Glidden's late-season surge that year included a victory at his final Division 3 race in Bowling Green, Ky., where he set both ends of the national record (8.83, 154.90) to earn an extra 400 points (in those days, Pro racers earned points toward the Winston championship at a combination of national and divisional races). Glidden retired his undefeated Fairmont in favor of a Plymouth Arrow in 1979 and lost only three times all year. Bob was among the best builders and drivers in the sport. She understood the excitement and thrill of the fans. Unlike his previous years, he started the season strong. The rules said they couldnt acid dip the body to reduce weight. Check the 6 second club.Billy Glidden made the club using laughing gas! You could very easily get lost with your own changes. Drag racing lost a true icon. 4 on the list of Top 50 racers from NHRA's first 50 years in 2000. . 1 five times, posted top speed eight times, and set low e.t. We are born to a certain family and then there are those who become family. NHRA'S 50 GREATEST DRIVERS -- NO. Yes, unfortunately, Bob Glidden died a few days ago. I remember being 4 years old and watching Bob work on the car in the pits in Phoenix. Photo courtesy of Pro Set Racing trading cards. He was a 21-time IHRA winner, leading the tour with nine wins and 10 final-round appearances during his 1976 championship season. He was 73. Insanely, 1979 was better. [Bob] conceded that many of his competitors knew far more about the internal-combustion engine than he did, but none of them had his will to win. There were wins but no title. While he did make several finals and won the Springnationals, it was a tough row to hoe in a car that was definitely not one of his favorites. I want to express my deepest sympathy to his wife and boys. It pulled the back of the car hard right and sent it head-on into the opposite guardrail. Glidden held onto the title by the slimmest margin in 1980. or Best Offer. The small-tire icon turned Pro Modified racer left the starting line at Orlando Speed World hard when his "tired" Mustang abruptly turned right and impacted the retaining wall before crossing the track where it struck the left retaining wall. Didn't Glidden get caught cheating? - Google Groups A truly class act. what did bob glidden die from - mitocopper.com Glidden won seven times in 1975, including at the Winternationals, Gatornationals, Fallnationals, and World Finals, to capture his second consecutive Winston title. Right out of the gate, he came out guns blazing with five of seven wins. Glidden, who left his job at Ed Martin Ford to concentrate on racing full time, runner-upped to Bill Jenkins at the season-ending Supernationals in his Pro Stock debut. He went on to work with Ford, developing engines for their NASCAR Winston Cup program. Mutual Fund and ETF data provided by Refinitiv Lipper. Top Fuel teams will tear down their engines right in front of the spectators. The 1976 season brought him back down to earth the hefty roll provides. RIP Bob Glidden - RacingJunk News He was 73. 29356 - Limited Edition of 2,500. (12-6), Lee Shepherd (10-9), and Frank Iaconio (8-5). On Friday, July 6, 2001 at 9:12:42 AM UTC-5. "Everyone in the NHRA community is saddened to learn the news of Bob's passing," said NHRA President Peter Clifford. many times since the late 70s, and he won 10 NHRA Chamionships in Pro Stock (9 of those in Fords), I only actually only talked with him a couple of times, and he was such a down to earth, loyal Ford racer, who seemed to really appreciate all his fans. We will safeguard your e-mail and only send content you request. $2.75. Throughout his career, Glidden almost single-handedly carried the banner for Ford. He literally never lost a race he entered with it. Our car experts choose every product we feature. Got a tour of hos trailer and everything. NHRA's 50 Greatest Drivers - No. 4, Bob Glidden Farewell Bob Glidden - Drag Race Central What 's with Bob Glidden? | Ford Muscle Cars Tech Forum Bob Glidden (August 18, 1944 December 17, 2017) was an American drag racer. Met him briefly at Seattle when they were running the Arrow. Gone were small blocks and weight breaks and in was a 500ci displacement rule and a 2,350b race weight. Bob Glidden, 1944-2017. He was 73. Watching him kick all that GM ass in the 80\s was so fun to watch. He was retired from Pro Stock racing in 1997 and returned in 2010. The car rolled six times but the funnycar roll cage surrounding him held together. Bob Glidden won 10 NHRA Pro Stock championships in his 25-year career in the drag racing series. Time left 12h 35m left. Glidden honored; Shipp goes deep at Nationals - The Southsider Voice He started out in Stock and moved up to Super Stock. what did bob glidden die of - schlittbrotherspainting.com 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. bob glidden race cars for sale - nautilusva.com Well a month later he was at the Cajun Nationals and while it took him until Denver to win a race, he went on to win six of the last seven events of the year and he collected another NHRA championship. 1978 was a huge year for Glidden. I wanted to know more about this unique dynamic, so I called Bob Glidden, Pro Stocks winningest driver and certainly its most celebrated guardian of the secret manifesto. Remembering Bob Glidden, one of NHRA's best that there ever was I didnt have an answer but I figured that some of you on here would. 1, setting low e.t. The car made sickening rolls on top of the steel guardrail edge and while the damage was incredible, Glidden was ok. He also qualified No. Thats a factual statement no matter how outlandish you think it sounds. document.getElementById( "ak_js_1" ).setAttribute( "value", ( new Date() ).getTime() ); The Pep Boys NHRA Top Fuel All-Star Callout Returns for 2023, [Gallery] Upstairs at the 70th Annual Detroit Autorama, Fourth World Series of Pro Mod Takes Place this Weekend at Bradenton, FL, Fueling the Fire Bracket Race & Street-Strip Fuel Delivery Systems Part 2. I stretched the nose of the Thunderbird, smoothed out the bumpers, lengthened the hood, and added the scoop and wing. He is most closely associated with Ford cars, a manufacturer that he used throughout his career, except in 1979, winning the world championship in a Plymouth Arrow. Further on hidden nitrous, the Wayne County guys were supposed to have had adummy battery and cables which concealed their system. Glidden came back in '85, led the points race all season, and won five national events. Glidden won his first championship in 1974 in just his third year as a pro driver. During this time in NHRA history, racers ran both divisional and national events to gain points. After coming close in 1980, Shepherd succeeded in stripping Glidden of his title in 1981. Maintaining his job as a line mechanic at the dealer and racing a schedule that was busy but paled on comparison to what his later career would look like, Glidden graduated to super stock and became the man to beat in NHRA division three competition. Bob Glidden Cheating . NHRA legend and ten-time Pro Stock champion Bob Mad Dog Glidden passed away yesterday (December 17, 2017) at the age of 73. RIP Bob Glidden.You\ve been my favorite since the first time I ever saw you! 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. The 10-time NHRA Pro Stock champion passed away on Sunday after being hospitalized earlier in the month for an undisclosed illness. It is a comeback story, it is a perseverance story, it is an amazing story. (My personal favorite) Glidden's 1988 Winston championship, his ninth, followed a similar script. 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. Im glad to have met him several times and saddened to know im not getting another chance in this life to meet him again. What would the cameras have seen? That, and a sponsorship package that he felt was unsatisfactory, convinced him to pull the plug on his drag racing operation just two races into the 1997 season. Bob Glidden Remembering Bob Glidden, one of NHRA's best that there ever was. Bob Gliddens legacy in the sport is alive and well today with his son Billy who continues to be one of the hardest working, most resourceful, and dedicated competitors in the sport. We promise not to use your email address for anything but exclusive updates from the Power Automedia Network. Many people consider 1989 to be Gliddens finest year when measuring up the quality of the competition and the arduous nature of the circuit. As a Ford guy growing up in the Diamond P sports era he like a super hero. Glidden won 85 NHRA National E or redistributed. Brian, thank you for putting together a wonderful tribute to Bob Glidden. Bob Glidden Wiki & Bio - Everipedia 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. 4: BOB GLIDDEN . In honor of the Glidden family after Bob's passing on Sunday, December 17, we respectfully chose to re-run this Richard Brady Remember When column from our September 2017 printed issue highlighting Brady's years visiting and photographing the many-time champion. Etta and Bob Glidden Visit bo-mar | bo-mar Industries R.I.P. It was a harbinger of things to come. Bob Glidden - Age, Birthday, Biography & Facts | HowOld.co Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information. Till we meet again R.I.P. 1970 Ford Boss 429 Mustang - Grabber Blue (Highway 61) 1/18. Glidden retired from full-time racing in 1997 to help with Fords NASCAR engine development. Bob Glidden was so angry that he could have chewed an engine block in half. Bob Glidden, 1944-2017 NHRA. Bob Glidden's opinion on engine stands - Forums We didn't clinch the points title mathematically until just before [Indianapolis], but mentally, we felt that we had won the title right there in Englishtown.". In 1986, in one of drag racing's great comeback stories, Glidden overcame a slow start and a horrific crash at the Southern Nationals in April to win his seventh Winston title. He was the third most successful drag racer of the professional class drivers (sixth when counting sportsman national event winners). http://deadobituary.com/ He was voted No. It was a harbinger of things to come. record of 7.277, the fastest in NHRA Pro Stock history at that time and won the championship. And Bob made Rusty own up to it, or stay away from the family. His last real competitive pass came in 2003, and he did return to the track in 2010 to consult with another team. We have all seen the video of his famous wreck in Atlanta when wind caught a parachute sending his car hurtling into the guardrail. If anyone had doubts about Gliddens designs on success, their blood had to have run cold watching him race in 1974 and 1975. My thoughts and prayers to his family. I was a fan of his as a Pro-Stock racer but still am a Chevy fan. I think it was Weld, but either way there was a wheel with a signature decal on one of the 5 spokes.