Steve,
IMO the Star Mazda is like a baby Dallara. I find it much easier to drive than the Skippy (but then I find driving the Dallara and the Williams easier than the Skippy, lol).
There are some who cannot come to terms with the Star Mazda, but I personally don't think you will be disappointed with the car, especially if you like to drive open wheelers. On certain tracks with the right setup, the Star Mazda is a joy to drive.
The Skippy seems to be universally seen as one of the most difficult cars to master in iRacing, but with this it becomes a great learning tool to understand the nuances of driving. If you can master the Skippy, I would say you can master anything else in the service.