3-13-2008 - Great Martinsville test for Colin

CONCORD, N.C. -- Colin Braun was pleased with the progress his Con-way Freight team made during the two-day test at Martinsville Speedway this week. With the exception of Wednesday afternoon’s practice session when he was 12th, Braun placed in the top five on the speed charts throughout the test. Not only was he fast, but he made 527 laps throughout the test which provided valuable experience for the rookie.
“I think the test went really well,” Braun said. “My Con-way Freight Ford F-150 was fast both days and we had a lot of time to try different set-ups to see what worked the best. Mike (Beam, crew chief), Hal (Ralston, engineer) and the guys really worked hard to get a lot accomplished that will help us tremendously when we go back for the race in two weeks. I ran a lot of laps which is great because Martinsville is a tough little track to get around.”
Braun has one previous start at the 0.526-mile track last October in the Craftsman Truck Series race. He finished 34th after a flat tire caused him to spin and hit the wall after 144 laps.
“Colin did a great job at the test,” Beam said. “He adapts to new tracks so quickly and he already had some experience there in last year’s race so that helped. All the Roush Fenway trucks were pretty good so we were able to share a lot of notes and ideas between the three teams. I’m looking forward to coming back in a few weeks for the race. Colin needs to stay out of trouble in the race, so it will be our responsibility to keep him up front with a good truck and fast pit stops.”
The Kroger 250 at Martinsville Speedway will be Saturday, March 29. It will be televised live on FOX at 3 p.m. (EDT).

TOP 10 over 2 day test
1. Jack Sprague, No. 2 Kevin Harvick Inc. Chevrolet, 95.675 mph
2. Travis Kvapil, No. 09 Roush Fenway Racing Ford, 95.242
3. Colin Braun, No. 6 Roush Fenway Racing Ford, 95.041
4. Donny Lia, No. 71 TRG Motorsports Chevrolet, 94.941
5. Dennis Setzer, No. 18 Bobby Hamilton Racing Dodge, 94.922
6. Timothy Peters, No. 17 Chevrolet, 94.894
7. Adam Crawford, No. 14 Circle Bar Racing Ford, 94.884
8. AJ Allmendinger, No. 46 Morgan-Dollar Motorsports Chevrolet, 94.870
9. Ted Musgrave, No. 59 HT Motorsports Toyota, 94.798
10. Mike Skinner, No. 5 Bill Davis Racing Toyota, 94.746