The memories are still etched in Bob Bode’s mind.

On Aug. 15, 2010, Bob Bode, a part-time Funny Car driver on a limited budget, stunned the racing community by capturing an improbable victory at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd, Minn., by defeating Jack Beckman out of the Don Schumacher Racing stable.

“I have been racing my Funny Car 11 years, and I can’t really remember a lot of the races because so many of them run together,” the 59-year-old Bode said. “But, I can re-live that one (Brainerd last year) in my mind round by round almost minute by minute. It was just that great of a day and it is embedded in my brain. I will remember it until I’m old and gray.”

The memories are still etched in Bob Bode’s mind.

On Aug. 15, 2010, Bob Bode, a part-time Funny Car driver on a limited budget, stunned the racing community by capturing an improbable victory at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals in Brainerd, Minn., by defeating Jack Beckman out of the Don Schumacher Racing stable.

“I have been racing my Funny Car 11 years, and I can’t really remember a lot of the races because so many of them run together,” the 59-year-old Bode said. “But, I can re-live that one (Brainerd last year) in my mind round by round almost minute by minute. It was just that great of a day and it is embedded in my brain. I will remember it until I’m old and gray.”

Bode will make a return to the site if his greatest NHRA accomplishment when he defends his title at the Lucas Oil NHRA Nationals Aug. 18-21 at Brainerd International Raceway Track.

“Nobody would have even put us on the odds charts last year,” Bode said. “Maybe we will at least be on the bottom spot of the (odds) chart this year. Can it happen again that we win? I think so because it is a good race track for our tuners. I would like to see it happen and a lot of it depends on pairings. We have a good enough car to do it and now we have to see if we are smart enough to do it.”

Bode has competed at seven races this season, the last being at Chicago July 7-10 when he lost to Melanie Troxel in the first round after smoking the tires. Bode’s best 2011 performance came when he lost to eventual champion Jeff Arend in the semifinals at Houston May 1.

“We do not go on that Western Swing, it is too brutal for us,” said Bode, whose team is based in Elk Grove, Ill., a suburb of Chicago. “Last year, we were kind of off leading up to Brainerd and our chassis and tune-up just works at Brainerd. We have had some good weekends there. It fits our style, and we are amped up and ready to roll into Brainerd fresh after we took the Western Swing off.”

Bode’s remarkable 2010 Brainerd run was even more impressive considering he had never been to a Funny Car final round since he began competing in the class in 2001.

“I remember when we were getting the car ready and we were thrashing it, and the guys on our crew had never had to get a car ready for four rounds in a day,” Bode said. “Then, I thought as we pulled the car into the staging lanes that we had no problems with where we are headed because win or lose we have never got this far. Beckman had the hot rod to beat. He was running low numbers every round and was flawless. We figured we would just have him earn the win. The next thing you know we were in the winner’s circle.”

When Bode did take the win light against Beckman, who smoked the tires almost immediately, he didn’t know what to think. Bode clocked a solid 4.248-second run, while Beckman slowed to 8.338 seconds.

“I was obviously pretty nervous because I had never been in a final round before,” Bode said. “I remember staging the car and thinking do not go red, and I hit the gas. I never saw him (Beckman). All I thought was I had a redlight or something because I figured I would have seen him. I didn’t know what to think. I remember it wasn’t until I turned the corner (at the top end of the track) and they (NHRA officials) were waving me over and I thought you have to be kidding? We just won this thing? Those 30 seconds felt like an eternity. My guys never came on the radio because they were so busy jumping up and down. From a racer’s viewpoint, it was the coolest thing that has ever happened to our race team.” During his Brainerd championship run, Bode also knocked off former world champion Cruz Pedregon, Bob Tasca III, and Tim Wilkerson.

“I remember thinking when we beat Cruz, we had just bought a new crankshaft that that cost $4,000 and when we won I thought we can pay for that crank now, never thinking I was going to go any further,” Bode said. “Tasca had a great car and I beat him on a holeshot when I ran a low teen. I was proud of the fact that my driving kept us in it because nobody would have picked us to beat Tasca.”

Bode clocked a 4.140-second time to beat Tasca’s 4.128-second effort. The difference came at the starting line where Bode left on Tasca.

“We were smiling when we got to the semis because whatever we get, we have already got more than we should,” Bode said. “Wilkerson did a wheel stand about half track and we were ahead of him at every spot on the race track even before he did the wheel stand. Once he did the wheel stand, he faded and we got the win.”

Against Wilkerson, Bode had a 4.162-second lap compared to Wilkerson’s 4.688-second run.

Although Bode’s Brainerd win came just under a year ago, he still feels the victory's ramifications.

“It is pretty amazing I guess the connections we have with fans now,” Bode said. “Before we always had a group of people who were our friends and family who followed us, but since the win every single race we go to I will get anywhere from five to 30 people come up and tell me that was the best win of last season, and talk about it with us. That is probably the part that has changed the most. People can probably connect to us if they have dreams of racing because we are the little guy who put away the big guy. We are also a little more accepted in our little world against the other Funny Car guys. Before we were just another team that every once in a while had a good day. Now, we are just another team that had a great day. We have been a little more accepted in our (Funny Car) world and that is worth its weight in gold.”