DAYTONA BEACH FL (12-16-06) Bobby Gerhart, 5th on the speed chart, brought the biggest fleet to Daytona with 5 cars in his stable with 5 different drivers. Gerhart, a record 4-time Daytona ARCA 200 winner, is chasing an unprecedented 5th Daytona crown this February.

"I was hoping to run a 49.70 today," said the Lebanon, Pennsylvania veteran. "The car felt good, but we lost 1.3 seconds from last years pole with the plate change from last year. We'll keep working hard on the Lucas Oil Chevrolet to get the car a little better for February."

Brad Coleman, an ARCA RE/MAX Series winner at Kentucky in '06," took his first laps around the historic 2.5-mile superspeedway. "I cannot believe how bumpy it was, but fun," said Coleman. "These were my first laps at Daytona and I am looking forward to more. Running three wide here could be exciting."

Series veteran AJ Henriksen is slated to drive Gerhart's #7 Monte Carlo in the race at Daytona. "We fought a serious vibration all day Friday," said Henriksen. "Finally fixed the car about 4:30 pm when we found a faulty shock. We'll be faster now. I enjoyed shaking down Tony Marks and Eric Holmes cars in the morning."

Tony Marks, another of Gerhart's drivers, is a late model driver from Ohio. "I've waited to run here for 20 years," said Marks. "What a thrill, It was different than anything I have ever experienced. I am looking forward to getting back in the car tomorrow."

Eric Holmes, the '06 NASCAR Grand National West champion, was the fifth driver in Gerhart's stable. "I was surprised how bumpy the track was," said Holmes. "I'm here for the experience and would love to compete here in the future. The car was a little tight early, but the crew fixed that. I am looking forward to some quality runs tomorrow."

Vetern ARCA driver Justin Algaier, driver of the Hoosier Tire Midwest and U.S. Air Force Chevrolet and veteran Gerhart test driver Brian Smith also made laps in Gerhart equipment.

In all, Gerhart cars made well over 500 laps during the three day test with no serious issues.