Skeeter McKitterick

If any one word sums up Skeeter McKitterick’s racing career, that word is experience. In the last 25 years, McKitterick has piloted everything from the prototype race cars to formula cars to showroom stock sedans. From dirt lots to Le Mans, he’s competed in both endurance and sprint events in America, Europe and the Orient and has been teamed with some of the world’s most talented race drivers, including Indy 500 winners Rick Mears and Bobby Rahal, four-time Le Mans winner Jacky Ickx, three-time Formula 5000 champion Brian Redman, actor Paul Newman and a host of others.

The Los Angeles-born McKitterick started his racing career in go-karts at the age of 12. From there, McKitterick graduated to “real” race cars, winning his first-ever race in a Formula C Lotus 22 at Las Vegas Stardust Raceway in February 1968. That same year he clinched SCCA’s Southern Pacific Division championship, plus the Formula Racing Association Formula 3 title. McKitterick went on to win over 20 events in Formula C and Formula Fords.

McKitterick captured the attention of the North American Works Alfa Romeo team. Driving a McLaren Mk4A chassis, McKitterick drove in the Formula B championship. Competing in five events, he won his second series championship in two full seasons of racing while also competiting in the Continental Championship.

Before he began his endurance racing career in 1977, McKitterick successfully campaigned a Shelby King Cobra in SCCA’s Can-Am series, scored several wins and course records in Mike Koslosky’s Formula 5000 Eagle, and recorded a competitive season’s in the AME Racing Chevron B24/28 and Lola 332C being the series most improved driver in 1976. He also competed in the revived Can-Am Series in 1978, being one of the only drivers to compete in both era’s of the famed series.

McKitterick’s endurance racing stint included driving Porsche prototypes in Europe and North America. McKitterick served as top relief driver to some of the world’s most celebrated and prestigious endurance racing teams. Co-driving with Jacky Ickx, the team finished second in the premier United States GT event at Mid-Ohio.

In 1979, McKitterick co-drove with Paul Newman, Rolf Stommelen, and Brian Redman in a variety of Porsche 935s for Dick Barbour Racing. The team finished third in the prestigious 24 Hours of Le Mans. Despite competing in less than half of the 1980 IMSA events, McKitterick still finished 11th overall in the World Endurance Championship against 328 points-scoring drivers.

McKitterick drove the factory Porsche 924 Turbo in its United States competition debut at the 1981 Daytona 24 Hours. At Sebring, he led for more than four hours in the Cooke/Woods Porsche 935, finally salvaging second place with mechanical problems. McKitterick led the Mosport 1000k World Championship event before suspension problems set in with the Bob Akin/Coca Cola Porsche 935 K3.

Driving the Cosworth-engined Grid Motor Racing SI GTP car at the Sebring 12 Hours race in 1983, McKitterick led by over two laps until a mechanical failure took him out of a first-place finish.

In 1987, McKitterick teamed with Steve Saleen, George Follmer, and Rick Titus to win the SCCA Escort Endurance GT championship in a Saleen Autosport Mustang. The team captured both the drivers and manufacturer titles. McKitterick also drove a Whitehall Motorsports Pontiac Fiero in the IMSA Camel Light series. During he also qualified second and finished third in the inaugural San Antonio Grand Prix. In 1988 he led Pontiac to the manufacturer’s championship with 2 wins and 2 pole positions. He won the prestigious Norelco Drivers Cup for all drivers at the Lime Rock Camel GT event and finished fifth overall for the season and first among Camel Lights drivers.

Off the race track, McKitterick is a successful California businessman. He lives in Aptos, California, with his wife Linda. They have two children, Justin and Megan, both of whom are married.