This past weekend the PDRA’s Bob Harris joined an elite group of North Carolina Drag Racing luminaries as he was chosen for induction into the North Carolina Drag Racing Hall of Fame. Harris joined the likes of Roy Hill, Doug Herbert, Buddy Martin, Sox and Martin, Rickie Smith, Charles Carpenter and other NC Drag Racing Hall of Famers during a ceremony at the Greensboro Coliseum on Saturday, February 21.

A North Carolinian by birth, Harris was raised in Pittsboro, NC, and began racing as soon as he was legally able at the age of 16. A testament to how times have changed, Harris states he got into it for the money. He worked his way through the ranks for the next 13 years, challenging competitors in IHRA Hot Rod, Quick Rod and Top Sportsman and NHRA Super Comp. The Harris name soon became one to be feared by the driver in the other lane. In 1988 Harris participated in a Budweiser/Chevrolet Series at Maryland International Raceway. Winning an event in the series gave racers the opportunity to vie for a Corvette at the final event of the year. The young Harris qualified himself for the event and went on to take home that Corvette. A year later he sold the Corvette to make an addition onto his house, a room known as the ‘Corvette Room’ where a picture of his trophy car is still proudly displayed on the wall.

This past weekend the PDRA’s Bob Harris joined an elite group of North Carolina Drag Racing luminaries as he was chosen for induction into the North Carolina Drag Racing Hall of Fame. Harris joined the likes of Roy Hill, Doug Herbert, Buddy Martin, Sox and Martin, Rickie Smith, Charles Carpenter and other NC Drag Racing Hall of Famers during a ceremony at the Greensboro Coliseum on Saturday, February 21.

A North Carolinian by birth, Harris was raised in Pittsboro, NC, and began racing as soon as he was legally able at the age of 16. A testament to how times have changed, Harris states he got into it for the money. He worked his way through the ranks for the next 13 years, challenging competitors in IHRA Hot Rod, Quick Rod and Top Sportsman and NHRA Super Comp. The Harris name soon became one to be feared by the driver in the other lane. In 1988 Harris participated in a Budweiser/Chevrolet Series at Maryland International Raceway. Winning an event in the series gave racers the opportunity to vie for a Corvette at the final event of the year. The young Harris qualified himself for the event and went on to take home that Corvette. A year later he sold the Corvette to make an addition onto his house, a room known as the ‘Corvette Room’ where a picture of his trophy car is still proudly displayed on the wall.

After winning the NHRA Bracket Finals in 1990, Harris moved into the Super Comp division in 1991. He did well enough that season to be given the incredible honor of NHRA’s Sportsman Driver of the Year. Although by this time the sport had become much more of a passion and less of a money-making endeavor, Super Stock Magazine named Harris as one of the top 10 money winners in the world in 1992. Throughout his career Harris accumulated 16 National Event titles and 3 Divisional Championships with the IHRA, as well as two divisional wins with the NHRA.

Harris’ son, Jason, would soon begin following in his footsteps. The viability and logistics of competing in multiple classes was more feasible in dragsters so the father/son duo each raced a dragster in Super Comp/Quick Rod and in Top Dragster. It soon became clear that Jason was taking notes from his dad and would carry on the Harris legacy well.

Harris decided to back off in his role of driver to take on the arguably more challenging role of track owner. During his 13 year tenure as part-owner of Piedmont Dragway, the industry began to take note of the fact that Harris was valuable to drag racing in more ways than as a champion driver. His ability to promote and market events put Piedmont Dragway on the map. Inventing the ‘Big Dog’ Series, one of Piedmont Dragway’s longest running and most successful monthly series, was just one of the ways Harris began to shine as a promoter and businessman of the sport. The Big Dog Series has become the launching pad for many of the modern-day Pro Mod success stories and is still home to top North Carolina competitors like Todd Tutterow.

In 2010, Harris officially retired from the driver’s seat, focusing efforts on his son’s racing career. Most recently that has paid big dividends for the Harris family as Jason took home top honors as the PDRA series’ first Pro Nitrous World Champion.

At the beginning of 2014 Harris stepped into perhaps the biggest undertaking of his drag racing career. A sour turn of events in professional eighth-mile drag racing sparked a handful of Pro Mod racers to form a viable organization that would continue the professional outlaw legacy. The PDRA was born, and Harris was hand picked by the four owners to direct this fledgling organization and to help regain the respect professional eighth-mile racing deserved. A year into this endeavor and the Professional Drag Racers Association has not only gained respect from racers, manufacturers, sponsors and fans, but is a key player among drag racing organizations.

“Looking back over the years, the opportunities I’ve had are pretty incredible,” stated Harris. “When you’re in the moment you just do what has to be done. I never set out to be recognized for my racing or promoting. You just work hard and try to do what’s best for the sport and for your family.

“What an honor to be inducted into the North Carolina Drag Racing Hall of Fame,” he continued. “I never imagined I would be given an honor of this magnitude. I’ve worked with a lot of great people throughout the years who have helped make things like the Big Dog Series and the PDRA a success. Drag racing is rarely a one man show. You always need to be surrounded by great people and I have certainly been blessed with that, most importantly, my family. I want to thank my wife of 41 years, Shelby, for her support, and my son Jason for being the best teammate I could ask for. It’s important to do this thing with the support of family and I’m grateful Jason’s wife Crystal has joined us and they’re now raising my two grandkids the same way I raised Jason. Without my family, none of this would mean anything.”

A little-known fact about Harris is that he was also a world champion softball player in his younger years. It seems that no matter what he sets out to do, success is sure to follow. A quick look at Harris’ work ethic, innovative ideas and do-what-it-takes mentality and it’s easy to see how he’s brought success to his family, tracks and series.

Along with Harris, Deat Buckner, Don Plemmons, Jake King and Stuart McDade were also inducted into the North Carolina Drag Racing Hall of Fame this year.

“Life has come full circle from racing as a hobby to feeding my family by racing,” Harris observed. “I have won big races, owned a drag strip, passed the torch off to a world champion, and now I’m running a touring series. I thank the Lord that I've been able to have a hand in all this and to spend my life doing something I love with the people I love.”