“I’ll probably have three or four different text groups. On race day… I can go through an iPhone battery in no time.”
A big supplementary battery pack will be one of the first things Glenn checks is in his bag that day.
While plenty of US drivers have talked about their desire to do ‘The Double’, few have even attempted it, which is in no small part to the fiendish task of racing from one event to the next.
Even in ideal conditions, it’s tight. With an average running time in recent years of three hours, drivers can expect to cross the yard of bricks for the final time at around 3.45pm.
To make it to Charlotte in time for the driver’s presentation and the start of the race at 6pm (failure to do so would be terminal for Larson’s NASCAR Cup title hopes), his helicopter must have left the circuit by 4.05pm. Ten minutes later, his plane will need to be taking off from the nearby runway.
Fans will be hoping to see Larson complete the double in 2025
James Gilbert/Getty Images
As well as Larson, the operation will also move his spotter and some support crew, plus friends, family and supporters.
“With just the mass amount of people that are at the track, you have about 12 minutes to get everybody from wherever they’re at when the race ends to a vehicle or a helicopter before we completely just lose the streets,” says Glenn. “Not even security can do anything when everyone is leaving that track.
“The second that chequered flag drops, it’s about 12 minutes for us to have about 50-ish folks in place and already out of the track.”