 181.867, 29.692
30. Kurt Busch, 181.629, 29.731
32. Kenny Wallace, 181.622, 29.732
33. Bobby Labonte, 181.476, 29.756
34. Dave Blaney, 181.251, 29.793
35. Kevin Lepage, 181.220, 29.798
36. Terry Labonte, 181.111, 29.816
37. Martin Truex Jr., 180.947, 29.843
38. Paul Menard, 180.898, 0.030
39.Sterling Marlin, 180.705, 29.883
40. Bill Elliott, 180.415, 29.931
41. Travis Kvapil, 180.102, 29.983
42. Scott Wimmer, 180.060, 29.990
43. Jeremy Mayfield, 179.946, 0.030
44. Brian Vickers, 179.742, 30.043
45. Michael Waltrip, 179.325, 30.113
46. Mike Wallace, 176.719, 30.557
47. Brent Sherman, 174.205, 30.998
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Nice article.
Whether your passion is the OW silliness that passes for sport these days, or lust for the tin-tops, it’s always enjoyable to hear the stories told in a becoming way.
Thanks.
Allan