Boot Ubuntu from thunderbolt external HDD/SSD?

I have an early-2011 MBP 13" running OS X v. 10.10.3 and Windows 8.1 Bootcamp. I'm wondering if I can boot Ubuntu (really any version, but most likely 14.04) from a LaCie Thunderbolt external hard drive. I used to have a mid-2012 MBP (that shorted due to water and a careless owner) and booted ubuntu from the USB 3.0 port. This worked great! But I believe the USB 2.0 ports are just too slow, so I'm wondering if I can boot through thunderbolt. Any advice is really appreciated!