Photo by Jennifer Greener
By Janelle Bates
Mickey Stubbings won the Labor Day Friesen Performance IMCA Modified feature race at Desert Thunder Raceway. The win marked his fourth trip to victory lane this season.
“I’ve won my share of races, but the Modifieds are really difficult to win. I’ve been fortunate to win four races this year. It’s pretty special,” he said. “I’m truly blessed to be racing this late in life and to have all my racing friends.”
“In the midst of something big, something bigger happened,” said Shane Weybright, co-owner of Desert Thunder Raceway. “With the High Plains Late Models in town, our local driver, Mickey Stubbings, stole the show. At 80-years-old, he’s still living his best life.”
Stubbings, from Helper, Utah, ranks first in IMCA Modified Utah state points, 15th in the Shaw Race Cars Western Region and 98th in the National Friesen Performance IMCA Modified points. After nearly 50 years of racing, Stubbings said he’s having an especially rewarding year.
“I’ve been working on this car for a year, trying to get it how I want it to be,” he said. “I finally found the right combination that works for me. I haven’t had any break downs or DNFs, knock on wood. I’ve had some issues with not being able to finish a main, but was able to fix them before the next race.”
Winning is not new to Stubbings. He once won over 50 races in a row at Desert Thunder.
Stubbings’s love of racing began when he was 32 years old and his best friend invited him to go watch the dirt races in Grand Junction, Colorado.
“We loaded up and went out there and when we came home, we started building a ’56 Ford in a field,” he said. “We didn’t have a shop and we didn’t know much about racing.”
His racing career started in 1974 and he tinkered with Ford trucks for three years. When he got his first ’64 Chevelle in 1977, he started running 100-lap races in the dirt.
In 43 years of living in the Price, he won three championships at the old Price fairgrounds and eight championships at Desert Thunder.
Stubbings started racing IMCA Modifieds in 2006 and continued to race in his favorite class since. He raced in the Wild West Modified Tour, promoted by Ken and Shelley Hansen. The series toured five states: Utah, Colorado, Wyoming, Idaho and Nevada. The competitive series had a big influence in bringing IMCA to the western states.
“If you want to really race, you have to spend a lot of time in the shop. Races are won in the shop,” he said. “The most important thing about racing is getting into the turn. You have to try different setups if the car isn’t handling properly.”
Stubbings is always learning and asks other drivers questions, especially when the drivers are better than him. “I don’t think you can get better unless you ask questions,” he said. He encourages younger drivers to do the same.
“Mickey and his wife Charlotte are an inspiration to everyone,” Weybright said. “I am proud of what they do for our sport and even prouder to have them as friends.”
Stubbings does not want to retire from racing anytime soon and plans to return next year. The recent upgrades at Desert Thunder since Shane and Erin Weybright purchased the track in 2020 keep him interested in racing. He said it makes him have to think more.
“Shane and Erin are two great people who have influenced a lot of people and I’m grateful for all they’ve done for the community,” Stubbings said.