Jim Holody is not the only person racing a vintage twin-cam MGA, but with only 2111 produced in the first place, and perhaps only half that many surviving, they're not exactly packing a big section of the paddock. The car's rarity, plus the fact that Holody really goes the distance to campaign his in period correct configuration, makes it our Pick of the Litter.

Holody is relatively new to the racing scene, having sort of backed his way in four years ago. While restoring another '59 twin-cam MGA in need of a correct engine he was led to Henry Moore, who just happen to have an extra one. Only trouble was, Moore's race prepared twin-cam was for sale and he felt strongly that the spare engine, which was actually the race car's original, should stay with it.

Why buy a glass of milk when you can purchase the entire cow? Holody ended up cutting a deal for the race car and all that went with it, including the spare engine. He enrolled in his first driving school three months later and hasn't looked back. He competes in four or five events annually but this was his first Sebring. Despite the fact that it felt more like a "shopping center parking lot" than a real race course, the sense of history that permeates Sebring was not lost on the Ontario native.

It is also a sense of history that motivates Holody to resist altering his car. Because original twin-cam wheels tend to be fragile and fetch at least $500 each, Holody chose to run with compomotive alloys modified to function with the car's original Dunlop center mount system. He also changed to a duel circuit braking system that uses two original style Girling clutch master cylinders.

Holody acknoledges that regular pushrod MGAs that have been updated with MGB components will normally outrun him but considers that a small price to pay for his allegiance to authentichty. "Regardless of whether you're fast or slow there's always someone to race with," he points out, "and that's what I found exciting about the sport. That, pus the interest of the fans and the camaraderie I'v found through the MG club with friends like John Burgess and Joe Robertson, who served as my pit crew in Sebring, is what makes vintage racing so wonderful.

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