Born in Philadelphia in 1936, Skip Barber’s journey at Lime Rock Park began in 1959. He took his senior year off from Harvard in 1958 to join the Merchant Marines and save enough money to buy his first race car, a Bugeye Sprite. Back at Harvard a year later, he attended his SCCA driver’s school at Marlboro, Maryland, and soon after, raced his first race at Lime Rock Park in 1959. Little did he know that this would be the start of a remarkable career that would not only shape his legacy but also transform Lime Rock Park into one of the premier road racing destinations in the world.

Click here to watch a video

Barber’s talent shone through in the 1960s and 1970s as he raced everything from sports cars to high-powered formula cars. His shining moments in the driver’s seat included beating Jim Clark in an identical car at the then Mosport in his first professional race and setting the lap record at Lime Rock Park. He won three SCCA National Championships, set 32 lap records, and earned the President’s Cup, cementing his place at the top of call sheets.

Success in Formula Ford propelled Skip to a drive for the March factory in Formula 1 and Formula 5000 with team owner Gene Mason. He ran six Formula 1 races, the highlight being outqualifying Ronnie Peterson, Niki Lauda, and Henri Pescarolo, who were also driving Marchs, at the US Grand Prix at Watkins Glen in 1972. At that time, the guru of track racecar engineering in North America, Carrol Smith, said, “He was the fastest guy who never made it big.”

He occasionally raced Porsches in IMSA over the next few years. But Barber was only beginning to build a legacy in American motorsports. Believing that racing was a coachable sport, he formed the Skip Barber Racing School in 1975 at Lime Rock, and Thompson started with four students and a pair of borrowed Formula Fords. Since then, over 400,000 students have graduated. The School created champions in every professional racing series, including winning drivers at the Indy 500, the Daytona 500, the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the Rolex 24, and the 12 Hours of Sebring and Formula 1. In addition, the school saved countless lives on the roads through defensive driving programs, as well as having had a profound impact on the sport, training and developing an entire generation of mechanics, administrators, and marketing specialists who often, like the driver graduates, found their way to the upper levels of motorsport. Long-time friend Paul Pfanner of Racer Magazine said, “The school was the major entry point into motorsports for so many for so long. At one point, Press Officers from three major American racing series were Skip Barber Graduates.” Barber sold his school in 1999 and continued to work there until 2001.

In 1983, Barber led a group of investors who purchased Lime Rock Park from Harry Theodoracopulos and eventually became the sole owner.

Skip was inducted into the SCCA Hall of Fame on March 2, 2013.