Justin Allgaier and hellowater
One of the best parts about being a part of the hellowater® community is getting to hear firsthand how hellowater® has radically changed the lives of the people within it. Whether you’re someone like Sally who is looking to improve health markers or you’re someone like Simone who is looking for ways to sneak in more fiber throughout a busy day, we love sharing how hellowater® has helped change people’s lives for the better.
As our team gears up for the big NASCAR Xfinity Series race at Atlanta Motor Speedway next month, we sat down with the driver of the No. 7 Chevrolet for JR Motorsports, Justin Allgaier for our “a day in the life” series to get an inside look at what a normal day looks like for him both on the race track and beyond.
Race Day with Justin Allgaier
“A typical race day is a little different than what it was like before COVID times,” says Allgaier. “But with the schedule we have now, we usually fly in race day morning, so 6 or 7 o’clock in the morning we are on a plane headed to wherever the race event is going to be at. Once we get there, I am usually going to stop somewhere and grab some breakfast. Make sure that I am eating and am ready to go.”
After Allgaier gets into town and is properly fueled, he heads to the racetrack. “We have to be inside the race track four hours before the event, so we go through a COVID scan to make sure that everything is good. Then, we get inside the race track. Once we’re there, I’ve got my laptop with me, I’ve got race footage. I’ve got the notes from the previous races. I’m going over all of those details, trying to make sure they’re as fresh as possible in my mind.”
Gearing Up and Getting Ready
About one to two hours before race fans hear the roar of the engines and the green flag drops, Allgaier heads into the garage to check in on his team. From there,”[I] get my helmet and get it all ready to go. Make sure that I’ve got the right shield on, make sure that I’ve got all of my racing gear ready to go and in the bag. We take care of all of our racing gear now and take it out to the car.”
Without driver introductions at the moment, the drivers and team members head out to the car to get ready and remain there throuhgout the pre-race to make sure that everything is good for the green flag. Allgaier says, “Once the race starts, [we] go through the race, get done, and hopefully [we’ve] gone to Victory Lane. That’s the most important piece, you’ve gone to Victory Lane and gone through the hat celebration.”
However, the work doesn’t stop once the race and celebration conclude. “After that, [we] head back to the hauler, put all of our stuff away, make sure that everything is put away so it will be there and ready for the next race, and then [we] go and get back on an airplane. It makes for a long 24 hours, but it’s definitely nice to be able to fly in, get the race done and fly home.”
Off the Track with Justin Allgaier
When Allgaier isn’t preparing for race day, he is still working hard. On a typical day when there isn’t a race, the JRM driver keeps busy in the shop and with family.
“A normal day for me not at the race track is kind of unique, I guess, in a lot of ways. Obviously, we work on weekends mostly, but also a lot gets done during the week. For me, I typically get up in the morning, my wife helps get my daughter Harper ready and then I take her to school, which has been fun to get her ready and then drop her off for the day.” (Who knew! NASCAR drivers, they’re just like us).
Getting Stuff Done
After school drop off, Algaier heads into the shop. “Typically, I come to the shop and we usually have a meeting at the beginning part of the week to discuss the previous race and obviously what we are going to do for the race coming up.” From there, Allgaier says, it’s just getting stuff done. “I’ve been fortunate enough that I’ve been able to help my dad out with his business for the last number of years, so [I will] follow up with him, see what’s going on during the day, you know, deal with whatever is going on. If I have something coming up, going over the details for that. Making sure that we are staying active on social media, all of the things that really help boost our partner’s presence as well.”
Family First
After a day at the shop, Allgaier says the last part of his day is simple – hanging out with family. “I have a really tight-knit family and we hang out a lot and try to do things together as a group. We are expecting a little one in the near future, so we are obviously getting prepared for that, and so lately that’s been my main job to get ready for that.”
Since then, Allgaier’s family has grown, as Willow Leigh Allgaier was born on May 24th.
Despite the busy schedule of race days and work at the shop on non-race days, Allgaier sums up his days like this; “For the most part, just get stuff done in the morning, try to get everything done here at the shop and try and get stuff done with the racing side of things and then spend the rest of the afternoon with my family.” What a day!
Be sure to support this hellowater® community member this summer as he prepares to race on July 10th at Atlanta Motor Speedway and August 7th at Watkins Glen International behind the wheel of the No. 7 hellowater® Chevrolet Good luck Justin!
