Born to drive: living on the edge—whether as a Busch Series racer or a movie stuntman—always has come naturally for Stanton Barrett Jr

Sporting News, The, May 19, 2003 by Lee Spencer

It's little wonder Stanton Barrett Jr. is a thrill-seeker. If there is a specific gene for the trait, he inherited it.

His father was a successful Hollywood stuntman who dabbled in Winston Cup racing. Stanton Barrett Sr. drove for Rick Hendrick and Junie Donlavey in the 1980s, and he drove the original Skoal Bandit car owned by Burt Reynolds, Hal Needham and Paul Newman, who is Stanton Jr.'s godfather.

A grandfather, Dave McCoy, developed the Mammoth Mountain ski Resort in California, where he trained U.S. Olympic skiers. Among them was Barrett's mother, Penny, who won a World Cup medal at age 15. In short, Barrett was into enjoy extreme sports long before they gained widespread popularity.

"I've always competed in something," says Barrett, who also is a movie stuntman and has appeared in such films as Spider-Man, Jurassic Park Hand III and Blade. "I thrive on competition. I do have some family history involved, so that did help. A lot of people do what their fathers have done and, obviously, I followed his footsteps in the movie industry, and I've had a successful career there.

"When I started racing, I did really well in go-karts and saw I had the talent to do it. I've always enjoyed racing. So I really made an effort to pursue that and gave it everything I had."

Barrett's initial racing experience came in motocross. He and his brother competed for a factory-backed team until his father made him quit. Barrett, a native of Bishop, Calif., then turned his energy to other sports, and for the past 15 years he has used his skill and agility to make a name for himself as a stuntman. But his passion for racing kept pulling him east.

Barrett, 30, has invested his earnings from film work in his racing career. And although be may not be a household name in NASCAR, Barrett had made 54 starts as a part-time driver in the Busch Series entering this season.

He made his debut in 1992 at Bristol, and his best finish is fifth in 1996 at Atlanta. But joining Roush Racing this season as driver for the No. 60 Ford--which Greg Biffle drove to the Busch championship last season--is the best opportunity he has had to make a full-time run at racing. He is 20th in points, with three top 10s, through the first 11 races.

Crew chief Kevin Starland, who was car chief for Biffle's tide team, says Barrett has the intelligence and work ethic to succeed. He just needs time behind the wheal.

"Stanton has been racing for 10 years, but he's never run the full schedule," Starland says. "He's not as aggressive as Greg would have been, but after 10 races together I think we've found the setups Stanton needs. He definitely has the potential to move to Winston Cup one day, but for now the best thing we can do is give him seat time and the opportunity to race with the top l0 in points on a weekly basis."

Barrett maintains a humble air. He says his family gave him a good foundation in regard to ethics and values.

"I feel comfortable that I've earned what I have and have worked very hard for it," Barrett says. "I don't see myself as being any different from the next guy. I work as hard or harder than the next person. I'm just lucky because I do what I love to do."

Though Barrett's focus primarily has beer on racing this season, he did travel during an off-week last month to work on the Spider-Man II set in New York. He says it was fun to see his buddies but adds the visit included a lot of work. He says he won't do stunts that could compromise his health.

"I have only done a couple of shows, some easy, fun stuff," Barrett says. "The stunts in New York, If something had gone wrong, I would have been mad, not hurt."

Although some might question the safety--or sanity--of performing stunts, one could argue that stunt work might make his reflexes sharper it the racecar.

"The stunts, the motocross and activities like that prepare you to think and analyze high-pressure situations--where people are, what they're doing and how they're reacting," Barrett says. "The risk and the reward of what you're about to do or the position that you're in, I think that all applies to racing."

TSN's BUSCH POLL

Rank    Driver              TSN pts.   Busch Series pts.

 1.     David Green           968          1,486 (1)
 2.     Todd Bodine           904          1,481 (2)
 3.     Kevin Harvick         868          1,024 (21)
 4.     Shane Hmiel           830          1,436 (3)
 5.     Scott Riggs           820          1,413 (4)
 6.     Jamie McMurray        756          1,107 (16)
 7.     Ron Hornaday          726          1,378 (6)
 8.     Johnny Sauter         724          1,352 (7)
 9.     Jason Keller          722          1,387 (5)
10.     Mike Bliss            718          1,346 (8)

Through race No. 11, at St. Louis. For a complete TSN Power
Poll rundown and an explanation of the points breakdown, go to

www.sportingnews.com/nascar/poll/busch/index.html.>

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