CONCORD, N.C. — Defending NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Carl Edwards led the speed parade Tuesday at Lowe's Motor Speedway as teams made final preparations for the May 24 Carquest Auto Parts 300.
Edwards, the 2006 winner of the Carquest Auto Parts 300, circled the 1.5-mile superspeedway in 29.555 seconds, at an average speed of 182.710 mph, in the No. 60b Roush Fenway Racing Ford. Edwards' lap was fastest of the two-day session, topping the 182.217 mark set Monday night by Denny Hamlin in the No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota.
 Defending Carquest Auto Parts 300 winner Kasey Kahne was third fastest in the No. 9 Gillett Evernham Motorsports Dodge and veteran Jason
Keller was fourth on the official speed chart at 180.584 in the No. 11 CJM Racing Chevrolet.
 Edwards rounded out the top five with a lap at 180.457 mph in the No. 60 Roush Fenway Racing Ford.
 For veteran Mike Bliss, the two-day session was his first opportunity to test since joining James Finch's No. 1 Chevrolet team in early April.
 "We are still learning about traveling the race cars. Some teams have already got it perfected and some teams are still working on it," Bliss explained. "Myself, I hadn't tested with them yet, so this is a good chance for us to try stuff that I think would work and what they think would work. As a team, we are still getting better, but we're not as good as teams that have been together for a year or two."
 Bliss also expressed displeasure with NASCAR's tampered carburetor spacer that was mandated this season and is being used at Lowe's Motor Speedway for the first time. Teams say the spacer cuts 80 horsepower from the engine.
 "We're probably running the same speed, we're just running through the corners harder, putting more pressure on the tires," Bliss said. "There
just is not enough motor there to accelerate up off the corner."
David Reutimann also noted that the carburetor spacer has changed how teams adjust the handling on their Nationwide Series cars.
 "You have to keep the cars freed up because they don't have the horsepower," said the driver of the No. 99 Michael Waltrip Racing Toyota. "We are just trying to free the car up to make it run faster. We're trying a bunch of stuff on the front end and doing a bunch of stuff so we can run as
close to wide open as possible."
 "The test was pretty decent for the No. 88 Navy team," said Brad Keselowski. "Our teammates with the No. 83 Navy Chevrolet weren't as fortunate (David Green wrecked Dale Earnhardt's No. 83 on Monday). Between that and our rough weekend at Darlington, we really focused on getting
through the test with both of our No. 88 Chevys intact.
 "The biggest thing for us was to keep our two cars in one piece and hopefully learn something. You don't have to be the fastest car on the charts to learn. We came here to learn, and hopefully leave with something we could apply when we come back next weekend. We were successful with that,
so overall it was a good test for us." Keselowski concluded.
 The only serious incident of the day took place at 6:40 p.m. when Reutimann lost control of his No. 99 Toyota and slammed the outside SAFER barrier. Reutimann, who was evaluated and released from the Carolinas HealthCare System Infield Medical Center, said the car just "snapped
around."
 The start of testing was delayed 70 minutes due to track repairs. Cars hit the track shortly after 2 p.m. and the session ran until 9 p.m.
 Lowe's Motor Speedway will return to action Friday with the North Carolina Education Lottery 200 presented by Circle K for the NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series and qualifying for the NASCAR Sprint All-Star Race.

The official speeds:

Afternoon Session
 1. Kasey Kahne, 9, 180.802; 2. Carl Edwards, 60b, 180.060; 3. Chase
Miller, 19, 179.832; 4. Carl Edwards, 60, 179.342; 5. Bryan Clauson, 40b,
179.259; 6. Clint Bowyer, 2, 178.974; 7. Mike Bliss, 1, 178.548; 8. Stephen
Leicht, 29b, 178.471; 9. Jason Leffler, 38, 178.353; 10. Bobby Hamilton Jr.,
25b, 178.124; 11. Mark Green, 70b, 178.047; 12. Kelly Bires, 47b, 177.901;
13. Kelly Bires, 47, 177.801; 14. David Ragan, 6, 177.772; 15. Cale Gale,
77, 177.708; 16. Bryan Clauson, 40, 177.684; 17. David Ragan, 6b, 177.614;
18. Brian Vickers, 10, 177.387; 19. Robert Richardson, 23, 177.282; 20.
Bobby Hamilton Jr., 25, 177.142; 21. Jason Keller, 11, 177.055; 22. Brad
Keselowski, 88, 177.003; 23. Mike Bliss, 1b, 176.893; 24. Marcos Ambrose,
59, 176.881; 25. Brad Coleman, 27, 176.615; 26. Cale Gale, 77b, 176.528; 27.
Kenny Wallace, 28, 176.517; 28. David Reutimann, 99b, 176.419; 29. Mike
Wallace, 7t, 176.246; 30. Brad Keselowski, 88b, 176.206; 31. Derrike Cope,
4, 175.942; 32. Sam Hornish Jr., 12, 175.936; 33. Jason Keller, 11b,
175.781; 34. Clint Bowyer, 2b, 174.571; 35. Danny Efland, 0, 170.218; 36.
Eric McClure, 24, 165.837.

Evening Session
 1. Carl Edwards, 60b, 182.710; 2. Chase Miller, 19, 181.159; 3.
Kasey Kahne, 9, 180.832; 4. Jason Keller, 11, 180.584; 5. Carl Edwards, 60,
180.457; 6. David Ragan, 6, 180.439; 7. Mike Bliss, 1, 180.421; 8. Clint
Bowyer, 2, 180.313; 9. Brian Vickers, 10, 180.301; 10. Jason Leffler, 38,
180.102; 11. David Ragan, 6 b, 179.796; 12. Mark Green, 70b, 179.689; 13.
Bobby Hamilton Jr., 25, 179.641; 14. Cale Gale, 77, 179.593; 15. Marcos
Ambrose, 59, 179.474; 16. Brad Keselowski, 88b, 179.432; 17. Sam Hornish
Jr., 12, 179.301; 18. Brad Keselowski, 88, 179.158; 19. Sam Hornish Jr.,
12b, 178.772; 20. Robert Richardson, 23, 178.684; 21. Bryan Clauson, 40b,
178.589; 22. Kelly Bires, 47, 178.518; 23. Derrike Cope, 4, 178.465; 24.
Jason Keller, 11b, 178.247; 25. Mike Wallace, 7t, 178.235; 26. Kenny
Wallace, 28, 178.100; 27. David Reutimann, 99, 177.392; 28. Mike Bliss, 1b,
177.363; 29. David Reutimann, 99b, 176.898; 30. Brad Coleman, 27, 176.864;
31. Clint Bowyer, 2b, 175.993; 32. Danny Efland, 0, 174.092; 33. Eric
McClure, 24, 168.313.

Tuesday

CONCORD, N.C. — The No. 20 Joe Gibbs Racing Toyota continued to dominate the NASCAR Nationwide Series Monday at Lowe's Motor Speedway as Denny Hamlin set the pace during testing for the May 24 Carquest Auto Parts 300.
The No. 20 car has won four consecutive races with three different drivers and Hamlin topped the speed chart in both sessions on the first of two days of testing. His evening lap of 29.635 seconds, 182.217 mph, was clearly superior among the more than 40 cars that took to the 1.5-mile superspeedway.
Defending NASCAR Nationwide Series champion Carl Edwards was second fastest on the electronic timers at 182.014 mph in the No. 60 Roush Fenway Ford.
Kasey Kahne, winner of last year's Carquest Auto Parts 300, was third fastest in the No. 9 Gillett Evernham Dodge at 181.947 mph while Greg Biffle was fourth at 181.708 in the No. 16 Roush Fenway Ford. Rookie Chase Miller rounded out the top five at 181.549 mph in the No. 19 Gillett Evernham Dodge.
David Stremme, driver of Rusty Wallace's No. 64 Dodge, said the horsepower difference between the Nationwide cars and the Sprint Cup cars has a tremendous impact on how a driver approaches the 1.5-mile superspeedway.
"We got to run the Penske car here last week both days and, obviously, it was a little warmer, but a Cup car is not as fast through the corners as what a Nationwide car is," Stremme explained. "So, at this time on the first day last week, we were already in the second or third lane, running against the wall and a lot of that is because the Cup cars have so much more horsepower.
"You're going into the corner faster, so you have to slow down a little bit more in the center and then you can power off. In the Nationwide car, you're almost wide open for a lap or two and then the tires fall off a little bit. You carry so much more speed through the corners you have to run the bottom of the race track. If I was a betting man, I'd almost bet that
the Cup cars are going to race around the top, and whoever's car can run the middle to the bottom is going to be out front. "The Nationwide race is going to be on the bottom and whoever's car is turning the best will win," Stremme continued. "There's no power in these cars. They don't run down the straightaway, so you've got to get all your speed through the corners."
Lowe's Motor Speedway was repaved in April 2006 and Stremme said the surface is aging gracefully.
"The race track has seasoned well. I was fortunate enough to run on the old race track before it got ground, and then when it got ground and then with the new asphalt," he said. "I'm really happy at how it's still Charlotte. You've got to be careful in Turns 3 and 4 during the hot weather.
Then you can look around on the race track and still run up by the wall or on the bottom. It makes for a lot of fun."
Veteran Jeff Burton, driver of the No. 29 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet, praised Goodyear for the tire engineers selected for the May races at Lowe's Motor Speedway.
"I had a scheduling conflict so we kind of got a late start, but everything is going well, Burton said during the dinner break. "I really like these tires on this surface. I think it's the best Goodyear has done so far at this race track, and the few laps I've run have been good."
The most serious incident of the day took place during the afternoon session when veteran David Green slammed the outside SAFER barrier in Dale Earnhardt Jr.'s No. 83 Chevrolet. Green said he was making just his third lap when the right-front tire went down and the car shot to the outside. Green was evaluated and released from the Carolinas HealthCare System Infield Medical Center.
Robert Richardson Jr. spun during the afternoon session, but did not make wall contact.
NASCAR Nationwide Series testing for the May 24 Carquest Auto Parts 300 continues from 1 p.m. to 9 p.m. Tuesday and the frontstretch grandstand will be open free of charge.
Official speeds:

Afternoon Session
1. Denny Hamlin, 20, 178.903; 2. Kasey Kahne, 9, 178.424; 3. David
Stremme, 64, 178.365; 4. Carl Edwards, 60b, 178.288; 5. Brad Keselowski, 88,
178.271; 6. Brian Vickers, 10, 178.265; 7. Mike Bliss, 1, 178.012; 8. Kelly
Bires, 47, 177.871; 9. David Stremme, 64b, 177.860; 10. Sam Hornish Jr., 12,
177.363; 11. David Reutimann, 99b, 177.270; 12. Johnny Benson, 18, 177.247;
13. David Ragan, 6b, 177.183; 14. Greg Biffle, 16, 177.061; 15. Mike
Wallace, 7, 176.980; 16. Marcos Ambrose, 59, 176.974; 17. David Ragan, 6,
176.945; 18. Stephen Leicht, 2, 176.881; 19. Stephen Leicht, 2b, 176.829;
20. Bryan Clauson, 40b, 176.725; 21. Kyle Busch, 32, 176.574; 22. Jeff
Burton, 29b, 176.569; 23. Kevin Harvick, 33b, 176.563; 24. Jason Keller, 11,
176.505; 25. Jason Keller, 11b, 176.407; 26. Jason Leffler, 38b, 176.355;
27. Steve Wallace, 66a, 176.344; 28. Kevin Harvick, 33, 176.229; 29. David
Reutimann, 99, 176.200; 30. Chase Miller, 19, 176.074; 31. Greg Biffle, 16b,
175.867; 32. Kelly Bires, 47b, 175.695; 33. Mike Wallace, 7t, 175.564; 34.
Brad Keselowski, 88b, 175.376; 35. Cale Gale, 77b, 175.205; 36. Jeff Burton,
29, 175.080; 37. Jason Leffler, 38, 174.972; 38. Steve Wallace, 66b,
174.961; 39. Mark Green, 70, 174.893; 40. Brad Coleman, 27, 174.729; 41.
Mike Bliss, 1b, 174.036; 42. Bryan Clauson, 40, 173.930; 43. Bobby Hamilton
Jr., 25b, 173.210; 44. Carl Edwards, 60, 172.933; 45. David Green, 83,
172.035; 46. Robert Richardson Jr., 23, 171.821.

Evening Session
1. Denny Hamlin, 20, 182.217; 2. Carl Edwards, 60b, 182.014; 3.
Kasey Kahne, 9, 181.947; 4. Greg Biffle, 16, 181.708; 5. Chase Miller, 19,
181.549; 6. Davie Stremme/Steve Wallace, 64, 181.068; 7. Marcos Ambrose, 59,
180.995; 8. Johnny Benson, 18, 180.765; 9. Jeff Burton, 29b, 180.668; 10.
Brad Keselowski, 88b, 180.644; 11. Steve Wallace/David Stremme, 66b,
180.554; 12. Brian Vickers, 10, 180.505; 13. David Reutimann, 99b, 180.463;
14. Mike Bliss, 1, 180.246; 15. David Ragan, 6, 180.228; 16. Kyle Busch, 32,
180.222; 17. Stephen Leicht, 2b, 180.114; 18. Sam Hornish Jr., 12, 180.048;
19. Kelly Bires, 47, 179.994; 20. Kevin Harvick, 33b, 179.988; 21. Stephen
Leicht, 2, 179.946; 22. Jason Keller, 11, 179.659; 23. Bryan Clauson, 40b,
179.659; 24. Brad Keselowski, 88, 179.480; 25. David Ragan, 6b, 179.474; 26.
Greg Biffle/Colin Braun, 16b, 179.325; 27. Bobby Hamilton Jr., 25, 179.188;
28. Jason Leffler, 38, 179.158; 29. Mike Wallace, 7t, 179.146; 30. Cale
Gale, 77, 178.489; 31. Mike Wallace, 7, 178.230; 32. Derrike Cope, 4,
178.141; 33. Kenny Wallace, 28, 178.071; 34. Mike Bliss, 1b, 177.901; 35.
Cale Gale, 77b, 177.223; 36. Jeff Fuller/Robert Richardson Jr., 23, 176.811;
37. Mark Green, 70, 176.650; 38. Jeff Burton, 29, 176.586; 39. Jason Keller,
11b, 176.263; 40. Brad Coleman, 27, 176.183; 41. Mark Green, 70b, 175.953;
42. Kelly Bires, 47b, 164.810.