Johnson's Daytona Diary: Wednesday

DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. -- A week into Speedweeks, Jimmie Johnson has enjoyed quite a ride. He was fastest in Day 7's first practice and carries extreme confidence into the Gatorade 125s.

Wednesday, February 12

8 a.m. -- Woke up

8:15 a.m. -- Got ready

"I didn't have time to work out today with an early practice."

9 a.m. -- Departed for the racetrack

9:30 a.m. -- Arrived at Daytona International Speedway

9:40 a.m. -- Conducted an interview with CNN Newsource

9:45 a.m. -- Spoke with the No. 48 crew and started to get ready for practice

10:05 - 10:50 a.m. -- Practice

	Credit: Autostock

"We had a good first practice. We posted the fastest time, but that can be deceiving. I would say after our first practice we were an average Chevy. The Lowe's Monte Carlo was a little tight, but we were still very competitive with the rest of the field and we knew that we had another practice to get the race car the way we wanted it to be."

11 - 11:45 a.m. -- Spoke with the guys from the team, Chad and Jeff about the first session. I also grabbed a bite to eat before the second practice session.

12:05 - 12:50 p.m. - -- Final practice before the Gatorade 125s

"Team Lowe's did a great job of getting the No. 48 Chevy ready for the second practice. While we weren't on top of the charts, Chad and the guys were able to loosen up the racecar, which allowed me to do a lot more on the track. I'm feeling really good about the way the Lowe's Chevy is set up for the Gatorade 125s and while we have a tough twin with Junior, Waltrip, Stewart and Bobby Labonte, we'll be able to hold our own."

12:50 - 1 p.m. -- Discussed the race car and tomorrow's setup with Chad -- and the crew

1 - 1:15 p.m. -- Changed into my IROC shirt for a press conference

1:15 - 2 p.m. -- IROC press conference

"I participated in the IROC press conference where the drivers selected their car color and starting position. I will start fourth and be in car number four, but I originally had the red color race car until Mike Bliss, last season's truck champion, elected to switch with me, against my choice, with the rose (pink) car.

"I was teasing the guys that they were going to select the pink car and I was really relieved when I got the red car, but the IROC rules allow drivers when they randomly select their car color to change car color with drivers that will start ahead of them during the race.

"Bliss decided that he wanted the red car and stuck me with the pink. I guess those guys are going to lose to a guy driving a pink racecar. My dad thought that Earnhardt won his first IROC championship in a pink car, so maybe this is a good thing. We'll just have to see on Friday."

2 - 3:30 p.m. -- Relaxed at the motor coach

3:30 p.m. -- Left for a Hendrick Marrow Program autograph signing in Ormond Beach

4-5 p.m. -- Signed the Hendrick Marrow Program cookbook for fans at the Lowe's in Ormond Beach, Fla.

"Before the autograph session, I had an opportunity to walk around the Lowe's store and meet all the employee owners. They were really supportive of Team Lowe's Racing and very friendly."

5 - 5:15 p.m. -- Went back to the motor coach to pick up my things

5:15 - 5:40 p.m. -- Went back to the condo

5:40 p.m. -- Got ready for a Team Lowe's Racing dinner

6:30 p.m. -- Left for the team dinner

7 - 10 p.m. -- Had dinner with the team at the Chart House

"The Chart House is a great place for dinner. We had a private room and a bunch of folks from Lowe's took the time to travel from North Carolina down to have dinner with us. They presented Chad (Knaus) with a trophy for being named the 2002 Irwin Crew Chief of the Year and the team presented trophies to Lowe's for being named the Sports Business Journal's sponsor of the year for 2002. We had a lot of fun and I know that the guys really enjoyed the good food and support from Lowe's."

10 p.m. -- Headed back to the condo

10 p.m. -- 11 p.m. -- Relaxed at condo

11 p.m. -- Bedtime

"As I'm sure you have read over the last week, I try and get to bed by 11 p.m."