Bob Glanzer grew up on a farm northeast of Huron with dreams of becoming a world champion bull rider, but fourth place in the regional high school rodeo was about as close as he got. Instead he became a teacher, and helped with the rodeo club at Wessington Springs High School. He later served as manager of the South Dakota State Fair in the late 1970s and was superintendent of the grandstand stage shows and events for two decades. During his first year as manager, he had to rush out and buy boots for country Johnny Cash minutes before the country music legend took the stage.
Glanzer later took a job as an agriculture loan officer for a bank in Huron before retiring three years ago. One of his favorite hobbies is chuck wagon historical re-enactments, and last year his wagon and horses were a part of South Dakota’s 125th Anniversary Wagon Train, which followed a path from Yankton to Pierre.
In 2011, Glanzer began writing articles for the regional Prairie Tracks magazine. 50 of them have been collected in a new book, You Can’t Unring a Bell. Proceeds go toward the capital campaign for a new 4-H exhibit hall at the State Fair. Glanzer joined Dakota Midday and discussed the book.