Notes: Stremme inherits lead slot for Showdown (cont'd)

Change at RPM

There is a changing of the guard near the top at Richard Petty Motorsports.

Team members were informed Friday morning that Tom Reddin, who had been CEO of RPM, has tendered his resignation. Reddin previously was CEO at LendingTree and also spent time working at Coca-Cola USA before joining Richard Petty Motorsports.

Kasey Kahne, driver of the No. 9 Dodge fielded by RPM, said he didn't think Reddin's resignation would have any adverse repercussions within the organization.

"I wouldn't say it's a disruption," Kahne said. "I heard he had some family things he was working on."

Now it will become a bit more of a family affair at Richard Petty Motorsports. The majority owner of RPM is the Gillett family, and Kahne said that Foster Gillett, son of George, will take on an increased role in Ridden's absence.

"As far as our side, Foster is coming back from Montreal and he's going to be more hands-on at the company," Kahne said. "I think that will be fine. I think Foster does a good job with things and he's a good guy to talk to and work with."

Being Dale Jr.?

Sure he's under a microscope, but should we feel sorry for him? His peers weigh in.

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No thanks

Hendrick Motorsports teammate Mark Martin repeated his assertion Friday that Dale Earnhardt Jr. "has the broadest shoulders in NASCAR" and that he would not want to walk in his fish-bowl shoes because of all the scrutiny and pressure Earnhardt constantly is under.

Told of this later, Earnhardt said: "I don't think I would want to put anybody in my shoes. Maybe an enemy or two. There are good days and there are bad days, you know. You got a lot of things to complain about and you've got a lot to be grateful for. It's a double-edge sword."

Earnhardt's recent struggles are well-documented. He currently is 18th in points and has won only one race -- last June at Michigan -- since joining Hendrick Motorsports at the beginning of the 2008 season.

"When you're running good, there are no problems," Earnhardt said. "Even if there are, you can deal with them. We just have to get running better and then you can handle everything and nothing is a big deal. When you're running bad, you're just a target -- and you're angry because you're running bad and frustrated. You can't win for losing. If you get angry, you're a jerk; if you take it on the chin, you don't care. Everybody has got an opinion about you."

Asked how much he believed times like these build character, Earnhardt replied: "I don't think it does anybody any good. Not really. If anything, running like this and being frustrated is a challenge on your character. It can make you into a real jerk."

New career?

Carl Edwards could be about to embark on a new career -- or at least a new side career.

He will be a guest star on one of cable television's most popular situation comedies, The Bill Engvall Show, on TBS this summer. In an episode entitled The Way We Were, Edwards will co-star as what the network describes as "the smug, hip manager of a 20-something nightclub." He gets into a run-in with the stars of the show, Engvall's character and his character's wife, Susan, when they attempt to get past the velvet rope and bouncer to get into the club.

The television show's first season in 2007 positioned it as ad-supported cable's No. 1 original sitcom among adults 25-54. During its second season in 2008, it averaged 2.3 million viewers and consistently won its time slot among adults 18-49.

So if the ratings suddenly go south following Edwards' appearance, he'll know to forgo pursuit of a future acting career. If it goes well, who knows?