Scorpion
Racing Group has evolved from an informal branch of Mountjoy’s Autoshop,
Inc. The original race team was made up of friends and mechanics who regularly
participated in Sports Car Club
Of America (SCCA) auto crossing and club racing. The late owner and founder
of Mountjoy’s, Thomas “Tim” Mountjoy formed the original team in the 1970’s.
It was conceived as a means of recreation for shop employees, and as a
form of direct advertising for Mountjoy’s Autoshop within the sports car
enthusiast community. Over the last 25-30 years the shop has successfully
campaigned three MGB roadsters, sponsored two Triumph TR-7’s, two TR 8’s,
an Austin Healey “Bugeye” Sprite, numerous MG Midget roadsters and a host
of other cars. Mountjoy’s currently supports two nationally competitive
MGB roadsters, a Triumph Spitfire Roadster, and several regionally competitive
BMWs carry the Mountjoy’s colors as well. In addition, Mountjoy’s Autoshop
has provided parts sponsorships to dozens of racers over the years.
The team designed/built/raced two MGBs over the last several decades; the
first, a 1969, sponsored both by Mountjoy’s and by Beck Arnley and the Parts
Place in Alexandria and Vienna, Virginia which hit the racetrack in 1976
with a crew consisting of Bob Rappleye, Larry Bell, Bob Lippert, and Tony
Bigbee. Bob Vey joined the team shortly thereafter. The original B was
regionally successful for four seasons. Early in 1980 the decision was made
to scrap the now very tired Beck Arnley car and to build a new 78 MGB from
the tub up. With a new crew that added Kenny Robinson and Brandi Wichmann to
the mix, the team took on a new attitude and a much leaner look. Working
nights and weekends, the new racecar quickly took shape but success eluded
the team. After a particularly frustrating early half of the 1980 season,
the car and the team’s luck turned around. Tim qualified the “B” first in
class in every outing for the rest of the season, finished first in class
six out of 12 races and won first overall in the Summit Point 150 endurance
race that year. Following that first successful year was a string of
National and Regional wins that few racers could duplicate. The car had an
active history from the early 1980s through the early 1990s, winning a
number of Regional and Mid Atlantic Road Racing Series (MARRS)
championships. The members of the crew changed over the years but the spirit
of the team was contagious. You couldn’t walk by the Mountjoy pits without
catching the excitement. Tim and the team were invited to the SCCA National
Runoffs at Road Atlanta three years in a row. While they never won a
National Championship, the race team with the Ice Cream White MGB from
Hyattsville, Maryland vividly demonstrated what one man with a vision and a
group of good friends could accomplish.
It is with great pride that Scorpion Racing has purchased and upgraded this
historic and successful MGB racecar to current SCCA National specs. We look
forward to continuing the tradition of Tim Mountjoy and the Mountjoy’s
Autoshop team.
Club
Of America (SCCA) auto crossing and club racing. The late owner and founder
of Mountjoy’s, Thomas “Tim” Mountjoy formed the original team in the 1970’s.
It was conceived as a means of recreation for shop employees, and as a
form of direct advertising for Mountjoy’s Autoshop within the sports car
enthusiast community. Over the last 25-30 years the shop has successfully
campaigned three MGB roadsters, sponsored two Triumph TR-7’s, two TR 8’s,
an Austin Healey “Bugeye” Sprite, numerous MG Midget roadsters and a host
of other cars. Mountjoy’s currently supports two nationally competitive
MGB roadsters, a Triumph Spitfire Roadster, and several regionally competitive
BMWs carry the Mountjoy’s colors as well. In addition, Mountjoy’s Autoshop
has provided parts sponsorships to dozens of racers over the years.
sponsored both by Mountjoy’s and by Beck Arnley and the Parts
Place in Alexandria and Vienna, Virginia which hit the racetrack in 1976
with a crew consisting of Bob Rappleye, Larry Bell, Bob Lippert, and Tony
Bigbee. Bob Vey joined the team shortly thereafter. The original B was
regionally successful for four seasons. Early in 1980 the decision was made
to scrap the now very tired Beck Arnley car and to build a new 78 MGB from
the tub up. With a new crew that added Kenny Robinson and Brandi Wichmann to
the mix, the team took on a new attitude and a much leaner look. Working
nights and weekends, the new racecar quickly took shape but success eluded
the team. After a particularly frustrating early half of the 1980 season,
the car and the team’s luck turned around. Tim qualified the “B” first in
class in every outing for the rest of the season, finished first in class
six out of 12 races and won first overall in the Summit Point 150 endurance
race that year. Following that first successful year was a string of
National and Regional wins that few racers could duplicate. The car had an
active history from the early 1980s through the early 1990s, winning a
number of Regional and Mid Atlantic Road Racing Series (MARRS)
championships. The members of the crew changed over the years but the spirit
of the team was contagious. You couldn’t walk by the Mountjoy pits without
catching the excitement. Tim and the team were invited to the SCCA National
Runoffs at Road Atlanta three years in a row. While they never won a
National Championship, the race team with the Ice Cream White MGB from
Hyattsville, Maryland vividly demonstrated what one man with a vision and a
group of good friends could accomplish.