| 27246
EDIT THIS!
|
Hector Leal |
Bob Glidden (M) from
Whiteland, Indiana
USA
(Comp Nr/Finish:
6) |
1988 - Category: PS-500, Type: LN, Class: Pro Stock, Div: 3 |
| "Motorcraft Quality Parts" Owned by Bob Glidden
from
Whiteland, Indiana
USA
| Crew Chief: Bob Glidden |
| '88 Ford Thunderbird by
Jerry Haas |
Powered by Carbureted Gas 496 Ford by Bob Glidden with
4 speed manual transmission |
| 1/4 Mile ET: |
7.318 at IHRA Ennis TX 10/15/88 |
1/4 Mile MPH: |
190.27 at IHRA Atco NJ 1988 |
| 1000 FT ET: |
Unknown at Unknown |
1000 FT MPH: |
Unknown at Unknown |
| 1/8 Mile ET: |
Unknown at Unknown |
1/8 Mile MPH: |
Unknown at Unknown |
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Entry's 1988 Performance Ratings (0 to 100) based on comparison to average ET/MPH:
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1/4 Mile Rating: ET 87.72,
MPH 90.46 |
Entry is 0.98307 times average ET and 1.02400 times average MPH |
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1000 FT Rating: ET 00.00,
MPH 00.00 |
Entry is 0.00000 times average ET and 0.00000 times average MPH |
| 1/8 Mile Rating:
ET 00.00,
MPH 00.00 |
Entry is 0.00000 times average ET and 0.00000 times average MPH |
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| 1988 Records: |
1/4 Mile: 7.277 ET, 191.32 MPH |
1000 Ft. 0.000 ET, 0.00 MPH |
1/8 Mile: 4.740 ET, 0.00 MPH |
| 1988 Average: |
1/4 Mile: 7.444 ET, 185.81 MPH |
1000 Ft. 0.000 ET, 0.00 MPH |
1/8 Mile: 4.977 ET, 0.00 MPH |
| 1988 Minimum: |
1/4 Mile: 7.944 ET, 174.12 MPH |
1000 Ft. 0.000 ET, 0.00 MPH |
1/8 Mile: 5.307 ET, 0.00 MPH |
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Notes: Set national record twice in 1988: 7.319 at Seafair Nats, then 7.277 at Super Nats. Also, 7.318 at IHRA Ennis. Just heard of Glidden's passing (December 2017). It's hard to believe. Because of him, I became interested in drag racing. He was an amazing, hard-working individual. So, I had to do a Glidden entry. After a great'87 season, Bob followed it up with another championshipin'88. The season didn't start well for the NHRA Winternationals at Pomona. It started OK when he set Low ET and Top Speed in qualifying #1 with a 7.39/189.27, but he was upset by Morris Johnson Jr. in the first round. He then went to Darlington for the IHRA Winternationals, where his 7.376/188.67 qualified #1. A first-round 7.39/187 beat a fouling Carlos Gonzalez, and a 7.45/187 in round two beat Terry Adams. He moved into the final by running a 7.42/187 in the semifinals to beat Tim Nabors. In the final, he was up against the Ford mountain motor of Rickie Smith. The two Motorcraft-backed T-Birds had a good battle, but Smith's 7.39/190 came out on top over Bob's 7.43/185.56. At the IHRA Supernationals, he qualified #4 and ran 7.47 and 7.56 to meet Smith in the semifinals. Once again, Rickie had Bob's number, with a 7.41/189, beating Glidden's 7.49/187. He had more bad luck at the next NHRA race, the Gatornationals, where he only qualified #11 with a 7.40/189.31. Bob smoked the tires in the first round and shut down to a 7.67/177 loss to Kenny Delco. He qualified #1 at Atlanta for the NHRA Southern Nationals with a 7.47 (Low ET). Bob lasted until the second round before he got out of shape and shut off against Tony Christian. Bob then won the IHRA Texas Nationals. He qualified #1 with a 7.31/189.43, and in round one, his 7.36/187 beat Gonzalez. In the second round, a 7.32/187.03 beat Adams' 7.42/186, and in the semifinals, he reset IHRA's record to 7.30 at 189.27 while beating Smith's 7.33/190. A final round 7.31/184.50 sewed up the victory over Tim Nabors' 7.36/188. At Memphis for the Mid-South Nationals, a 7.46 qualified # with a 7.46, and had the top speed of the meet at 188.29. But after beating Alban Gauthier in the first round, he again lost to Christian in round two. It was then off to Bristol for the IHRA Springnationals. Glidden qualified #2 and lasted until round two, where his 7.54/184.27 lost to Johnson Jr.'s holeshot 7.58/182. NHRA's fifth race of the year was the Cajun Nationals in Baton Rouge. Johnson Jr. stopped Bob in round two. Another win came at the IHRA Summernationals at Atco. He set Low ET in qualifying #1 with a 7.316 190.27. Bob beat Dempsey Hardy in round one, and in round two, his 7.37/187.89 beat Delco's 7.47/185. A semifinal 7.36/187.89 took out Frank Iaconio and set up another all Motorcraft T-Bird final with Rickie. Bob got the victory with a 7.37/187.50 over Smith's 7.46/188. It was surprising that Glidden hadn't reached the semifinals in the first five NHRA races, but he changed all that at the Springnationals. He qualified #1 with a 7.44 and beat Johnson Jr. in the first round and Nick Nikolis in round two. This put him in the semifinals for the first time in '88, where he faced Joe Lepone Jr. A 7.46/186 put Joe on the trailer, and Bob moved into the final, where he met Bruce Allen in the Reher-Morrison Beretta. Bob set Low ET of the meet with a final round 7.42 at 188.08 to beat Allen's 7.49/186. He then went to Canada for the NHRA Grandnationals, where his 7.37/188.75 qualified #2. But in the first round, the car got out of shape, and Bob lost to Christian. The shit hit the fan at Milan for the IHRA Northern Nationals. Bob qualified #2 with a 7.47, behind Allen's 7.46. After hitting the scales after a qualifying run, one of the IHRA officials told Glidden that they would pull a head and check for nitrous. Bob said that was fine and to meet him at his trailer to do it. The official said no, that they were going to do it right there. There was no way Glidden was going to pull a cylinder head at the scale in front of all the Pro Stock teams. Once again, he stated he would gladly let them pull the cylinder in his trailer. At this point, another official walked up and told Bob to leave and not come back. So, Glidden and his family started packing up to leave. Just before they were ready to pull out, another official came by and said that they decided to check the engines in the trailers. Glidden told him it was too late and that they were leaving. Glidden was not alone; the Reher and Morrison team also packed up and left after being asked to pull a head at the scales. The owner and president of IHRA, Billy Meyer, was asked why he thought the top two qualifiers left, and he responded, "They were probably cheating." Both teams were banned from any further IHRA events in 1988. Later, Meyer denied saying that and said, "There's doubt in my mind they weren't cheating." It was a bold move by Glidden to pull out, since his sponsor, Motorcraft, also sponsored the race. Bob would never race at another IHRA event. He had 20 victories in IHRA competition and was the organization's '86 Pro Stock world champion. After that fiasco, he went to Englishtown for the NHRA Summernationals. He ran Low ET and Top Speed in qualifying #1 with a 7.3 at 188.1 mph. In round one, a 7.49 beat Dempsey Hardy, then beat Delco and Mark Pawuk to reach the final. He ran Jerry Eckman in the final, and Bob's 7.46/185.91 got the victory over Eckman's 7.54/183. Another win followed at Seattle early in August for the NHRA Seafair Nationals. He qualified #1 with a track record (and NHRA record) of 7.31 at 189.59 (Top Speed). He ran 7.3s throughout eliminations. A 7.35/189 beat Eckman in round two, and a semifinal 7.37/188 beat Butch Leal. This time, his final-round opponent was Warren Johnson. Bob took the win with a 7.37/188.52 over Johnson's 7.42/186. Photo from Milan, Mich., 1988. |
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Submitted by Curt Swartz, Last updated on Monday, December 29, 2025, 09:52:17 PM by
Ron Howard.
Approved by Super Crew. |
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Rankings updated: 12/30/25 03:02:13 am EST
