Dode Martin, Founder of Dragmaster Dragster Co., passed away yesterday 02-01-18 after a short stay in the Hospital, he was 93. I talked to his daughter Tora this morning and she told me that after Dode had been admitted to the hospital to have a blood clot removed from his leg that he went down hill after that. He was a fine person and I'm fortunate to have had the oppurtunity to get to know him and spend time together. Another one of the pioneers from the early days is gone. God Bless.
I had the pleasure of meeting Dode at Bakersfield many years ago, he was real gentleman. RIP Mr. Martin.
Not only was Dode a drag racing and hot rod legend, he was also a WWII vet. I was lucky enough to pal around with a bunch of old hot rodders in Fallbrook, Dode being one of them. I am a OIF combat vet and he and I chatted about our experiences once. He was an infantry replacement that was sent to the front lines during the Battle of the Bulge. Lost another one from the greatest generation.
Dode Martin was one from the greatest generation, not only his wartime exploits but also the golden age of drag racing. He will be missed for his contributions to both. Sincere condolences to his family and many friends. R.I.P.
When I moved to Carlsbad in the early sixties, I applied for a library card and was told I needed to have two locals sign the application. Walked over to Dragmaster and got Jim and Dode to sign the application! Worked with them on ads and catalogs. When you look up the definition of nice guy in the dictionary, you’ll see a picture of Dode.
Oh no. I grew up in Fallbrook and knew Dode since my teenage years. What a nice guy and what a loss for us. This is sad news indeed. Sent from my iPhone using H.A.M.B.
Condolences to the Martin family and friends on the passing of Dode...a Hotrod Guy In addition to @1947knuck's post Dode Martin, Founder of Dragmaster Dragster Co Credit to @Justin B https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...ster-open-house-pictures.383996/#post-4168612 Dode Martin Story http://www.hotrod.com/articles/the-dode-martin-story/ https://www.jalopyjournal.com/forum...martin-dragmaster-open-house-pictures.383996/ http://1962dragmaster.blogspot.ca/
another legend from the real days of drag racing. gone. back when you went out in your garage with an idea, not a catalog, and built something. r.i.p. mr martin you are already missed!
Another great one has gone to the race master. Dode was and always will be a legend in the sport, an incredibly nice guy and an all around good guy. I had the privilege of befriending Dode about 10 years ago while I was researching his chassis designs for my 33 chevy. Not only did he help me with my chassis but he became a person that I would visit whenever I was in the San Diego area. We love you Dode and you will be missed.
Sad day. Dode was one of the nicest people I had the privilege of meeting. His advice and knowledge will be missed.
I bought this old issue of Drag Parts Illustrated at a swap meet just for the mailing label. I could just imagine Dode on the crapper reading it. I had hoped to have him sign it one day.
Lions 1959 Bakersfield 1960 Hello, Dode Martin is/was a great part of drag racing history. Condolences go out to his family and friends. We usually saw him and the Dragmaster Team at the Lions Dragstrip from way back in 58-60. We liked the way they ran their team. Whenever we were wandering around the Lions’ pits, it was fun to hang around when Dode was talking to the rest of the crew, friends and others in the pits. There were many words of wisdom on those days. Ever since we were racing our 58 Impala at Lions in 1958 & 59, and during our 671 SBC, 40 Willys Coupe C/Gas racing days in 1960, there were times when we rested and wandered around the pits. In between the races, I wandered around to take movies of our drag racing favorites. There were plenty of others that drove the Dragmaster frame, race cars in all colors. But, the original Dragmaster was that great looking gold color that stood out from the rest. Jnaki Of all of the memories of the Dragmaster at Lions Dragstrip 58-59, this movie clip with original sound I added from the Dragmaster in September of 1959 is one of my favorites. (Original movie clip: SUMMER 1959, Original sound from the DETROIT NATIONALS, September 1959) Here is my contribution to the memory of Dode Martin: The Dragmaster with Dode Martin will not fade into oblivion…memories will last.
I don't think many know, or even remember this, but Dode didn't just build dragsters, he also built what they raced on. He was one of the driving forces (no pun intended) of the construction of Carlsbad Raceway during the early 1960's. Dode kept a small black and white photo pinned to the cork bulletin board in his shop, of him sitting behind the wheel of an old steam roller compressing the dirt for the asphalt track. He was one of the nicest and most generous men you could ever hope to meet. RIP.
Saw Dode several times at Bakersfield and our local track Barona raceway, Allways friendly and outgoing ,He will be missed for sure....
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