Minneapolis, Minn. – When Mickey Thompson and his wife Trudy were assassinated in their driveway in the pre-dawn hours of March 16, 1988, the salacious details of the crime and the years of legal wrangling that followed made for hundreds of splashy headlines and sexy television soundbytes. Everyone wanted a piece of the story.

A good story, however, has much more than a powerful ending. Who was Mickey Thompson? What made him more than just another victim of violent crime in America? Mickey Thompson was one of the most influential figures in early American motorsports. While he did have loyal and longtime friends, Mickey always did things one way . . . his way. And he did it with speed . . . he did everything with speed.

From his 1950s adventures in the Carrera Panamericana, ending with five dead and dramatic pictures in Life Magazine in 1953, through making a one-way run of 406.60 miles per hour at the Bonneville Salt Flats in 1960 in his famed Challenger, through multiple trend-setting entries in the famed Indianapolis 500 and into the creation of some of the most popular off-road racing series and motor sports stadium shows, Mickey’s life was full of “firsts.” And in a world that seems to be moving faster than even Mickey Thompson could have imagined, the complete story of this true American legend is one worth slowing down for.

If you want to find out more then you'll have to order the new book written by former USA Today reporter Erik Arneson who now spends his time plugging the SPEED Channel as its head of Public Relations.  The book came out in November and has been a strong seller for publisher Motorbooks, according to Motorbooks spokesperson Blake Johnson.

 The 304 page, hardcover book is illustrated with over 300 photos that trace the fabled and ultimately, tragic life of Mickey Thompson.  

It's available for $25 US or $27.50 Canadian at many of your local bookstores (Barnes and Noble, Borders) or online through Amazon or the publisher, Motorbooks.

 For more information about this book or other related books: www.motorbooks.com

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