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COMMERCE, Ga. – Roger Burgess remembers a weekend, last year, when he joined a group of friends attended the NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Florida. While his associates were mesmerized with the thunderous sounds of the nitromethane-burning entries, the Atlanta, Ga.-based businessman was infatuated by the antics of the Pro Modified division.
So infatuated was Burgess, founder of ProCareRX, he went out and purchased himself a Pro Modified car to call his own and a few more for good measure.
“I actually wanted just one and I ended up buying a few of them,” Burgess said as he laughed. “I specifically watched Pro Modified run that weekend. They just looked like they were having a lot of fun.”
Burgess admitted the inspiration came from watching racers like Josh Hernandez, Raymond Commisso and Jay Payne. Watching is one thing, but what would inspire the C.E.O. of a huge corporation to escape from the confines of his three-piece suit world into that of a greasy and grimy firesuit?
“The circle of life, as they call it, is probably what inspired me to run Pro Modified,” Burgess admitted. “When I was younger I raced doorslammers while growing up in Orlando. I was a drag racer back then and then I got busy with life and family.
“No matter what you do in life, you have to have some kind of balance. Recreation is an important part of that balance. To me, this is the best because it is recreation with competition.”
Most of us find competition even in recreational sports, however Burgess says even though he loves a good game of golf, the rush is nowhere near as much as piloting his 2,500-horsepower 1963 Corvette.
“Golf is fun too, but only up to a certain point and when you play like I do, you can’t hire a team to go out and help you swing a club,” Burgess admitted. “At least I can hire a team to help me go out and drive the car.”
Burgess didn’t need a reminder of how good his team was but was given one three weekends ago in Houston, Texas. Interim driver Joe Baker drove Burgess’s car to the winner’s circle while he was away tending to business obligations. The win comes as no huge surprise to Burgess.
“I’ve known since we put together this team that we have a car capable of winning every round,” Burgess said. “We have one of the best teams and that’s everyone from the crew chiefs down to the lowest guy. I think because of that, we have more than a good chance to win every time we go out.”
The good chance of winning comes in handy as the 10-race NHRA Jegs ProMod tour rolls into Atlanta for the NHRA Southern Nationals this weekend. With the hometown advantage creates the traditional tendency for Burgess to be pulled in multiple directions.
“I have mixed feelings about racing in front of the home crowd,” Burgess said. “It’s going to be a really busy weekend because we are entertaining a lot of clients and a lot of prospective clients and a lot of employees and hopefully sponsors for our nitro team. We are also racing and putting on an event for charity honoring the Dream House. It will be a very busy weekend, so I won’t have too much time to think about racing at home. I’ll basically take a deep breath and go out there and drive.”
“One thing I learned a long time ago in an event like this is you try your best to keep everything balanced. You learn to turn it on and off as you need to. First and foremost, we have a lot of entertaining to do this weekend and that’s our objective until we get inside the car.”
Looking through his relatively short racing career, Burgess has no major regrets regarding his racing decisions since that day in Gainesville. He does have one minor one, though.
“The only regret is that I don’t have more time to spend racing the car,” Burgess said. “This is only my second race of the year and it feels like forever since I’ve been in that car. I’d like to do it more and I will be able to attend the rest of the races this year.”
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For more information about Gotham City Racing, visit the team website: Gotham City Racing.
About ProCare Rx:
Roger and Barbara Burgess founded ProCare Rx in 1988 to provide prescription drug claims processing, clinical services and support for any organization that provides a Prescription Drug Benefit to its employees or members. Clients include self-insured businesses, unions, hospices, worker compensation plans, local and county governments, health maintenance organizations, associations and other insurance plans.
Today, after almost 20 years in business, ProCare Rx is one of the largest privately held Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBM) and administrators in the United States, experiencing 19 straight years of continual growth. The company works with pharmacies and prescription drug manufacturers to ensure that clients save money while managing the health of their members thru the application of innovative technologies and population health services directed to all members, with focus on those with chronic conditions.
For more information, visit the company web site at ProCare Rx - Better, Faster, Cheaper & Customized!.
About Gotham City Racing:
In January 2008, entrepreneur and race enthusiast Roger Burgess joined Mike Ashley as co-owner, and together they formed Gotham City Racing LLC. Mike and Roger share the same vision for continued growth of the team into an organization determined to set the standard within the drag race industry, from on the track performance to marketing and sponsor activation.
Gotham City Racing is also sponsored by:
* Oakley - Official Site for Oakley Sunglasses, Goggles, Shoes, Watches and Apparel
* The Hyperbaric Therapy Center - Hyperbaric Therapy Center - Hyperbaric Chamber
* Lend America - Nationwide, direct lender, Lend America offers mortgages, loans, with little to no money down, quick loan process
Lend America is a nationwide direct lender, specializing in residential financing for one to four family homes. Contact Lend America today at (877) 4-RACE LOAN or visit them online.
BURGESS FINDS HIS ESCAPE IN PRO MODIFIED RACING
Hometown racer looking to combat busy schedule with NHRA Southern Nationals triumph
COMMERCE, Ga. – Roger Burgess remembers a weekend, last year, when he joined a group of friends attended the NHRA Gatornationals in Gainesville, Florida. While his associates were mesmerized with the thunderous sounds of the nitromethane-burning entries, the Atlanta, Ga.-based businessman was infatuated by the antics of the Pro Modified division.
So infatuated was Burgess, founder of ProCareRX, he went out and purchased himself a Pro Modified car to call his own and a few more for good measure.
“I actually wanted just one and I ended up buying a few of them,” Burgess said as he laughed. “I specifically watched Pro Modified run that weekend. They just looked like they were having a lot of fun.”
Burgess admitted the inspiration came from watching racers like Josh Hernandez, Raymond Commisso and Jay Payne. Watching is one thing, but what would inspire the C.E.O. of a huge corporation to escape from the confines of his three-piece suit world into that of a greasy and grimy firesuit?
“The circle of life, as they call it, is probably what inspired me to run Pro Modified,” Burgess admitted. “When I was younger I raced doorslammers while growing up in Orlando. I was a drag racer back then and then I got busy with life and family.
“No matter what you do in life, you have to have some kind of balance. Recreation is an important part of that balance. To me, this is the best because it is recreation with competition.”
Most of us find competition even in recreational sports, however Burgess says even though he loves a good game of golf, the rush is nowhere near as much as piloting his 2,500-horsepower 1963 Corvette.
“Golf is fun too, but only up to a certain point and when you play like I do, you can’t hire a team to go out and help you swing a club,” Burgess admitted. “At least I can hire a team to help me go out and drive the car.”
Burgess didn’t need a reminder of how good his team was but was given one three weekends ago in Houston, Texas. Interim driver Joe Baker drove Burgess’s car to the winner’s circle while he was away tending to business obligations. The win comes as no huge surprise to Burgess.
“I’ve known since we put together this team that we have a car capable of winning every round,” Burgess said. “We have one of the best teams and that’s everyone from the crew chiefs down to the lowest guy. I think because of that, we have more than a good chance to win every time we go out.”
The good chance of winning comes in handy as the 10-race NHRA Jegs ProMod tour rolls into Atlanta for the NHRA Southern Nationals this weekend. With the hometown advantage creates the traditional tendency for Burgess to be pulled in multiple directions.
“I have mixed feelings about racing in front of the home crowd,” Burgess said. “It’s going to be a really busy weekend because we are entertaining a lot of clients and a lot of prospective clients and a lot of employees and hopefully sponsors for our nitro team. We are also racing and putting on an event for charity honoring the Dream House. It will be a very busy weekend, so I won’t have too much time to think about racing at home. I’ll basically take a deep breath and go out there and drive.”
“One thing I learned a long time ago in an event like this is you try your best to keep everything balanced. You learn to turn it on and off as you need to. First and foremost, we have a lot of entertaining to do this weekend and that’s our objective until we get inside the car.”
Looking through his relatively short racing career, Burgess has no major regrets regarding his racing decisions since that day in Gainesville. He does have one minor one, though.
“The only regret is that I don’t have more time to spend racing the car,” Burgess said. “This is only my second race of the year and it feels like forever since I’ve been in that car. I’d like to do it more and I will be able to attend the rest of the races this year.”
###
For more information about Gotham City Racing, visit the team website: Gotham City Racing.
About ProCare Rx:
Roger and Barbara Burgess founded ProCare Rx in 1988 to provide prescription drug claims processing, clinical services and support for any organization that provides a Prescription Drug Benefit to its employees or members. Clients include self-insured businesses, unions, hospices, worker compensation plans, local and county governments, health maintenance organizations, associations and other insurance plans.
Today, after almost 20 years in business, ProCare Rx is one of the largest privately held Pharmacy Benefit Managers (PBM) and administrators in the United States, experiencing 19 straight years of continual growth. The company works with pharmacies and prescription drug manufacturers to ensure that clients save money while managing the health of their members thru the application of innovative technologies and population health services directed to all members, with focus on those with chronic conditions.
For more information, visit the company web site at ProCare Rx - Better, Faster, Cheaper & Customized!.
About Gotham City Racing:
In January 2008, entrepreneur and race enthusiast Roger Burgess joined Mike Ashley as co-owner, and together they formed Gotham City Racing LLC. Mike and Roger share the same vision for continued growth of the team into an organization determined to set the standard within the drag race industry, from on the track performance to marketing and sponsor activation.
Gotham City Racing is also sponsored by:
* Oakley - Official Site for Oakley Sunglasses, Goggles, Shoes, Watches and Apparel
* The Hyperbaric Therapy Center - Hyperbaric Therapy Center - Hyperbaric Chamber
* Lend America - Nationwide, direct lender, Lend America offers mortgages, loans, with little to no money down, quick loan process
Lend America is a nationwide direct lender, specializing in residential financing for one to four family homes. Contact Lend America today at (877) 4-RACE LOAN or visit them online.
