Bob Glidden, Pro Stock Racing Legend, Dead at 73

One of the greatest drivers in Pro Stock history, Glidden won 85 events and 10 championships in his legendary career.

NHRA fans received some sad news yesterday, as it was announced that Bob “Mad Dog” Glidden passed away at the age of 73. After battling illness, word spread across Facebook on Saturday that he had died, but that was refuted by multiple sources. Unfortunately on Sunday, the official announcement came that the legendary Ford Pro Stock racer had passed away with his family by his side.

“Everyone in the NHRA community is saddened to learn the news of Bob’s passing,” said NHRA President Peter Clifford. “He was a true competitor who left a lasting legacy of excellence both on and off the track. Our thoughts, prayers and deepest condolences are with the Glidden family at this difficult time.”

An Instant Success

Bob Glidden’s racing career began in the 1960s, when he participated in the Stock and Super Stock ranks in a Ford Fairlane and a few different Ford Mustangs. While running the stock-based class, Glidden worked as a mechanic at Ed Martin Ford – the company that served as his key sponsor as well. Behind the wheel of his 428 Cobra Jet Mustang, Mad Dog was one of the most successful drivers of the era in the Division 3 ranks, but by 1972, he was ready to move up to the bigs.

Glidden quit his job at Ed Martin Ford and sold both of his Super Stock Mustangs to buy a Ford Pinto Pro Stock car from Jack Roush in 1972. His first Pro Stock event came later that year at the season-ending Supernationals, where he finished second to Bill “Grumpy” Jenkins.

The Championships Begin Piling Up

Glidden’s breakout season came in 1974, when he won three major events in his Ford Pinto, leading up to his first of ten Pro Stock championships –setting the Pro Stock national record along the way with a 8.83 at 154.90mph. He would back that up with another championship in 1975, winning seven major events during that campaign and after finishing sixth and second in points for 1976 and 1977, Glidden took the title for the third time in 1978. During that 1978 season, won nine-straight national events and qualified in the top spot in Pro Stock for all 14 of that season’s major races. In addition to his Pinto, Glidden spent time in his Ford Fairmont racecar that didn’t lose a single round before being retired in 1979 when he moved to a Plymouth Arrow.

A New Era of Domination

After winning the 1979 and 1980 Pro Stock championships, Glidden hit a slump from 1981-1984, but that was broken by the Ford Thunderbird racecar that he began campaigning midway through the 1984 schedule. That new Ford was dominant, allowing him to finish 1984 strong before leading the 1985 championship run from start to finish. He would also win titles in a Ford in 1986, 1987, 1988 and 1989, giving him a total of 10 championship titles in 18 seasons.

The latter portion of Bob Gidden’s career didn’t bring any more titles, but he won a few more races in the 1990s before retiring as a driver in 1997. After that, he spent time building engines for Ford’s NASCAR program along with serving as the crew chief for a handful of NHRA Pro Stock teams in the 2000s.

During his career, Bob Glidden won 85 national events, 10 Pro Stock titles and his was voted fourth on the list of the NHRA’s top 50 drivers from the first 50. He was also voted into the Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1994.

Patrick Rall

"Before I was old enough to walk, my dad was taking me to various types of racing events, from local drag racing to the Daytona 500," says Patrick Rall, a lifetime automotive expert, diehard Dodge fan, and respected auto journalist for over 10 years. "He owned a repair shop and had a variety of performance cars when I was young, but by the time I was 16, he was ready to build me my first drag car – a 1983 Dodge Mirada that ran low 12s. I spent 10 years traveling around the country, racing with my dad by my side. While we live in different areas of the country, my dad still drag races at 80 years old in the car that he built when I was 16 while I race other vehicles, including my 2017 Dodge Challenger SRT Hellcat and my 1972 Dodge Demon 340.

"Although I went to college for accounting, my time in my dad’s shop growing up allowed me the knowledge to spend time working as a mechanic before getting my accounting degree, at which point I worked in the office of a dealership group. While I was working in the accounting world, I continued racing and taking pictures of cars at the track. Over time, I began showing off those pictures online and that led to my writing.

"Ten years ago, I left the accounting world to become a full-time automotive writer and I am living proof that if you love what you do, you will never “work” a day in your life," adds Rall, who has clocked in time as an auto mechanic, longtime drag racer and now automotive journalist who contributes to nearly a dozen popular auto websites dedicated to fellow enthusiasts.

"I love covering the automotive industry and everything involved with the job. I was fortunate to turn my love of the automotive world into a hobby that led to an exciting career, with my past of working as a mechanic and as an accountant in the automotive world provides me with a unique perspective of the industry.

"My experience drag racing for more than 20 years coupled with a newfound interest in road racing over the past decade allows me to push performance cars to their limit, while my role as a horse stable manager gives me vast experience towing and hauling with all of the newest trucks on the market today.

"Being based on Detroit," says Rall, "I never miss the North American International Auto Show, the Woodward Dream Cruise and Roadkill Nights, along with spending plenty of time raising hell on Detroit's Woodward Avenue with the best muscle car crowd in the world.

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