Maintaining equipment, tires key at Darlington

It's too bad the Lowe's team lost an engine with just under 20 laps remaining in last weekend's race in Atlanta. Jimmie Johnson drove his heart out, and the crew put a great race car on the track.

Besides the first lap of the race, we ran in the top-10 all afternoon and were on the brink of a top-three finish. This is a freak thing that happened, and we're confident it won't happen again. We'll work hard this week in the shop to prepare for Darlington, a place where we posted two top 10s last season. Trust me -- we will rebound this weekend.

	Chad Knaus

Darlington is considered a veteran's track -- a track that takes years of experience to learn how to run well there. It is especially important to learn how to take care of your equipment and learn how to negotiate the famed Turn 2 -- the turn where the wall actually juts out.

Taking all of those things into consideration, you would think our second-year team would be at a huge disadvantage with only two Darlington races under our belts. But fortunately for us, Darlington is a place where Jimmie likes to run and where he posted two top-10 finishes last season, a sixth and a ninth.

Besides Jimmie's ability to adapt his driving style to fit the Darlington track, the Lowe's crew has worked its tail off to put him in some great Chevrolets. Jimmie has been able to drive the heck out of them in qualifying, where he started fifth in both events last season.

Darlington is also the toughest racetrack on tires in the Winston Cup series. I think it's even harder on them than Rockingham. Just like "The Rock," Darlington's surface is made from sand that contains seashells in it, so the asphalt just wears down the tires in a hurry.

SI.com  •  SI.com's complete NASCAR coverage

One of the areas that is usually a concern for a young team racing on a track like Darlington is whether the driver knows how to conserve the racecar and have something left for the end of a race. Fortunately, this is not a concern for us, because Jimmie has shown that he knows how to take care of his equipment.

All things considered, we're excited about this weekend, and it feels that we are continuing to improve each week. Darlington is the next step in our learning process. If we want to compete with the best, we need to be at our best each week. With some concentrated preparation and a little luck, Darlington should bring similar results for Team Lowe's as last season.

The keys to success at Darlington Raceway:

1. Tires

Seashells in the asphalt are extremely hard on the tires, but reducing the fall off will play a big role in deciding the winner.

2. Pit crew

Because of the asphalt, four tires will be the norm, so solid, clean stops are a must.

3. Driver

Just like "The Rock," Darlington is a driver's track where Jimmie will need to get up on the wheel. Being smooth and consistent all afternoon and not abusing the racecar will be important to getting a solid finish.

Chad Knaus is the crew chief for Jimmie Johnson, driver of the No. 48 Lowe's Chevrolet Monte Carlo for Hendrick Motorsports. His column will appear weekly on SI.com.