Motor Racing : For Thompson Group, the Show Must Go On

Mickey Thompson was a one-man gang in his promotions, and his wife Trudy had been his trusted assistant for 18 years, so when they were killed by assassins March 16, there was some question as to the future of the Mickey Thompson Entertainment Group, which promoted stadium off-road and motocross events.

What wasn’t evident to many of those who followed the career of the flamboyant Thompson, however, was that he was an organization man.

Mickey and Trudy had been preparing to withdraw from the company’s day-to-day operations when he turned 60 on Dec. 7, so the organization’s framework was already in place when gunmen cut the Thompsons down as they prepared to leave for their Anaheim Stadium office.

Bill Marcel, a longtime associate of Thompson in other projects, was vice president in charge of operations and controller. Mike DeStefano, who switched from Mike Goodwin’s motocross operation to Thompson’s company in late 1985, is in charge of sales and operation.

Jerry Stansbury, a former racer who liked to analyze the construction of courses with Thompson, is the designer. And Diana Harris, who was with Thompson during his early stadium off-road racing promotions at the Los Angeles County fairgrounds in Pomona, has rejoined the group.

“Once we heard from both Mickey’s family and Trudy’s family that they wanted us to continue, our first priority was to show that we could put on a successful show without Mickey,” Marcel said. “I think we’ve already proven that, at Houston and Seattle, but now we have to do it in front of the hometown fans.”

Saturday night, in the Rose Bowl, the fifth event of the Mickey Thompson Off-Road Championship Gran Prix series will be run, featuring trucks, racing buggies, 4-wheeled all-terrain vehicles and motorcycles.

“Our goals were to better our last year’s attendance at every site,” Marcel said. “That means we have our work cut out for us at the Rose Bowl, where we drew a record 67,153 last year, but I think we can do it. The racing has been getting closer and more exciting with every race.

“Mickey thought we turned the corner this year. We had some bad nights last year in Pontiac (Mich.) and Indianapolis and Houston. But this year, every place we’ve gone, we’ve been up. Last year we didn’t do but about 8,000 at Houston, but (April 23) we did 20,139. And we were very satisfied with Seattle, our first show without Mickey and Trudy, when we drew 31,241, up from 21,000 a year ago.”

Marcel was with Thompson in the early ‘60s when he was running for the land-speed record at Bonneville and putting together his Indianapolis 500 project with Chuck Daigh, Fritz Voight and rookie driver Dan Gurney. But Marcel moved to Warren, Mich., in 1970 and did not return to Southern California until 1984.

During that time he earned a master’s degree in business administration at Michigan State.

“Mickey used to always think that was something special,” Marcel said. “He used to laugh and say he needed somebody with a degree like that to juggle his finances.”

Danny Thompson, Mickey’s son, will be in Saturday night’s show, racing a Chevrolet truck in the Grand National sport truck class.

“The Rose Bowl race was near and dear to my dad because he grew up in this neighborhood,” Danny said. Mickey Thompson graduated from Alhambra High School.

There will be a moment of silence at the Rose Bowl Saturday night as a tribute to Mickey and Trudy Thompson.

“Mickey’s organization is running smoothly, but the void will never been filled,” DeStefano said. “I still see him out of the corner of my eye every place I go. It’s not as though he’s looking at me, it’s just (that)it’s like he’s still here.”

MOTORCYCLES--After one event of the American Motorcyclist Assn.’s 1988 Grand National dirt track season, it looks like a carbon copy of 1987. Last year, Bubba Shobert won his third straight championship by a narrow margin over Scott Parker, who was followed by youngsters Doug Chandler and Chris Carr. In this year’s opener at Sacramento, Shobert edged Parker by three inches, with Chandler and Carr in pursuit.

The same cast will be at Ascot Park Saturday night for the Spring Classic, the season’s first 20-lap half-mile national. Carr, who will turn 21 Friday, had the greatest success at Ascot last year, winning the Fall national plus a $17,500 Camel Challenge shoot-out among the six fastest qualifiers. Saturday’s race will also offer a match-up of Harley-Davidsons, ridden by Parker, Carr and Jay Springsteen, the winningest rider in Grand National history, against Hondas ridden by Shobert and Chandler.

MIDGETS--United States Auto Club midgets and three-quarter midgets will make rare appearances at Saugus Speedway in a doubleheader Saturday night. Darryl Haugh of Fresno emerged as a challenger to Sleepy Tripp, defending Western States series champion, with a win last week at Ventura. That moved him into third place in the standings. Tripp, who was taken out on the first lap by an aggressive P.J. Jones last Sunday at Ascot, still leads with 329 points to 206 for Tommy Astone, 186 for Haugh, 155 for Robby Flock and 153 for Mario Bringetto Jr.

SPEEDWAY BIKES--With no visiting riders from the British League on hand this week, local favorites such as Bobby Schwartz, Brad Oxley, Bobby Ott and Steve Lucero will be the center of attention tonight at Ascot Park, Friday night at the Orange County Fairgrounds and Saturday night at Speedway USA in Victorville. This will be the Victorville oval’s first night date after a month of Sunday afternoon racing.

INDY 500--Practice for the Indianapolis 500 will start Saturday at the Indianapolis Motor Speedway with six rookie drivers on hand. Among them will be Billy Vukovich, grandson of the 1953 and 1954 winner of the same name; John Andretti, Mario’s nephew and Michael’s cousin, in the Mike Curb Motorsports Lola-Cosworth; and Scott Atchison of Bakersfield. Andretti had the fastest lap at 201.974 m.p.h. in rookie orientation. Qualifying will begin May 14.

STOCK CARS--The first event in a super stock series between Cajon Speedway and Saugus Speedway will be held Saturday night at Cajon Speedway in El Cajon. . . . Ron Meyer, who is trying to accumulate extra Winston Racing Series points by driving Saturday night at Bakersfield Speedway in Oildale and Sunday night at Ascot Park, will try for his fourth win of the season this week at Ascot. Also on the Sunday night program will be a chain race on the Figure 8 course. . . . Hobby and foreign stocks and jalopies will race Friday night at Saugus Speedway.

DRAG RACING--The Southern California Pro Gas Assn. will hold its second meet Saturday night at the Los Angeles County Raceway in Palmdale.