A career Ford man, Glidden made a small comeback during the 2010 season, entering several races in a Pro Stock Mustang. I remember being 4 years old and watching Bob work on the car in the pits in Phoenix. He was surrounded by his loving family. Mark. Glidden believes strongly that when . 10. R.I.P Bob. American drag racing legend Bob Glidden has died at age 73. NHRA fans received some sad news yesterday, as it was announced that Bob "Mad Dog" Glidden passed away at the age of 73. For the first time in a long time, Glidden had his work cut out for him in 1980. Pre-Owned. Pro Stock icon Bob Glidden, one of the most dominant forces in the history of NHRA Drag Racing, died Sunday. He also triumphed in Bowling Green Kentucky in the final of Division 3, where he was awarded an extra 400 points after setting a national e.t. "He gave the inspiration to a lot of people that if you dedicate yourself to something you're gonna be successful at it. You could see it in her eyes. Chrysler ran into the financial rocks heading into the 1980 season so his deal there ended. Bob Glidden, drag racing legend and 10-time NHRA Pro Stock champion, died Dec. 17. In 1975, it's safe to say Glidden dominated Pro Stock, clinching seven wins, five number-one qualifiers, eight top speeds, and six low e.t. Bob Glidden (August 18, 1944 -December 17, 2017) was an American drag racer.He was born in Whiteland, Indiana.He retired from Pro Stock racing in 1997 and returned in 2010.. Glidden retired as the driver with the most wins in National Hot Rod Association (NHRA) history at that time (a feat recently topped by 16 time Funny Car champion John Force).He was the third most successful drag racer . Bob Glidden won 10 NHRA Pro Stock championships in his 25-year career in the drag racing series. Quotes displayed in real-time or delayed by at least 15 minutes. He was one of my Heros back in the 80s and made me a fan of pro stock for years to come. Bob graduated from Kennett High School in Conway, N.H. in 1945 and immediately joined the Army Air . Ironically, it was Glidden's incredible success that sparked the Reher-Morrison team. He retired early into the 1997 campaign. Gone were small blocks and weight breaks and in was a 500ci displacement rule and a 2,350b race weight. The 1976 season brought him back down to earth the hefty roll provides. 2021 FOX News Network, LLC. Legendary NHRA drag racer Bob Glidden died Dec. 17 at the age of 73. Glidden went on to win the race, setting low e.t. In the summer of 1978, Glidden embarked on one of the sport's legendary winning streaks that included nine straight national event victories and stretched a complete calendar year. By Jerry Bonkowski Dec 18, 2017, 6:03 PM EST. Always my favorite to watch. The number 1 pro stock driver of all time. After sporadic wins in the early '90s, Bob Glidden was inducted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1994. The 1977 season was one where Glidden returned to form. The 1989 season was Glidden's most dominant campaign, in which he won nine times en route to his 10th and final Winston title. The rules said they couldnt acid dip the body to reduce weight. His wife Etta and sons Billy and Rusty provided invaluable support in his driving efforts, and his will to win and tireless commitment carried him across the finish line in first countless times. He turned me on to Pro Stock as a teen. Unrelated to ProStock, but still Nitrous, Dale Armstrong was caught playingaround with it on Kenny's Funny cartalk about simplicityhe used one ofthe two firebottles for the nitrous, and if I recall correctly, he used oneof the clutch timer solenoids as the nitrous solenoid, and simply ran theline along the frame and right up in front of the injector hat. $2.75. Star of 70s TV series On the Buses Bob Grant has been found dead at his home, after apparently committing suicide. John Force, of course, did surpass Gliddens totals, but for a long time, Glidden was the man, just as Prudhomme had been. Well that blows. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. I had the good fortune to see Bob win at the Molson Grandnational in \78. His 9.03 e.t. My condolences to his family. Mar 11, 2011. nvrdun said: I thought Cragar did make Bob Glidden wheels for a couple years??? I worked for John Zintsmaster and moved his 62 Chevy Impala factory racer. He was a self-made man who left his job as a mechanic at a Ford dealership to go racing full-time with a dream, a tireless work ethic and a winning determination.. Got a tour of hos trailer and everything. See more ideas about bob glidden, drag racing cars, glidden. You can squawk about the high-stakes involved in Formula 1 and sports car prototypes, but the ultra-close racing in Pro Stock over the years indicates there is a very high-octane rivalry yet competitive balance going on between the major engine builders. or Best Offer +$11.90 shipping Getting back on the horse after such a crash wasn't hard for him though, because a month later he returned in a new Thunderbird to the Cajun Nationals. Bob Glidden, drag racing legend and 10-time NHRA Pro Stock champion, died Dec. 17. HOULTON -- Robert (Bob) L. Glidden Sr., 83, died following a brief illness on Feb. 16, 2010, in a Bangor Hospital. The son of a sharecropper, Glidden lived what many would consider the motorsports equivalent of the American dream. It was the Glidden and Shepherd show through the entire 1980 season. Following high school he enlisted in the United States Navy and served from 1956-60 on USS Loeser destroyer escort. 1978 was a huge year for Glidden. The pro stock class was only two years old when a young Greenwood, Indiana, Ford mechanic named Bob Glidden began his climb to pro stock and drag racing glory. Bob Glidden never drank his own Kool-Aid and he approached each and every of the hundreds of events he ran like a kind of desperate guy who had spent his lifes savings to take a shot at the big leagues and could literally not afford to fail. Upon his moving to the professional ranks, Glidden quit being a full-time mechanic and sold his two Cobra Jets to buy a Pro Stock Pinto from Wayne Gapp and Jack Roush. 1988 was the last year of the Thunderbird for Glidden, but the car wasn't retired until he won his fourth straight title. He also qualified No. After a skin-of-the-teeth victory over Butch Leal in the semi-finals in Atlanta, Glidden's parachute didn't deploy correctly. When NHRA pretty much called the Gliddens liars when they explained how they did it, Bob said they couldn't find nitrous unless it was in a bottle painted blue. At the Supernationals Gapp got one back on Glidden, beating him the finals. We want to hear suggestions, tips, tricks and even criticism that can help us present the exciting universe of engine technology to all engine enthusiasts. He led the points from the first race to the last and there was never a question at any point in time who was going to be collecting the big check at the end of the year. Bob Glidden, one of the most prolific Ford drivers in the history of NHRA Drag Racing, whose career spanned three decades in the Pro Stock division, died on Dec. 13, 2017. Late in the 1978 season, in the midst of completely devastating the competition in the Fairmont, Glidden was approached by Chrysler and offered a sponsorship deal to compete in a Plymouth Arrow for 1979. He campaigned a series of 427 Fairlanes before switching to the more. He did the same thing at all four of his divisional races. Gliddens reaction is understandable, given the state of affairs in Pro Stock at the time. March 3, 2023 2:53 PM PT. Glidden died in Whiteland on December 17, 2017 of colorectal cancer at the age of 73. He was 73. Glidden's 1988 Winston championship, his ninth, followed a similar script. <p> Glidden's Plymouth Arrow</p>. The races you had vs WJ & Sheperd (and many others) were legendary. >Also, Bob Glidden HIMSELF DID get caught with NOS on board also. Go Gliddens! The best that I could figure was that it probably had something to do with cylinder heads. But if EngineLabs is to be successful, our prying eyes and ears need to uncover at least a few of the latest and greatest tricks from the engine shops, the aftermarket and leading manufacturers. While Glidden would not collect another NHRA championship after 1989 he continued winning multiple events a year for several years. He further went on to speak of rampant N2Ousage in Pro Stock at the time, but was told in not so many words to "FO" byNHRA. Glidden was the number one qualifier AT EVERY RACE. Glidden died in Whiteland on December 17, 2017 of colorectal cancer at the age of 73. prestel publishing submissions. Tom Sizemore, the powerful character actor known for his roles in films including Saving Private Ryan, Natural Born Killers, Heat, Black Hawk Down, and Pearl Harbor, has died at the age of 61. Visited his home a couple of times and he showed me his garage where he and his wife worked on his cars. Robert Bob Glidden, 78, of Clear Lake, Iowa, died Wednesday, July 20, 2016 at St. Mary's Hospital, Rochester, MN. In 1974, in just his second full season in Pro Stock, Glidden won three major events, including the Springnationals and U.S. Nationals, and set both ends of the national record en route to his first Winston championship. It was the classic Ford vs. Chevy in the early pro stock class. Kurt Johnson 5/20/94 Englishtown, N.J. 6.988 Darrell Alderman 8/5/94 Kent, Wash. 6.994 Warren Johnson 3/10/95 Houston, Texas 6.981, Bill Glidden 3/12/95 Houston, Texas 6.999, Scott Geoffrion 4/2/95 Gainesville, Fla. 6.985 Jim Yates 9/16/95 Reading, Pa. 6.999 Rickie Smith 5/18/96 Englishtown, N.J. 6.999 Jerry Eckman 8/3/96 Kent, Wash. 6.997 Mark Pawuk 10/26/96 Pomona, Calif. 6.993 Mike Edwards 10/27/96 Pomona, Calif. 6.995 Troy Coughlin 2/1/97 Pomona, Calif. 6.972 Steve Schmidt 3/7/97 Gainesville, Fla. 6.962 Bruce Allen 3/7/97 Gainesville, Fla. 6.978 Ray Franks 3/8/97 Gainesville, Fla. 6.997 George Marnell 3/8/97 Gainesville, Fla. 6.999 Mike Thomas 4/11/97 Commerce, Ga. 6.988, NITRO498 wrote in message. Unlike his 1979 championship season, Glidden won his third straight and fifth title in 1980 in dramatic fashion. It was restored by Bruce Weiss back in '1991. About Bob Glidden. His last real competitive pass came in 2003, and he did return to the track in 2010 to consult with another team. My condolences to his family. Glidden's Pinto carried him to a come-from-behind victory over rivals Wally Booth and Gapp. 1974 was his second season in the Pro Stock field and the first of a two-in-a-row championship win. Glidden did nothing to the manifold other than port match the runners to the modified W2 heads. Share this: Aug 18, 1944 Whiteland, Indiana, United States Died on 17 Dec 2017 (aged 73) American racing driver. One need not look to the current arrangement(s) and new rules governing Pro Stock; one only needs to know that with these passings of the Legends,. A man dedicated to his profession, RIP Bob. you erned it. Glidden, who amassed a record 16,035 points and lowered the national record to 8.59, fielded two winning cars that year: The first was his tried-and-true Ford Pinto that carried him to victories at the season-opening Winternationals and Cajun Nationals, and the second was his famed Ford Fairmont, with which he won the Summernationals and finished the season undefeated in national event competition. He stumbled out of the car and immediately covered the intake manifold (or what was left of it) with his fire jacked to protect the design and not allow any competitors to see it. American drag racing legend Bob Glidden has died at age 73. 4: BOB GLIDDEN . Always the best in my eyes an what a nice tribute to send him off!.RIP Bob Glidden.I have been Dreaming of someday having that Ford HEMI power under my hood..IT WILL HAPPEN!FATSNAKE COBRA IIFOREVER FORD! Then in 1980, at Englishtown, New Jersey, Bob and Etta attracted a crowd around their pro stock pit area. Bob was born in Windom, MN, the son of Thomas and Helen Gertrude (Putt) Glidden on July 23, 1937. Mike Magda is a veteran automotive writer with credits in publications such as Racecar Engineering, Hot Rod, Engine Technology International, Motor Trend, Automobile, Automotive Testing Technology and Professional Motorsport World. I think it was Weld, but either way there was a wheel with a signature decal on one of the 5 spokes. All rights reserved. A hero is gone. Here's a list of highlights from Bob "Mad Dog" Glidden's career: Before going pro in 1972, Glidden had great success in different Ford Fairlanes and even more so in 427 Cobra Jet Mustangs with sponsorship from Ed Martin Ford. Glidden spent much of his racing career in Ford cars, but he spent some time in a Plymouth Arrow and after retiring as a driver, he served as the crew chief for a few different teams, including the Mopar Pro Stock camp in the mid-2000s. 1970 Ford Boss 429 Mustang - Grabber Blue (Highway 61) 1/18. He campaigned a series of 427 Fairlanes before switching to the more potent 428 Cobra Jet Mustangs in 1968. It is a comeback story, it is a perseverance story, it is an amazing story. That was a never ending deal.. In a situation that would become all to familiar to him during his pro stock career, Glidden became such a focus of rules makers and fellow competitors that his car was torn down at every available opportunity. They proceeded to tech the crap out of HIM after that, seemingly in retaliation. Not just the engine itself but the race weight he was allowed to use in competition with the Arrow. Watching him kick all that GM ass in the 80\s was so fun to watch. Forward to 2011 and I see him in pits in Phoenix again. Not even speculation about Bob in the media? wrote in message news:3B45C75A@radiks.net Visit Butcher's Drag pagehttp://dreamwater.com/basca. That commitment resulted in four consecutive Winston championships for the Reher-Morrison team (1981-1984), but the satisfaction of claiming their fourth title was tempered somewhat by the fact that they no longer had the quickest car in the country. I thought i was a full on mechanic after that. At the next race, the Summernationals at Englishtown Glidden unveiled his doomsday weapon, the 1978 Ford Fairmont that would become the only undefeated pro stock car in NHRA history. Build your own custom newsletter with the content you love from EngineLabs, directly to your inbox, absolutely FREE! 1989 is the last year that Glidden won a championship. They would have seen the size and shape of the ports and the angles of the plenum, says Glidden. Unlike his previous years, he started the season strong. Pro Stock icon Bob Glidden, one of the most dominant forces in the history of NHRA Drag Racing, died Dec. 17. Bob Glidden, the 10-time NHRA pro stock champion, an IHRA pro stock champion, a native of Whiteland, Indiana, and one of the greatest drag racers of all time has died at age 73, surrounded by his family. Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. I apologize for the video quality as it was . This performance was called total domination. The following year, Glidden broke through for his first NHRA national event victory, at the U.S. Nationals, where he paced the quickest-ever Pro Stock field with a 9.03 at a national record 152.54 mph and defeated fellow Ford racer Gapp in the final. Pro Stock icon Bob Glidden, one of the most dominant forces in the history of NHRA Drag Racing, died Dec. 17. I liked after the Atlanta crashdid he thank an imaginary higher power for his walking away from this horrendous wreck?