About Us

 A Tribute to Our Founder Gary Martz: Auto Racing and Street Rod Chassis Innovator

Gary Martz was a major part of the local racing scene in Bedford County and beyond from the 1960’s to the 1980’s as a mechanic, racing engineer, car builder and driver. The hot rod bug bit him in the late 1950’s on the family farm just south of Bedford along with childhood friends Jim Nave, Don Snyder, and Dave Hite. Gary kicked off his racing career in 1964 when he built his first stock car with Jim Nave. On the flip of a coin, Jim became the driver, and Gary became the mechanic.

By 1966 Gary’s knack for engineering had earned him some recognition in the local racing community, so he was sought out and hired by Bedford Ford dealer, Don Rice, to act as crew chief for driver Boyd Arnold and the newly formed Don Rice Ford #29 super modified team. Boyd and Gary worked alongside the already established Don Rice Ford #31 super modified team with driver Gerald Chamberlain and crew chief Gus Frear. This was a great period of learning for Gary - working alongside Chamberlain and Frear. After Frear left the team in the mid-summer of 1967, Gary became head mechanic and crew chief for a year until Chamberlain took the seat of the 707 Paul Deasey modified. He elected to part ways with the Don Rice Ford team and new driver, Kenny Weld, and moved across town to the O.F. Conner #49 super modified team driven by Milt Miller. Gary and the Conner team went on to win their first night out at Port Royal(Pa) and finished out the season winning both the Hagerstown(Md) and Jennerstown(Pa) track championships.

In 1970 his reputation as a mechanic had grown regionally, so Gary and his brother, Bill, opened "Martz Brothers" in Bedford and his full-time chassis building business was born. In 1974 the name changed to "Martz Chassis Engineering" and the business of making purpose-built late model chassis and components was thriving, producing 40 to 50 cars per year with his staff. Gary’s part-time driving career was kicked off in 1970 and became full-time in 1971 driving the Don Athey owned #11 Chevelle late model. In 1975, Gary became team driver with Turk Burket in one of two #88 Camaros owned by Benny and Bobby Weyandt. The Burket and Martz #88s became the first super team in West Central Pa. Burket, Tom Peck, and Lynn Geisler helped Martz with driver feedback during this period as the modern-day late model chassis was born. The family business expanded into the south with drivers Jimmy Edwards Jr. and Skip Manning on the dirt and asphalt short tracks and then into NASCAR. Gary and his staff built a “ground up” Olds Cutlass Winston Cup Grand National Stock Car in 1981 for West Virginia driver, Lowell Cowell.

Gary retired as a driver after the 1982 season having won 50 late model main events in his hall of fame career. Wanting a new challenge, he re-tooled his Bedford shop on East Pitt St to produce street rods and components in 1983. In 1990, with his son Andy coming into the business, an opportunity arose to move into a larger facility in Bedford Township, where Martz Chassis operates today.

Gary was a 1961 graduate of Bedford High School and attended Lock Haven University. He was inducted into the Pittsburgh Circle Track Club Hall of Fame in 2010 and named to the Jennerstown (Pa) Speedway Hall of Fame in 2016 as well as the Bedford (Pa) Fairgrounds Speedway Hall of Fame. He was also inducted into the Bedford County Sports Hall of Fame in 2015, joining the previous year's inductees and his former Don Rice Ford teammates: Chamberlain and Frear. Gary passed away on February 22, 2022, and is survived by fiancée Jan Lesh, three daughters, Janenne Martz, Jill Buterbaugh, Jeri Martz and son Andy Martz and their families. He is preceded in death by wife Frankie in 1977, brother Ned, and parents Wilson and LaRue.

Martz Chassis is recognized on various media platforms in the US and overseas for superior quality and design in the performance and suspension systems markets thanks to Gary’s engineering prowess, and his legacy lives on in his son and current head of Martz Chassis, Andy Martz. With Andy's leadership, the family business continues to grow and expand into the future, providing top design and quality just as Gary would have wanted it.