Ody Mandrel was an Er'Kit Podracer born and raised on the dusty world of Tatooine.
One of the youngest Podracers to participate in the sport, Ody was barely more than a teenager. His naturally resilient skin, an inherent characteristic of nearly all Er’Kit, allowed him to walk away from most of his crashes nearly unscathed—and Mandrell experienced more crashes than most. The quintessential daredevil, Mandrell raced not for money or fame, but simply for the adrenaline rush. He relished mind-boggling risk, and constantly flew at top speed, edging around corners by the seat of his pants as he whooped and laughed like a madman.
Mandrell was a powerful contender in the midrace battles that frequented Podracing. With his powerful Exelbrok XL 5115 machine, he could deliver serious damage to other racers, and it never seemed to bother him that they might be better pilots. Fans enjoyed his bravado, and he was a favorite among the spectators of the Boonta Eve Classic. During the race in which Anakin Skywalker won his freedom, Ody’s Podracer was disabled in the pits when the droid DUM-4 was sucked into one massive engine and spat out the other end. However, he was able to repair the engine after the race, and was soon back on the Podracing circuit.
He dominated on Dethro's Revenge on Ord Ibanna and was the track's favorite there.
In 8 ABY, Ody was working in the old Mos Espa Grand Arena, now a Swoop racing arena after the Galactic Empire banned Podracing, for Ulda alongside his previous competitor, Teemto Pagalies. When Han and Leia Organa Solo appeared at the Arena looking for a fast transport to catch the runaway Kitster Banai and recover the grass painting Killik Twilight, it was Ody who prepared Han with Rao's swoop bike, which was basically a Podracer engine with a seat attached.