BILLY GLIDDEN SORTS WAY TO WIN
Mon, 2009-07-06 11:00
Billy Glidden experienced a tough weekend. The defending ADRL Extreme 10.5
champion
lost for the first time in 22 rounds of competition, fought tire shake
throughout the first day of the two-race-in-one weekend at Heartland
Park Topeka and as if that wasn’t enough misfortune for the fierce
competitor, he severely wounded an engine during eliminations of the
ADRL Independence Drags.
So what did the seemingly jinxed Glidden do next?
He changed the engine and won the race.
champion
lost for the first time in 22 rounds of competition, fought tire shake
throughout the first day of the two-race-in-one weekend at Heartland
Park Topeka and as if that wasn’t enough misfortune for the fierce
competitor, he severely wounded an engine during eliminations of the
ADRL Independence Drags.
So what did the seemingly jinxed Glidden do next?
He changed the engine and won the race.
“Just a little too much nitrous and not enough engine,” Glidden explained in discussing what hurt his usually reliable engine.
Glidden experienced one of the toughest weekends he’s faced since joining the National Guard ADRL tour last summer. He defeated Kevin Paulk in the final round of the fifth race on the ten-event ADRL schedule.
Glidden has won four of five events this season with his only loss coming at the hands of Paulk on Friday evening, the completion of the postponed ADRL Summer Drags held over from Martin, Mi.
The tough weekend really doesn’t come as a surprise for Glidden as he sorts through a brand new combination. The second-generation champion, son of ten-time NHRA Pro Stock champion Bob Glidden, believed earlier in the season that he needed to find “the next level” if he hoped to remain competitive in this class.
Climbing the mountain has proven one of the toughest challenges he’s faced.
“We’re in new territory with this whole deal,” Glidden admitted. “It seems as if it doesn’t matter how we get there, with what I am racing with, death is almost always the end result.”
Glidden pulled his engine back from the dark side long enough to beat Paulk with a .015 holeshot when both drivers recorded identical 4.090 elapsed times. The previous time they raced Glidden lost when his Ford-powered, Pontiac shook the tires and forced him to lift.
There was no lifting this time for Glidden.
“I had gone left and I rode it with the wiggle, and I got down there close [to the finish line] and I could hear him,” Glidden explained. “I pushed in the clutch [at the finish line] and he came by me so fast I think he sucked two or three decals off of the car.”
Winning was a welcomed relief for Glidden, but not the best one.
“It felt good to make six runs in a row,” Glidden said. “It’s always good to win but it’s not always about win streaks. It’s about the paycheck.”
Six consecutive runs on Saturday at an ADRL event will deliver a good paycheck, too.
So what did the seemingly jinxed Glidden do next?
He changed the engine and won the race.
Billy Glidden experienced a tough weekend. The defending ADRL Extreme 10.5
With his hands still bearing the evidence of a last-minute engine swap, reigning Flowmaster Extreme 10.5 World Champ Billy Glidden (center) embraces Kansas National Guard Sergeant Hubbard and race runner-up Jeff Paulk after winning the Hardee’s Independence Drags III at Topeka, KS.
So what did the seemingly jinxed Glidden do next?
He changed the engine and won the race.
“Just a little too much nitrous and not enough engine,” Glidden explained in discussing what hurt his usually reliable engine.
Glidden experienced one of the toughest weekends he’s faced since joining the National Guard ADRL tour last summer. He defeated Kevin Paulk in the final round of the fifth race on the ten-event ADRL schedule.
Glidden has won four of five events this season with his only loss coming at the hands of Paulk on Friday evening, the completion of the postponed ADRL Summer Drags held over from Martin, Mi.
The tough weekend really doesn’t come as a surprise for Glidden as he sorts through a brand new combination. The second-generation champion, son of ten-time NHRA Pro Stock champion Bob Glidden, believed earlier in the season that he needed to find “the next level” if he hoped to remain competitive in this class.
Climbing the mountain has proven one of the toughest challenges he’s faced.
“We’re in new territory with this whole deal,” Glidden admitted. “It seems as if it doesn’t matter how we get there, with what I am racing with, death is almost always the end result.”
Glidden pulled his engine back from the dark side long enough to beat Paulk with a .015 holeshot when both drivers recorded identical 4.090 elapsed times. The previous time they raced Glidden lost when his Ford-powered, Pontiac shook the tires and forced him to lift.
There was no lifting this time for Glidden.
“I had gone left and I rode it with the wiggle, and I got down there close [to the finish line] and I could hear him,” Glidden explained. “I pushed in the clutch [at the finish line] and he came by me so fast I think he sucked two or three decals off of the car.”
Winning was a welcomed relief for Glidden, but not the best one.
“It felt good to make six runs in a row,” Glidden said. “It’s always good to win but it’s not always about win streaks. It’s about the paycheck.”
Six consecutive runs on Saturday at an ADRL event will deliver a good paycheck, too.
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