Struksnes is slated to receive the honor Jan. 26 at a banquet in the Westin Crown Center Hotel in Kansas City, Mo. Fittingly, it is not far from a drag strip where Struksnes thrilled thousands of spectators with bold dashes in his top fuel dragster. In his career he competed against some of the most historic figures in the sport, legendary “Big Daddy” Don Garlits and Shirley Muldowney among them.

“He raced against all those folks and on occasion beat them,” said Cory Evenson, Minot. “Bob was always that bright light for a drag racing fan from this state. If you like cars, fast cars, Bob’s the top of the heap as far as in this state.”

Evenson’s long-time enthusiasm for drag racing includes examining the history of the sport, including the career of Struksnes. His research eventually led to developing a friendship with famed Minot speedster. Evenson was so impressed with Struksnes’ impact on the sport that he spent about 10 years tracking down the whereabouts of dragsters formerly owned by the soon to be hall of famer. His persistence paid off. Evenson acquired two of Struksnes’ dragsters and is in the process of rebuilding them.

“They have their own significant stories,” said Evenson. “Bob’s 1979 car was an absolutely stunning car. Stunning.”

MDN file Here’s Struksnes in his dragster in 1977, photo courtesy of Dave Kommel. The number four meant he was fourth in the world the previous year.

Struksnes brought the sleek dragster back to Minot where it remained inside the trailer at the business he still operates today, Trucking Equipment in east Minot. The top fuel car boasted some of the most elite equipment known in drag racing, making it a highly sought after ride by others hoping to advance in the sport. It was also Struksnes’ final ride.

During the first race of the season in 1979 at the Winter Nationals in California, Struksnes suffered the most serious accident of his career. He was knocked unconscious when his helmet smacked against his racer’s roll cage with the car moving at 200 mph. His ride came to a stop on its own in a parking lot off the end of the speedway.

“NHRA guys pulled me out of the car,” recalled Struksnes. ‘The next morning I woke up and the front of my face and eyes were black and blue. It all happened because the helmet was bigger. Two weeks later Jim Plummer was racing with the new helmet too. It came in contact with the rollbar cage and killed him. The car never wrecked.”

Those two incidents, along with the desire to spend more time with his young son, increased fuel costs and the payout schedule which Struksnes considered to be less than it should be, had the driver thinking about calling it quits. He didn’t, at least not immediately.

Struksnes had a new car built with a larger roll cage. It was fast, one of his finest, but he piloted the car for a mere seven bursts down the track.

Submitted Photo Bob and Joy Struksnes made drag racing a family affair. They were a familiar team at tracks throughout the United States and Canada in the mid to late 1970’s.

“There was not enough prize money. Nitro-methane went from $300 a barrel to $1,600 for a barrel of 50 gallons,” said Struksnes. “I just thought if they are not going to pay us, I am not going to do it.”

The car was a good one and Struksnes knew it. Nevertheless, he pushed it into the hauler and parked it in Minot.

“I wouldn’t even unload it,” remembered Struksnes. “It sat there from February to September. I wouldn’t even look at it. I had spent $40,000 on that chassis, not engines or anything. It was more or less junk to me because I wasn’t going to run it again. I wanted to be around my son and be a father.”

However, the car once wrenched by the Minot speedster was destined to dash into history. He got a phone call from a buyer who wanted the car.

“He wanted that chassis and the rear end,” said Struksnes. “There was only five of those rear ends built. They were out of Chicago and they weren’t for sale. I got one. Shirley Muldowney got one. Two went to other drivers and one for parts.”

Knowing he would never drive the car again, Struksnes sold the sleek dragster in late 1979. In 1980 and 1981 racer Jeb Allen throttled the Minot man’s former car to consecutive world titles.

“A car that originated in North Dakota became the best of the best, the best car in the country for two years straight,” said Evenson.

Struksnes’ top fuel drag racing career spanned the years 1974-1980. Despite being relatively unknown from an area of the country not known for producing drag racers, Struksnes made a name for himself by consistently besting whomever he raced against.

The Minot man twice finished in the top four in the Top Fuel world championship race. He piloted his car to the top speed, 248.61 mph, at the 1976 Gatornationals in Louisiana. That was the year Struksnes finished number four in the world. The following year he moved up to number three.

“Bob was so good divisionally, I think he lost only one race in three years,” said Evenson.

At the time Struksnes was competing at dragstrips from the Carolinas to California and Texas to Saskatoon, Saskatchewan. He was easily the most dominant driver in National Hot Rod Association Division 5 which encompasses most of the central United States, one of seven NHRA divisions.

While Struksnes’ astonishing accomplishments at some of the most competitive venues in the country were widely applauded by those who witnessed him race, his fame in Minot remained limited. There was no dragstrip in the city and therefore little chance for Struksnes to build a big fan base locally. However, that definitely was not the case elsewhere.

“We didn’t have any here because we never raced here,” said Struksnes when asked about fans in Minot. “There were a lot of people who followed us and helped us at different meets. We’d show up at Brainerd and there would be people from Minneapolis there to help us.”

“We had lots of fans in South Dakota too,” added Joy Struksnes, Bob’s wife who played a major role during their six years of top fuel racing. She would haul the car from race to race and do mechanical work. Bob would often fly home from competitions due to business obligations.

The Minot racer became known not only for winning against the best drivers in the world, he was doing so often on sheer determination. His memorable dashes down quarter mile tracks earned him the nickname of “Backdoor Bob,” a recognition that he kept his foot buried on the throttle beyond the finish line. During his racing days speed was clocked at a mark 66 feet beyond the finish line and Struksnes always covered that distance, no matter how precarious.

Struksnes said he nearly hung up the phone when he received a call to inform him of his upcoming honor. He thought it was a prank or some type of sales offer. The caller, probably sensing the call would be cut short, told Struksnes he was from the NHRA.

“That got my attention. Then I listened,” said Struksnes.

His efforts certainly made him worthy of joining other elite members of the Division 5 “High and Mighty,” otherwise known as the hall of fame. It is a well deserved honor for the former racer whose top speed was officially clocked at a blistering 249.60 miles per hour.

That Struksnes enjoyed speed was no secret. It was in his blood

“Out of high school I had a 1940 Chevrolet with a hemi-Chrysler and six carburetors on it. I drove that on the street,” said Struksnes.

Several years later Struksnes found himself at a Minneapolis dragstrip where he had to prove his ability behind the wheel in order to be allowed to compete in NHRA. One of the requirements was that he pilot his car to within 10 percent of the track record, which Struksnes recalled was about 200 mph. He couldn’t get his car to shift from low to high gear but still clocked an amazing 212 mph.

“They signed off on me,” laughed Struksnes. “I had never drove a dragster to that point. When I hit the throttle it was like an explosion. I never dreamt anything could move that fast. The next thing I knew I was going 150 miles an hour and my brain didn’t tell me I had moved yet.”

After that day Struksnes began to make a name for himself on the national scene. At Joy’s urging, he moved into the top echelon of the sport – top fuel dragsters. In 1975 he had his first encounter with the man who put drag racing in the national spotlight. At the world finals he was paired with “Big Daddy” Don Garlits in the first round and came within thousands of a second of doing something few in drag racing ever accomplished, putting Garlits back on the trailer.

“At the end of the quarter Garlits thought he lost,” recalled Struksnes. “He got out of his car and came over to me. It wasn’t until then he realized he had won. He asked what my name was and said he would never forget it.”

Garlits didn’t either. Struksnes had earned the respect of the top name in the game when his ninth-seeded car came within a whisker of knocking out the number one qualifier. The two men and their families became friends.

“He was quite a guy,” remarked Struksnes. “His kids ran around with my kids. He was the Big Daddy of drag racing. He built the first rear engine top fuel car. He has a museum in Tampa, Florida. We raced the best of the best but I never did beat him.”

Next month, though, Struksnes will be recognized for his achievements on the track with his enshrinement into the divisional Hall of Fame. He’ll get a second honor too, later in 2019 when he gets his name engraved on a marker at a dragstrip in Denver. Both are fitting tributes to a man, his wife and family who had a lasting impact on the sport.

“I enjoyed it and Joy enjoyed it,” said Struksnes, age 78 and still working daily on diesel engines. “I’m glad we did it. It was something hardly anybody ever did. Nobody even knew what drag racing was, top fuel and stuff like that. I’ve had quite a life.”