THE THOMPSON FAMILY
Grant is a second generation racecar driver. Grant grew up going to watch his dad, John, race at Mobile International Speedway and Five Flags Speedway. Grant started racing Junior Champ Karts at the age of 6 at Sunny South Speedway in Grand Bay, AL and also in Florida. Grant then raced bandoleros at local tracks, Atlanta Motor Speedway, Charlotte Motor Speedway, and as far as New York and competed at a national level. At age 12, he moved up to a full size racing vehicle and started with pro trucks where he competed with adults. After two successful years of trucks, he moved up to a pro late model and super late models the year after which are the cars that Grant is currently racing. That’s a LOT of experience for someone who can’t yet legally get his driver’s license!
Hours and hours of work are put into building the cars and working on the cars. Although the family rally’s around Grant’s racing career, Grant does have a younger brother who’s interested in music not racing, so mom and dad do their best to show their other son equal attention. It doesn’t always happen because of the demand for travel and time needed for Grant’s sport. John is a ride-or-die race dad who put his business on hold for a few years so that he could fully commit his time to Grant’s racing career. It’s an all-encompassing passion and business.
Father and son live by the motto, “To be the best, you have to beat the best.” Grant looks up to so many drivers, his dream is to compete against his hero’s. Dad has taught him the mindset, “work until your hero’s become rivals.” But Grant is still a child in many ways. Where mother is coddling and protective, dad is encouraging Grant, to go bigger and faster. Mom and dad don’t always see eye to eye when it comes down to racing. Mom especially doesn’t like the inappropriate attention her handsome (albeit underage son) gets from teenage girls who make “eyes” at him at the track. Naturally, Grant loves the attention but mom and dad don’t like the distraction.
As of now the Thompson family has nearly 15 race tournaments scheduled next year, that’s upwards of nearly 50-60 races in a year, all throughout the South. It’s a demanding schedule, full of travel, hard work, and of course the inevitable emotional ups and downs that come with winning and losing.