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Richard Childress wore the expression of someone who's learned to operate "in the big picture" as he calmly, thoughtfully answered the tough questions about how his mighty racing organization has endured the struggles and frustration of a winless 2009 season.

Lost in all the Jimmie Johnson and Mark Martin championship storylines, and the Dale Jr. non-championship hysteria, is the quiet dismay at RCR, which had three cars in the Chase for the Championship a year ago and not a single one of its now four-car stable qualify this fall.

Musings, rumblings and ramblings from Geoffrey Miller after Saturday night's Sprint All-Star Challenge

'Wooooooooo!' to LMS, NASCAR

I'm not sure who makes the final call on the All-Star race format, but Saturday night's version is about as a good as it gets. That 10-lap finale? Adjectives don't describe that, but honorary race director Ric Flair's trademark "Woooooo!" does.

'Woooooo!' Part Deux

The single funniest moment of the night? Joey Logano's Ric Flair imitation after being announced as the fan vote winner. [Watch here at 1:16]

One of the bigger stories of the weekend's Nationwide Series activities at Nashville Superspeedway, thanks to the fine folks over at Scene Daily, involved a potential move of Rusty Wallace Inc.'s two teams to Sprint Cup in 2010.

According to the story, team owner Rusty Wallace said that he'd like to make the move in 2010, but that a lot of things would have to line up for it to happen -- like equipment, sponsorship and other necessities.

But doesn't it seem a little perplexing that the former Sprint Cup champ would want to move an organization that has one total win in Nationwide Series competition to NASCAR's top level?

There was much ado about nothing leaving Bristol Motor Speedway last Sunday. The top 35 owner points in the NASCAR Sprint Cup Series were reset for the first time this year following the Bristol race, guaranteeing a starting spot to the top 35 teams this weekend at Martinsville Speedway and forcing the outsiders to race their way in on time.

So, for those locked into the top 35, relief reigns at least for the next week. But my contention is the top 35 shouldn't even exist. Get rid of the whole system. I've thought that since the rule's inception but became even more incensed when things became completely convoluted entering the 2009 season.

Two weeks ago at Auto Club Speedway, Kevin Harvick failed to finish -- snapping a streak of 81 straight races that the California driver had been running at the checkered flag.

Harvick was just three finished races shy of breaking the modern era record until a ruptured oil filter sent the No. 29 "streaking", if you will, into ACS' turn one wall.

This week, though, Harvick was featured on the Performance Racing Network's "Garage Pass" and delivered the news: the streak didn't have to end.

NASCAR's testing ban doesn't seem to be working as well as officials might have hoped.

As expected, several teams have been cris-crossing the country over the past few weeks in attempt to shake down their race cars for the upcoming season. Instead, though, of testing at NASCAR sanctioned facilities, they've been testing at places such as General Motors' proving grounds in Mesa, Ariz., New Smyrna Speedway in Florida and Texas World Speedway.

The testing ban, instituted by NASCAR in November, forbid any NASCAR team from going to any NASCAR-sanctioned facility to help cut costs during the economic tailspin that has greatly affected many aspects of the racing industry.

And not so surprisingly, the effort to cut costs apparently hasn't been as gloriously successful -- although teams did avoid wasting their time in Daytona.

Warning: Objects in this post may be the only way to successfully live through the NASCAR off-season. For best results, read rearview mirror early and often.

Driver: Clint Bowyer
Team: No. 31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
'08 Final Standing: 5th (-303)
Best Race: Richmond (1st)
Worst Race:Pocono (39th-place)

Season in a box: Looking back through 2008, Clint Bowyer more than showed that he has quickly become one of the most consistent drivers in NASCAR and hopefully, unlike the trend we talked about in teammate Jeff Burton's season recap, Bowyer can gain on his young success.

Warning: Objects in this post may be the only way to successfully live through the NASCAR off-season. For best results, read rearview mirror early and often.

Driver: Jeff Burton
Team: No. 31 Richard Childress Racing Chevrolet
'08 Final Standing: 6th (-349)
Best Race: Bristol & Charlotte (1st)
Worst Race: Bristol (42nd-place)

Season in a box: 2008 was nothing more than the same old song and dance for Jeff Burton. So much, in fact, that I'm ready to start a lobby for a new nickname for Burton that is both bland and consistent. Ideas, anyone?

The famed No. 43, the legendary Petty blue and everything that NASCAR's "King" Richard Petty helped to produce in his legendary 200-win and seven-championship career at Petty Enterprises seems to be slipping fast.

The team released 35 to 39 more employees this week on top of over over 30 that were let go immediately following the Sprint Cup season-finale at Homestead-Miami Speedway in November, bringing the total to nearly 70 people. ESPN says roughly 54 people remain at the shop.

Those 54 people are apparently waiting on any bit of good news that may come their way in terms of their employment -- and that news might just involve a merger with Gillette-Evernham Motorsports. Such a deal would see the famous No. 43 and possibly 2000 Sprint Cup champ Bobby Labonte move to the GEM stable to create a four-car team.

ESPN's David Newton said a possibility remains that the merger would happen and Labonte move to the GEM No. 41 Target ride while A.J. Allmendinger takes over the No. 43.

Petty's problems come directly from the fact that the team lacks full-season support for the two teams it wants to race in 2009 -- Labonte's No. 43 and a car for the young Chad McCumbee. General Mills left the team at the end of 2008 and will sponsor Richard Childress Racing's Clint Bowyer in 2009.

Even more surprising is that a face of Petty Enterprises no longer associates himself with the team.

Carl Edwards literally did all he could do in the Nationwide Series' final race Saturday night at Homestead-Miami Speedway to win the 2009 series title, but Clint Bowyer's 5th-place finish kept it out of the Ford driver's hands.

As a result, Bowyer, a native of Emporia, Kan., scored his first-career championship in NASCAR's second-tier series by a mere 21 points over the race-winning Edwards after beginning the Ford 300 with a 56-point advantage in the series standings.

Together with Johnny Benson's Craftsman Truck Series championship drive on Friday night, a grand total of 28 points have separated NASCAR's two champions in 2008 from their closest rivals in second place -- Edwards on Saturday night at Ron Hornaday Jr. on Friday night.

That small point difference trend isn't expected to continue with Sunday's Ford 400 Sprint Cup season-finale race as Jimmie Johnson has a 141-point lead over Edwards in the top level series. Johnson, however, doesn't have the championship quite in the bag yet because he does have to finish 36th or higher to guarantee the title -- but certainly the drawstring is closing.

Back to Bowyer's title, however, and you're certainly looking at a driver who has had a stressful go of it as he attempted to finish out a virtually impeccable season of Nationwide competition.