Racing school pioneer, driver, track owner

John “Skip” Barber III won three consecutive SCCA national titles, then founded and ran the famed Skip Barber Racing School, guiding a generation of racers, including Jeff Gordon, Michael Andretti, Danny Sullivan, Helio Castroneves, Paul Newman and Juan Pablo Montoya. Later he became owner/operator of Lime Rock Park. Barber began racing in 1958 while a student at Harvard. He won back-to-back SCCA Formula Ford national crowns in 1969 and ’70 and a third straight title the following year in Formula B. He entered six F1 races, with a best finish of 16^th at the 1972 US Grand Prix. The Philadelphia native started his eponymous driving school in 1975. It quickly became known as one of the best in the world. Skip Barber alumni have won every major American racing championship, including NASCAR Cup Series and IndyCar. A three-day course, said actor-turned-racer Patrick Dempsey, “changed the direction to the next chapter of my life.” Barber was inducted into the SCCA Hall of Fame in 2013.