Respecting Racer-Fan Boundaries

January 27th, 2012 by Ian Tocher

By Ian Tocher

“Bill-lee Glidden; Bill-lee Glidden!” The guy came around the back of Glidden’s trailer at the Texas Motorplex, carefully enunciating each syllable. “I just want to tell you what an a**hole you are!”

At first I thought this had to be an old, very familiar friend of the second-generation racing star, just acting like a jerk as a joke like some guys are prone to do, but within seconds I came to recognize the visitor for what he truly was: a boorish loudmouth with a chip on his shoulder. He went on to complain about how Glidden allegedly slighted him earlier in the day and how poorly Glidden treated his fans.

Remarkably (and probably a sad commentary on our society), I expected this “fan” to be drunk, but he appeared as sober as a judge. In fact, other than the a**hole comment he didn’t even resort to using profanity in his misguided tirade. Apparently, he was just mad about not getting an autograph or sufficient attention when Glidden was elbows deep in engine or transmission or whatever else might’ve needed attention when this guy showed up.

Though obviously annoyed, to his utmost credit Glidden coolly and politely told the uninvited guest that when he’s at the track he’s at work, that racing is how he pays the mortgage and keeps the lights on and puts food on the table and he can’t always stop what he’s doing at a moment’s notice. I know this firsthand, too, as Glidden and many other racers over the years have shooed me away at times when they’re just not able to talk. But by respecting their wishes—and their space—I’ve never, ever had one of them refuse to do a brief interview later, once things have settled down for them.

But this fine Texas fellow would have none of that, calling Glidden arrogant and conceited and rude among other things, upon which Glidden’s wife, Shannon, chimed in asking, “Well, what does that make you then?” To which he answered, “I’m a guy who tells the truth,” before turning tail and disappearing back into the life of misery from which he’d obviously come.

I was flabbergasted, to tell the truth, and that’s not a word I’d use often to describe myself. I couldn’t believe this guy had the audacity and lack of appreciation to arrive at a complete stranger’s place of work and call them out just because his feelings were hurt—and especially after Glidden had literally put his life on the line to entertain this miscreant not half an hour earlier with a career-best, 3.89-seconds pass at nearly 190 mph in the ADRL’s Extreme 10.5 Battle for the Belts final. As I said, I was stunned.

Now, let’s be honest, Glidden has a bit of a reputation as being kind of distant and hard to get to know at the track. He’s not the guy who’s going to be glad-handing all day with fans and staying up all night with fellow racers. He doesn’t suffer fools gladly and isn’t afraid to tell it like it is—or at least like it is from his perspective. Basically, the apple doesn’t fall far from the tree and “warm and fuzzy” won’t be included in too many descriptions of Billy Glidden’s trackside persona.

But I’ve watched Glidden when he did have some spare time at the track. I saw him handing an indelible black marker to his fans and allowing them to literally sign the rear deck of his Mickey Thompson-backed Mustang as he, all the while, spent that same time signing anything and everything offered. I personally witnessed him remove that same body panel from his car just so a man confined to a wheelchair could lend his signature of support. And I’ve seen him go out of his way to share a special moment with fans gathered along the grandstand fence at the victorious end of a long day of racing.

So when I watched the man verbally attacked for doing nothing more than his job, I was struck by how unfair it was, by how misunderstood and frustrated and unappreciated he must feel—especially when the criticism comes from someone who only hours earlier may have called himself one of Glidden’s biggest fans. But to paraphrase an old saying, with fans like that, who needs enemies?

I asked Glidden if this sort of thing happened often and thankfully he said no, but also admitted it wasn’t the first time. He asked what people really wanted of him, pointed out he doesn’t rope off his pit, doesn’t shy away from interacting with fans—but reinforced that racing comes first; it’s his job and he can’t interrupt his job every time someone comes calling.

Now, Glidden’s situation is exacerbated by just him and Shannon doing all the work on their car between rounds, but it’s far from unique at an ADRL event. The vast majority of drivers are hands-on crewmembers in the pits and Glidden’s “snub” could’ve just as easily been committed by Jason Scruggs or Dan Millen or Ashley Owens, all ADRL champions who are every bit as likely to be found in the pits with a pile of parts on the table and a wrench in their hands—and literally no time for fans at that given moment.

Not one of those competitors limit access to their pits, either. It’s one of drag racing’s biggest selling points, that access to the drivers and team members before, during and after a race. How many times have you heard drag racing being sold with something along the lines of “every ticket is a pit pass?” It’s literally akin to having unfettered access to a Major League Baseball clubhouse or an NFL team’s locker room at halftime. It’s a tremendous privilege for fans.

My point here is not to tout the traits or character of Billy Glidden, but to emphasize the need for everyone to play a part in keeping these pits open. I mean, what happens if what happened to Glidden becomes prevalent? What happens if some disgruntled “fan” expresses his displeasure in a more physical nature; or put more simply, throws a punch? What happens when the performer can no longer perform because his audience has encroached so far upon the stage?

That’s when we’re going to see more roped-off pit stalls, maybe even the “tent walls” that some teams hang from the perimeter of their awnings, blocking all view of the fascinating between-rounds maintenance they perform. It’s sad to think that some teams already view the fans as too much of a distraction to deal with, but given incidents like what happened to Glidden in Texas I reluctantly recognize their position, even if it is a preemptive measure.

It happened in NASCAR nearly 20 years ago; it happened in NHRA over this past decade; and unless more respect is shown to ADRL racers by their fans, it’s going to happen there, too. Fans, please be respectful of your eighth-mile heroes at work; and racers, please remember what it was like to be on the outside looking in and don’t block the view.