Ross Chastain finally had the chance to display one of the most unique celebrations in a sport full of them Sunday when he raised a watermelon over his head from atop his race car and smashed it on the pavement near the finish line at the Circuit of the Americas.
Chastain had just won his first career NASCAR Cup Series race in dramatic fashion after a last-lap battle with challengers A.J. Allmendinger and Alex Bowman at the 20-turn road course in Austin.
He then lived up to his “Melon Man” moniker as he jumped off the top of his car, reached down to pick up a piece of the shattered watermelon, and took a bite that represented more than just a single day’s triumph.
Ross Chastain grew up on a watermelon farm
Chastain has raced in NASCAR since 2011 when he debuted as an 18-year-old in the Truck Series, but he did not come from a family of racers. The Chastain family has its roots in watermelon farming that dates back eight generations.
The family’s watermelon farming operation, JDI Farms, began in Georgia before Ross’ great-grandfather moved to Punta Gorda, Florida. The watermelons have grown there ever since, and now his father and brother oversee the farms and their five full-time employees.
“My dad and uncle became old enough to farm on their own….
