Atlanta is a thriving metropolis with tourist attractions, a lively night scene, exceptional restaurants, and an energetic vibe which blends the Old South with 21st Century style. And people keep asking Melanie Troxel how she likes her new home.
 
She'd like to tell friends and family about the hotspots or her favorite eatery, but the trouble is that since moving to Atlanta from Indianapolis last September, she's rarely there -- or when she is, she has no time to explore the historic city.
 
Especially in her new role as General Manager of Roger Burgess' R2B2 Racing team, Troxel has her hands full. Just before Christmas, Burgess announced she would return to the Pro Modified class for all 10 Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series at the NHRA races, as well as a complete slate of Full Throttle Drag Racing Series action in the In-N-Out Burger Funny Car.
 
Troxel said becoming R2B2 General Manager wasn't up for discussion when she relocated to Georgia to be near team headquarters in Duluth. Her reason for heading south was "making myself more valuable to the team by going beyond the standard job description."

Atlanta is a thriving metropolis with tourist attractions, a lively night scene, exceptional restaurants, and an energetic vibe which blends the Old South with 21st Century style. And people keep asking Melanie Troxel how she likes her new home.
 
She'd like to tell friends and family about the hotspots or her favorite eatery, but the trouble is that since moving to Atlanta from Indianapolis last September, she's rarely there -- or when she is, she has no time to explore the historic city.
 
Especially in her new role as General Manager of Roger Burgess' R2B2 Racing team, Troxel has her hands full. Just before Christmas, Burgess announced she would return to the Pro Modified class for all 10 Get Screened America Pro Mod Drag Racing Series at the NHRA races, as well as a complete slate of Full Throttle Drag Racing Series action in the In-N-Out Burger Funny Car.
 
Troxel said becoming R2B2 General Manager wasn't up for discussion when she relocated to Georgia to be near team headquarters in Duluth. Her reason for heading south was "making myself more valuable to the team by going beyond the standard job description."
 
Burgess saw that she was not only willing and eager to assume more responsibility but also capable of doing so. He wasted no time in giving her chores, and within a month she was tackling some key duties. As a gesture of her commitment, she sold her specialty tool company -- MTI, which showcased her pneumatic valve spring compressor and sparkplug wrench.
 
Managing the budget and finances, hiring personnel, and keeping track of inventory kept her busy during a winter when many drivers are unwinding in the tropics or doing no more than fiddling with a practice tree or visiting the gym occasionally.
 
But R2B2 operates four Pro Mod cars, with a fifth in testing and two being built. Steve Petty is tuning Burgess' car, Bob Newberry sets up Troxel's and Raymond Commisso's cars, and newest driver Brad Personett handles his own tune-up.
 
"It's been a challenge," Troxel said, still smiling, as the team prepared this weekend at The Shakedown at Palm Beach outlaw drag race at Palm Beach International Raceway. "I've put in a lot of hours, a lot of 12-hour days."
 
It's not going unnoticed. Burgess, who lives in Fort Lauderdale during the winter, said, "She's in the shop every day. I've been in the shop just two times, for three hours totally."    
 
Troxel said she couldn't begin to calculate the time investment it has been so far. Nor can she calculate the price of experience.
 
All Burgess knows is it's invaluable to him.
 
"I give her the resources, what she needs to run the team. She is our most experienced all-around employee," he said. "Here's why that's important: It's only a matter of time before Melanie owns her own team. She may own part of this team."
 
That's why she didn't spend any time pouting about missing the Funny Car field at the NHRA season opener at Pomona last weekend. She said she knows crew chief Aaron Brooks has been working diligently to make the new front-halved car consistently competitive, all while working to make the crew --with only one returning member -- operate in synch.
 
At Pomona, Troxel said, the team "didn't quite have a handle" on how to set it up to navigate the racetrack consistently well between the 60-foot mark and the 330-foot mark in its 1,000-foot runs.
 
Now she has the added task of concentrating on her Road Rage-sponsored Camaro, when the Burgess-funded Get Screened America Pro Mod Challenge schedule opens this next week at the NHRA's Gatornationals at Gainesville, Fla.
 
She put it in the top half of the Shakedown at Palm Beach field Friday at No. 7 with a 3.996-second pass at 191.48 mph, and then slipped to ninth in the second and third session despite a quicker and faster 3.940 / 192.47.
 
Burgess isn't worried. "She's so d*** competitive, and she's such a good driver," he said.

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