
Lime Rock Park CEO Dicky Riegel, right, introduced Skip Barber, at left, during the May 25 dedication of the newly christened Skip Barber Tower.
Shawn Pierce
Lime Rock Park CEO Dicky Riegel, right, introduced Skip Barber, at left, during the May 25 dedication of the newly christened Skip Barber Tower.
LIME ROCK — Skip Barber’s affinity for racing took root at the tender age of 10 in a block-long alley behind his family’s Philadelphia home.
Propped up on a pillow to help him see over the wheel and reach the pedals of a dusty old Ford that had been stored in the garage, the youngster was only allowed to drive it back and forth in the narrow alley. There was no room to turn around.
“I logged exactly as many miles going backwards as I did going forward,” recalled the soft-spoken Barber, who had grown up in a family of automobile enthusiasts. His grandfather owned an auto dealership, and his dad had an interest in cars.
Little did he know that those countless miles logged in that alley in 1946 would lead to his status as an enduring legacy in American motorsports and an icon at Lime Rock Park (LRP), which has declared 2024 as “The Year of Skip Barber.”
As Barber, who sold the majority of the park to Lime Rock Group LLC in 2021, marks the 65th anniversary of his first visit, and first race, at the Lakeville track, the park is paying tribute to him throughout the season through special events, exhibitions and commemorative merchandise.
“As Lime Rock Park celebrates its 67th year of operation it does so with a deep sense of gratitude and reverence for the man whose vision and passion have left an indelible mark on this iconic racetrack,” said Dicky Riegel, LRP President and CEO, of the park’s former owner and founder of the world-renown racing school which bears his name.
“His commitment to excellence and his relentless pursuit of innovation have earned him the respect and admiration of his peers and racing fans,” Riegel said of Barber, who remains a large shareholder in LRP. “The Year of Skip Barber is a fitting tribute to a man whose passion for motorsport knows no bounds.”
On Saturday, May 25, Barber saw his name carry even more significance in the sport as the track dedicated the timing and scoring tower in his name, after which he served as the Grand Marshal for the popular Trans Am Memorial Day Classic.
For decades, said Riegel, Barber has been a guiding force, instilling a passion for racing in countless individuals and leaving an indelible mark on the racing community. “Now the Skip Barber name will live on in perpetuity, ensuring that he continues to overlook Lime Rock Park for decades to come.”
Racing legend Skip Barber was honored during Lime Rock Park’s 67th season kick-off festivities over Memorial Day weekend, which included the dedication of the track’s timing and scoring tower on the Sam Posey Straight, visible in the background, in Barber’s name.Debra A. Aleksinas
‘I think car racing saved me’
From his early days as a competitive racer to his later years as a respected mentor, Barber’s career has been defined by a relentless pursuit of greatness. His eponymous Skip Barber Racing School, founded in 1975, became a mecca for aspiring racers, providing them with the tools and knowledge needed to succeed on and off the track.
During a mid-May interview in a cozy chalet overlooking the picturesque park, Barber, 88, reflected on his journey in racing which began long before he became a household name.
An exceptional student throughout high school, he earned a full scholarship to Harvard. He would have been an English major but his need for speed won out over his desire to study.
“I think car racing saved me. I had good grades in high school and got a complete scholarship to Harvard. And then I didn’t do any work. I really checked out. During that time, I started reading car magazines and I got more and more interested. I decided to take my senior year off, and my housemaster said, ‘Excellent idea, go ahead,’” Barber said with a laugh.
He joined the Merchant Marine to earn some cash and pooled his resources “with a little money from my mother to buy my first race car, an Austin-Healey Bugeye Sprite, the cheapest car in the world.”
Back at Harvard a year later, Barber attended the Sports Club Car of America (SCCA) driver’s school at Marlboro, near Washington, D.C., and raced his first race. That race, he recalled, was at Lime Rock Park. Not only was this his first time visiting a racetrack, it was also his first win and the beginning of what would become a decades-long love affair with the Lakeville track and the Northwest Corner.
Little did he know at the time that this would be the start of a remarkable career that would not only shape his own legacy but also transform Lime Rock Park into one of the premier racing destinations in the world.
Skip Barber racing in 1971.Lime Rock Park
Shining moments in the driver’s seat
Barber, who resides in Sharon with his wife, Judy, raced a variety of machinery in the 1960’s and 1970’s, ranging from sports cars to high-powered formula cars. He delivered some shining moments while in the driver’s seat, including beating Jim Clark in an identical car at the then Mosport in his first professional race and setting the ultimate lap record at Lime Rock Park to help push his name to the top of call sheets.
Along the way, he won three Sports Car Club of America (SCCA) National championships, set 32 different lap records, and earned the President’s Cup. Barber was only beginning to build a lasting legacy in American motorsports.
Barber explained how he drove cars the owners or manufacturers wanted to sell.
“It was a great opportunity, and I was very fortunate. The affordable part about racing is what we call ‘getting a ride,’ that’s when someone else is providing you with something to drive,” he explained. The downside, he said, was that he was “completely dependent on other people providing me with the tools of my trade. I was great on the racetrack, but I wasn’t very good at getting the rides” and networking.
At that time, the guru of track racecar engineering in North America, Carrol Smith, referred to Barber as “the fastest guy who never made it big.”
It wasn’t until years later when he started his racing school, that he would become a good marketer, Barber explained, “but that was too late for racing.”
Memorial Day weekend at Lime Rock Park included Mustang vs. Camaro racing.Lans Christensen
Skip Barber Racing School
Although he was “hoping it would never stop,” Barber said he finally realized that his racing days were coming to a halt.
“I had the idea of doing a racing school. It’s not that there weren’t some in the country. There was one in L.A., and another near Montreal, but I did not know about them.”
Believing that racing was a coachable sport, Barber formed the Skip Barber Racing School in 1975 at Lime Rock and Thompson Speedway with four students and a pair of borrowed Formula Fords. During this time, Barber served as president of the Road Racing Driver’s Club.
Recognizing the key role that Lime Rock Park could play in building his growing racing school, and to keep the track out of the hands of developers in the high-value Northwest Corner countryside, Barber led a group of investors, all racing school graduates, who purchased the track from Harry Theodoracopulos in 1983, eventually becoming the sole owner.
His eponymous school created champions in every professional racing series in the United States and produced winning drivers at the Indy 500 or Daytona 500 for decades. Barber sold his school in 1999 and continued to work there until 2001.
“I was told by the current owners that 400,000 students, from all over the country, have become racers and champions,” said Barber.
Graduates include Marco Andretti, Ryan Hunter-Reay, Alexander Rossi, Danica Patrick, AJ Allmendinger, Juan Pablo Montoya, Jeff Gordon and hundreds of other top professional racers today.
“You get big by having multiple schools going all at the same time. We had an office in Lakeville, and the workshops were in four different locations. Lime Rock was our most important track of all the tracks used around the country. It certainly was my favorite,” said Barber.
In 2021, Barber sold the track to Lime Rock Group LLC, a group of investors whom he said were equally passionate about carrying out Lime Rock Park’s legacy into the future. “This is a good group,” he said. “They feel the same way about it as I do.”
These days, Barber said he is happy with his continuing relationship as a large shareholder in Lime Rock Group LLC and his role as an active track management team member. After decades at the helm of Lime Rock Park, including some tumultuous years securing its future, Barber said he now has peace of mind.
“I’m no longer in charge of worrying.”
A Hero of Horsepower
In late April, the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America announced its 2025 Induction Class, which recognized Barber as the founder of “the driving school of champions” in the category of Sports Cars along with six other “Heroes of Horsepower” inductees.
The Class of ’25 will formally be presented into the Hall of Fame in Daytona Beach, Fla., on March 10 and 11, 2025.
As he wrapped up the interview, Barber stepped out onto the Chalet’s terrace and viewed the expansive, verdant park and beamed with happiness — and a look of incredulousness. “I am so in awe of its beauty. To think that I’ve owned this…”
Amanda Freund of East Canaan will appear on the television show "Shark Tank" on April 4 to pitch CowPots.
CANAAN — Fans of the television show “Shark Tank,” stay tuned. On Friday, April 4, Amanda Freund of East Canaan will be facing the panel, imploring members to invest in her unique product: cow poop.
Freund and her father Matthew Freund produce and market CowPots, which are made from the abundance of manure found on their dairy farm. Matthew Freund, realizing cows were producing more manure — 100 pounds per cow per day — than was needed for fertilizing fields for crops, came up with the concept of the pots. Years of trial-and-error experimentation finally resulted in success. In 2006 he began selling the biodegradable pots using 100% composted manure to local stores. Now the pots can be found in outlets across the country, as well as internationally.
Amanda Freund — after graduating from Cornell University’s School of Agriculture, doing a stint working as a legislative aide and spending two years in Zambia as part of the Peace Corps — returned to the farm and now heads up the marketing part of the business.
Freund recently spoke about the USDA Rural Development Value Added Producer Grant they received. As part of that, the business is supported through Berkshire Agricultural Ventures, which helps get grants for investing in marketing. One of the consultants they deal with sent in a submission for appearing on “Shark Tank.”
“I guess they were intrigued enough to take it to the next step,” Freund said.
The program is an American reality business series dating back to 2009. Contestants seek investments and in return give up equity in their enterprises. They may receive offers for the amount being requested, multiple offers, an amount too low or nothing at all.
Freund had a phone introduction with the show’s representatives last June and had meetings with producer teams almost every week after that. Upon submitting reams of documents, including business analyses and digital content, she flew out to SONY Studios in Los Angeles in September to tape the program. “I was told I wouldn’t know if the segment would air until three weeks before,” she said, “and to the day, that’s when I heard.”
Freund smiled, remembering how she was trying to figure out ways to “make a splash about poop” on the show and thought about bringing a live cow onto the stage. But that endeavor proved to be “udderly expensive,” so she opted for an inflatable one. She said she watched a lot of previous broadcasts to get a sense of what the panelists, known as “sharks,” were looking for and determined they each seemed to have a particular interest. She decided to focus her presentation on environmental sustainability, promoting the idea of providing an alternative to plastic and peat.
“It felt very grass roots being able to get that exposure on a national stage,” she said. “I felt solid in my conviction of being able to share our product with millions.”
Freund said the show also gave her an opportunity to showcase the packaging aspect of the business which they are seeking to increase, since CowPots have a limited seasonal demand. She showed an example of the product that can be used to ship wine bottles.
“Shark Tank” isn’t the first time CowPots were featured on a syndicated television show. In 2007, Matthew Freund appeared on an episode of “Dirty Jobs” with Mike Rowe, which was well received.
“Shark Tank” airs on ABC at 8 p.m.
LAKEVILLE — The Hotchkiss School opened the girls varsity lacrosse season with a big win in the snow against Kingswood Oxford School.
The Bearcats won 19-0 in a decisive performance March 26. Twelve different players scored for Hotchkiss, led by Coco Sheronas with four goals.
Coco Sheronas scored four goals for Hotchkiss in the snowy 2025 season opener.Photo by Riley Klein
Kingswood Oxford is in the process of rebuilding its girls lacrosse program after some time without a team. The first game of the season gave the Kingswood coaches a chance to see their team play and rework position assignments.
At gametime, Downing Field became enshrouded in a veil of snow flurries. Players kept moving to stay warm with the temperature around 39 degrees.
The mercy rule kicked in during the second quarter when the lead entered double digits, causing a running clock to tick for the rest of the game.
Eleanor Helm scored once against Kingswood Oxford.Photo by Riley Klein
In addition to four goals by Sheronas, MaryHelen Cooey and Charlotte Dorman scored three each and the following players scored once: Eleanor Helm, Lily Lavigne, Lilah Crispino, Kailyn Willa, Marygrace Lawry, Lila Snow, Harper Semlies, Allison Wick and Emma Ohler.
Hotchkiss will play the next two games on the road before hosting Canterbury School April 9 at 3 p.m.
Allison Wick, left, and Kailyn Willa rejoice after a goal March 26.Photo by Riley Klein
FALLS VILLAGE — Principal Ian Strever announces the second quarter marking period Honor Roll at Housatonic Valley Regional High School for the 2024-2025 school year.
Grade 9: Parker Beach (Cornwall), Mia Belter (Salisbury), Lucas Bryant (Cornwall), Addison Green (Kent), Eliana Lang (Salisbury), Alison McCarron (Kent), Katherine Money (Kent), Mira Norbet (Sharon), Abigail Perotti (North Canaan), Karmela Quinion (North Canaan), Owen Schnepf (Wassaic), Federico Vargas Tobon (Salisbury), Emery Wisell (Kent).
Grade 10: Sophia Camphouse (Sharon), John DeDonato (Salisbury), Adelyn Diorio (North Canaan), Sydney Howe (North Canaan), Daniel Lesch (Cornwall), Finian Malone (Sharon), Meadow Moerschell (Kent), Jackson Olson (Salisbury), Logan Padelli (North Canaan), Ishaan Tantri (Salisbury), Ivy Zheng (North Canaan).
Grade 11: Lily Beurket (Cornwall), Olivia Brooks (Salisbury), Mollie Ford (Falls Village), Anna Gillette (Salisbury), Neve Kline (Salisbury), Alexa Meach (North Canaan), Ibby Sadeh (Falls Village), Celeste Trabucco (Kent) Silas Tripp (Falls Village), Alex Woodworth (Salisbury).
Grade 12:Tyler Anderson (Sharon), Zachary Bezerra (Kent), Bernice Boyden (Sharon), Daniela Brennan (North Canaan), Amelia Dodge (North Canaan), Madison Gulotta (Sheffield), Harper Howe (North Canaan), Tess Marks (Salisbury), Manasseh Matsudaira (Cornwall), Lola Moerschell (Kent), Diana Portillo (North Canaan), Olivia Robson (Salisbury), Gabriela Titone (Salisbury).
Grade 9: Krystin Ackerman (North Canaan), Travis Barber (Cornwall), Max Bochnovich (Salisbury), Nico Bochnovich (Salisbury), Logan Bronson (Cornwall), Zaira Celso-Cristobal (Sharon), Sadie Chapell (Salisbury), Tess Churchill (Salisbury), Niki Clark (Salisbury), Caitlin Devino (North Canaan), Louise Faveau (Salisbury), Celestia Galvin (Sharon), Samuel Garcia Pulido (North Canaan), Beatrice Gifford (Kent), Madeline Johnson (Salisbury), Marlow LaPointe (Falls Village), Ayden Lemmy (Falls Village), Paul Losh (Falls Village), Chase Lowell (North Canaan), Lily McCabe (Salisbury), Logan Miller (Falls Village), Bridger Rinehart (Salisbury), Vilija Salazar (Salisbury), Camila Sanchez Guerrero (Cornwall), Camdyn Tallon (North Canaan), Schuyler Thompson (Falls Village), Juliette Trabucco (Kent), Payton Wagner (North Canaan), Jessica Watkins (Kent), Olivia Whitney (North Canaan).
Grade 10: Bennett Wyatt Bayer (Salisbury), Selena Black (Cornwall), Georgie Clayton (Salisbury), Christian DeDonato (Salisbury), Natasha Dennis (North Canaan), Layla DiDomenico (Kent), Carmela Egan (Salisbury), Kellie Eisermann (Salisbury), Levi Elliott (Millerton), Lydia Fleming (North Canaan), Grace Graney (Falls Village), Alexa Hoadley (Kent), Jonas Johnson (North Canaan), Aiden Krupa (Torrington), Makenzie Lidstone (Salisbury), Francisco Mendoza Ratzan (North Canaan), Daniel Moran (Norfolk), David Nam (Sharon), Gustavo Portillo (North Canaan), Rivers Richard (North Canaan), Darwin Wolfe (Falls Village), Nathan Zani (Ashley Falls).
Grade 11: Elizabeth Allyn (Salisbury), Steven Barber (Cornwall), Victoria Brooks (Salisbury), Katherine Crane (North Canaan), Richard Crane (North Canaan), Arianna Danforth Gold (Cornwall), Mia DiRocco (Cornwall), Shanaya Duprey (North Canaan), Allegra Ferri (North Canaan), Elizabeth Forbes (Wassaic), Maureen Graney (Falls Village), Taylor Green (Kent), Chloe Hill (Salisbury), Adam Hock (Kent), Hannah Johnson (North Canaan), Madelyn Johnson (North Canaan), Delanie Keeley (New Marlboro), Madison Melino (Austerlitz), Ayden Wheeler (Amenia).
Grade 12: Lucas Caranci (North Canaan), Sidney Crouch (Cornwall), Dylan Deane (North Canaan), Tessa Dekker (Falls Village), Cole Dennis (North Canaan), Leah Drislane (North Canaan), Sara Huber (Salisbury), Dustin Kayser (North Canaan), Rosemary Koller (North Canaan), Kylie Leonard (North Canaan), Katelin Lopes (Falls Village), Khyra McClennon (Amenia), Jassim Mohydin (Salisbury), Patrick Money (Kent), Mason O’Niel (Salisbury), Tristan Oyanadel (Falls Village), Wendy Santiago-Leyva (Salisbury), Elinor Wolgemuth (Salisbury).
Grade 9: Edwin Alonzo Alonzo (North Canaan), Robert Boyden (Sharon), Peyton Bushnell (Falls Village), Winter Cheney (Cornwall), Ayva Fenn (Torrington), Luca Floridis (Salisbury), Angel Gonzalez (Salisbury), Kogan Lawrence (Amenia), McKenzie Lotz (Ashley Falls), Dany Martinez (North Canaan), Wyatt Merwin (Salisbury), Nathan Young (Cornwall).
Grade 10: Byron Bell (Cornwall), Sofia Bindley (Cornwall), Karen Chavez-Sanchez (Salisbury), Braeden Duncan (Salisbury), Wiley Fails (Salisbury), James Flores (Kent), Jasper Oyanadel (Falls Village), Marlene Perez (North Canaan), Carson Riva (North Canaan), Ryan Segalla (Salisbury), Alanna Tatro (North Canaan).
Grade 11: Peter Austin (Kent), Everet Belancik (Cornwall), Carlos Castellanos Cruz (Falls Village), Ashton Cooper (Salisbury), Christopher Crane (North Canaan), Nicholas Gonzalez (Cornwall), Kierra Greene (North Canaan), Marc Hafner (Falls Village), Abram Kirshner (Kent), Riley Mahaffey (Amenia), Simon Markow (Cornwall), Isabella Pugo Dominguez (North Canaan), Deiby Romero Gualan (North Canaan), Gabriele Rooney (Falls Village), Melanie Rundall (Kent), Ava Segalla (Salisbury), Lauren Sorrell (North Canaan).
Grade 12: Brandt Bosio (Salisbury), Jake Bosio (North Canaan), Madeline Collingwood (South Egremont), Ian Crowell (North Canaan), Madison DeWitt (North Canaan), Rose Fitch (Cornwall), Ava Gandarillas (North Canaan), Abigail Hogan (North Canaan), Antonis Karampasis (North Canaan), Ellanor Karcheski (North Canaan), Jonathan Leal-Santiago (North Canaan), Kyle McCarron (Kent), Ledvia Orellana-Lemus (North Canaan), Olivia Peterson (Sharon), Taylor Terwilliger (North Canaan), Emil Urbanowicz (Cornwall), Jayme Walsh (Salisbury), Abigail White (North Canaan), Junxin Zhang (Kent).
ANCRAMDALE — Thomas Ditto of Ancramdale, born Thomas David DeWitt Aug. 11, 1944 in New York City changing his surname to Ditto at marriage, passed peacefully on Pi Day, March 14, 2025. He was a husband, father, artist, scientist, Shakespeare scholar, visionary, inventor, actor, mime, filmmaker, clown, teacher, lecturer, colleague, and friend. Recipient of numerous grants, awards and honors in both the arts and sciences, a Guggenheim and NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts fellow, he was a creative genius beyond his time. In addition to authoring scores of papers, he held several patents and invented the first motion capture system and the Ditto-scope, a radically new kind of telescope. He was a pioneer in computer generated video, film, and performance.
When not hard at work, he was always there to help when needed and he knew how to bring smiles to faces. He loved his family and pets and was supportive of his wife’s cat rescue work.
He is survived by wife Beverly (Botto), son David, sister Alice Pero and nieces and nephews in the extended family. He was predeceased by his parents David and Madlyn Dewitt and sister Peggy.
Memorial contributions may be made to any of the following non-profits.
Collaborative Cats Inc. PO Box 88, Ancramdale, NY 12503 www.collaborativecats.org
eba inc. dance theatre company, PO Box 145, Albany, NY 12201 www.eba-arts.org
Wave Farm transmission arts WGXC 90.7 FM PO Box 13 Acra, NY 12405 www.wavefarm.org
American Astronomical Society 1667 K Street NW, Suite 800 Washington DC 20006 www.aas.org
American Cancer Society 2678 South Road, Suite 103, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601. www.cancer.org
A Celebration of Life memorial service will take place at a future date and will be announced on the funeral home website.
Arrangements have been entrusted to the Scott D. Conklin Funeral Home, 37 Park Ave., Millerton, NY 12546. To send an online condolence visit www.conklinfuneralhome.com