John Jodauga was an artist, and oh, how that spoke to my heart from day one. John’s work is so rich; each piece holds incredible depth and a graceful tenderness that can only be captured by someone who truly loves what they do. I wanted to write the way that John Jodauga painted, and lucky for me, I got to work closely with him during my time at “the paper,” as he called it.
We shared the Pro Stock beat. He made room for the new girl in a space that he so treasured, and he told me more stories than I could ever, ever remember. I wish I had written them down – what a book that would be! He filled my brain with everything he could extract from his own deep memory bank, and I fell in love with this class, in large part, because of those stories. No. I fell in love with Pro Stock because of the way John told those stories – and the way he trusted me with them. I can hear him even now: “Oh, you would have loved it!” I can see him pressing his lips together and shaking his head and waving one hand with the other folded across his chest, eyes slightly closed. “You would have loved it.”
Once, John and I covered the race at Brainerd together. The Monday morning drive to the Minneapolis St. Paul airport was long, so long, and I was so tired. I asked him to drive, and he gladly did so. I thought I would fall asleep, but we found a radio station that we both liked and started playing the “name that tune” game. We laughed and sang the entire trip. That man knew music. I learned that day that he even loved Echo and the Bunnymen! Who knew?
There were so many moments. We ran into each other at a 5k once, both of us sweaty and hot and a little high on a post-run rush. We both loooooooved the Dodgers (a LOT). He made lists as obsessively as I did, but he typed his up and printed them out, then carried it around in his pocket all day. I was jealous that he asked our friend and copy editor Melissa to help him write his book. I was nervous for him to read mine, though. It mattered to me, what he thought about how I reported on Pro Stock. After he retired, they gave him a lifelong hard card, and he was so proud of it. He showed up at the first race of the new year wearing it around his neck, sporting the coolest shades, and looking healthier and happier than I’d ever seen him. That’s my forever picture of John Jodauga.
I must say this, before I close. What struck me most, while walking through the Pro Stock pits with John on more than one occasion, was the mutual and genuine respect (and friendship!) he shared with the drivers. It’s one thing to be a reporter, and it’s another to be a reporter for NHRA’s National Dragster. But to be respected, trusted, and appreciated the way that John was? That’s something to strive for, in life and career. He was kind, he was good, and he cared deeply about what he created. It showed, and it mattered.
I love you, JJ. Thank you for everything.
Rest well. xo
In loving memory of John Jodauga, December 18, 1945 – May 11, 2023
Categories: Musings, Uncategorized
Kelly Wade 