David John 'Skippy' Parsons (born 17 May 1959 in Devonport

Devonport, Tasmania

-Sport:The Devonport Football Club is an Australian Rules team competing in the Tasmanian Statewide League. The Devonport Rugby Club is a Rugby Union team competing in the Tasmanian Rugby Union Statewide League...

, Tasmania

Tasmania

Tasmania is an Australian island and state. It is south of the continent, separated by Bass Strait. The state includes the island of Tasmania—the 26th largest island in the world—and the surrounding islands. The state has a population of 507,626 , of whom almost half reside in the greater Hobart...

), was an Australian racing driver, who while never a full time racing driver, drove for the biggest racing teams in Australia.

Son of Tasmanian touring car racer Graham Parsons, David Parsons began emerging onto the national scene racing a Holden Commodore

Holden Commodore

The Holden Commodore is an automobile manufactured since 1978 by the Holden subsidiary of General Motors in Australia, and, formerly, in New Zealand. In the mid-1970s, Holden established proposals to replace the long-serving Kingswood nameplate with a smaller, Opel-based model...

 in the 1982 Australian Touring Car Championship

1982 Australian Touring Car Championship

The 1982 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title open to Group C Touring Cars. It began on 18 February 1982 at Sandown Raceway and ended on 16 May at Oran Park Raceway after eight rounds...

 making his debut at Symmons Plains. Embraced as an endurance co-driver by gentleman privateer racer Peter Janson his pace on his way to fourth at the 1982 James Hardie 1000

1982 James Hardie 1000

The 1982 James Hardie 1000 was the 23rd running of the Bathurst 1000 touring car race. It was held on 3 October 1982 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst in New South Wales, Australia...

 brought him to the attention of Peter Brock

Peter Brock

Peter Geoffrey Brock, AM otherwise known as "Peter Perfect", "The King of the Mountain" or simply as "Brocky" was one of Australia's best-known and most successful motor racing drivers. Brock was most often associated with Holden for almost 40 years, although he raced vehicles of other...

 and the Holden Dealer Team

Holden Dealer Team

The Holden Dealer Team was Holden’s semi-official racing team from 1969 until 1987, primarily contesting Australian Touring Car events but also rallying, rallycross and sports sedans during the 1970s...

. Co-driving John Harvey's #25 Commodore, Parsons was part of the HDT's dominant 1-2 finish at the 1984 James Hardie 1000

1984 James Hardie 1000

The 1984 James Hardie 1000 was the 25th running of the Bathurst 1000 touring car race. It was held on 30 September 1984 at the Mount Panorama Circuit just outside Bathurst in New South Wales, Australia and was Round 4 of the 1984 Australian Endurance Championship...

.

Parsons maintained a connection with HDT into 1985 but as the relationship between Brock and Holden

Holden

GM Holden Ltd is an automaker that operates in Australia, based in Port Melbourne, Victoria. The company was founded in 1856 as a saddlery manufacturer. In 1908 it moved into the automotive field, before becoming a subsidiary of the U.S.-based General Motors in 1931...

 deteriorated, Parsons went to drive for fellow HDT alumnus, Larry Perkins

Larry Perkins

Larry Clifton Perkins is a former racing driver and V8 Supercar team owner from Australia.-Career:...

. Parsons was recalled to HDT during 1987 and took part in the HDT's abbreviated campaign of the European leg of the World Touring Car Championship.

Heading into the 1987 James Hardie 1000

1987 James Hardie 1000

The 1987 James Hardie 1000 was the eighth round of the inaugural World Touring Car Championship, the first round to be held in the southern hemisphere. The race was held for cars eligible for Group A touring car regulations. It was the 25th anniversary of the original touring car endurance race...

 the Holden Dealer Team was expected to do little more the make up the numbers against the strength of the factory supported Ford

Ford Motor Company

Ford Motor Company is an American multinational automaker based in Dearborn, Michigan, a suburb of Detroit. The automaker was founded by Henry Ford and incorporated on June 16, 1903. In addition to the Ford and Lincoln brands, Ford also owns a small stake in Mazda in Japan and Aston Martin in the UK...

 and BMW

BMW

Bayerische Motoren Werke AG is a German automobile, motorcycle and engine manufacturing company founded in 1916. It also owns and produces the Mini marque, and is the parent company of Rolls-Royce Motor Cars. BMW produces motorcycles under BMW Motorrad and Husqvarna brands...

 teams. When the #05 car Parsons shared with Brock experienced a major engine failure in the early running, their effort looked set to be little more than a footnote. First Brock, then Parsons stepped aboard the team's second car, #10 which had been driven to that point of the race by Peter McLeod

Peter McLeod

Peter Gerard McLeod , was an Australian racing driver, best known as co-winner of the 1987 James Hardie 1000 at Bathurst and for driving the distinctive yellow and black Slick 50 Mazda RX-7 Group C touring car during the early to mid 1980's.-Group C Touring Cars:McLeod began his racing career in...

. Inspired driving on variable surface as rain plagued the second half of the race, good strategy and a lucky break with safety car procedure and the team clawed their way past the BMW M3s as they failed and into third position behind the flawless 1-2 finish of the Eggenberger Motorsport Ford Sierra

Ford Sierra RS Cosworth

The Ford Sierra RS Cosworth was a high-performance version of the Ford Sierra. It was the result of a Ford Motorsport project with the purpose of producing an outright winner for Group A racing in Europe.- Development :...

s.

Subsequently the two Sierras were disqualified, giving Parsons, Brock and McLeod the race win.

Parsons stayed with the team into 1988 as they transitioned to BMW M3s. After a year out of racing Parsons returned to Brock's team in 1990, now running Ford Sierras. The Sierra experience gained saw Parsons join Glenn Seton Racing

Glenn Seton Racing

Glenn Seton Racing was a V8 Supercar racing team that competed in the V8 Supercar series in Australia.Glenn Seton formed his own team in 1989, using Ford Sierras. Seton had been a protege of the works Nissan team, and took the Peter Jackson cigarette sponsorship of that team with him. Former F1...

 in 1991 where he became a regular co-driver for the team for the next seven years, continuing to race with the team into the V8 Supercar

V8 Supercar

V8 Supercars is a touring car racing category based in Australia and run as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile regulations...

 era. A highlight was winning the 1993 Sandown 500

1993 Sandown 500

The 1993 Sandown 500 was an endurance race for Group 3A Touring Cars and selected Group 3E Series Production Cars, held at the Sandown circuit in Victoria, Australia on 12 September 1993....

 co-driving a Ford EB Falcon

Ford EB Falcon

The Ford EB Falcon is a car which was produced by the Ford Motor Company in Australia between 1991 and 1993.Visually the 1991 EB remained nearly identical to its predecessor. The most noticeable change was the transfer of the Ford emblem from the tip of the bonnet to the grille...

 with Geoff Brabham

Geoff Brabham

Geoff Brabham is an Australian racing driver. He is the son of three-time Formula One World Champion Jack Brabham. Brabham spent the majority of his racing career in the United States. He raced successfully in CART early in his career. In ten appearances in the Indianapolis 500, with a best result...

.

From 1998 onwards Parsons was a hired gun, driving for Gibson Motor Sport

Gibson Motor Sport

Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team...

 and Owen Parkinson Racing, including co-drives with the other racing driver named David John Parsons. His final Bathurst appearance was alongside Paul Romano in 2000. Since then Parsons has made occasional one-off appearances in various sedan based categories.

Career results

Season	Series	Position	Car	Team
1982 1982 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1982 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title open to Group C Touring Cars. It began on 18 February 1982 at Sandown Raceway and ended on 16 May at Oran Park Raceway after eight rounds...	Australian Touring Car Championship Australian Touring Car Championship The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...	12th	Holden VC Commodore
1983 1983 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1983 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Group C Touring Cars. The title, which was the 24th Australian Touring Car Championship, was contested over a series which began on 6 February 1983 at Calder Park Raceway and ended on 19 June at...	Australian Touring Car Championship Australian Touring Car Championship The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...	7th	Holden VH Commodore Holden VH Commodore The Holden VH Commodore, an evolution of the previous Holden Commodore VC model, was released in October 1981. The frontal appearance was mildly facelifted with a new horizontal-slat grille and new lighting components designed to give a lower, wider look, and for interest of aerodynamics...
1984 1984 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1984 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 25th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship, and was the last year of Group C regulations. The following year would see the introduction of the international Group A regulations...	Australian Touring Car Championship Australian Touring Car Championship The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...	17th	Holden VH Commodore Holden VH Commodore The Holden VH Commodore, an evolution of the previous Holden Commodore VC model, was released in October 1981. The frontal appearance was mildly facelifted with a new horizontal-slat grille and new lighting components designed to give a lower, wider look, and for interest of aerodynamics...	Peter Janson
1985 1985 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1985 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Touring Cars. It was the 26th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship and the first to be contested using regulations based on the FIA's International Group A regulations...	Australian Touring Car Championship Australian Touring Car Championship The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...	25th	Holden VK Commodore Holden VK Commodore The Holden VK Commodore was introduced in 1984 and replaced the VH. It was the first Commodore to have plastic bumpers and introduced rear quarter windows for a six-window design as opposed to the four-window design on previous Commodore models...	Holden Dealer Team Holden Dealer Team The Holden Dealer Team was Holden’s semi-official racing team from 1969 until 1987, primarily contesting Australian Touring Car events but also rallying, rallycross and sports sedans during the 1970s...
1987 1987 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1987 Australian Touring Car Championship was a motor racing competition which was open to Touring Cars complying with regulations as defined by CAMS and based on FIA Group A rules. The championship, which was the 28th Australian Touring Car Championship, began on 1 March 1987 at Calder Park...	Australian Touring Car Championship Australian Touring Car Championship The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...	24th	Holden VK Commodore SS Group A Holden VK Commodore The Holden VK Commodore was introduced in 1984 and replaced the VH. It was the first Commodore to have plastic bumpers and introduced rear quarter windows for a six-window design as opposed to the four-window design on previous Commodore models...	Holden Dealer Team Holden Dealer Team The Holden Dealer Team was Holden’s semi-official racing team from 1969 until 1987, primarily contesting Australian Touring Car events but also rallying, rallycross and sports sedans during the 1970s...
1988 1988 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1988 Australian Touring Car Championship was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Group 3A Touring Cars. It was the 29th running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. Promoted as the “1988 Shell Ultra Australian Touring Car Championship”, it began on 6 March at Calder Park...	Australian Touring Car Championship Australian Touring Car Championship The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...	14th	BMW M3	Advantage Racing Holden Dealer Team The Holden Dealer Team was Holden’s semi-official racing team from 1969 until 1987, primarily contesting Australian Touring Car events but also rallying, rallycross and sports sedans during the 1970s...
1992 1992 Australian Touring Car Championship The 1992 Australian Touring Car Championship was the 33rd running of the Australian Touring Car Championship. It was a CAMS sanctioned motor racing title for drivers of Group 3A Touring Cars, commonly known as Group A cars...	Australian Touring Car Championship Australian Touring Car Championship The Australian Touring Car Championship is a touring car racing award held in Australia since 1960. The series itself is no longer contested, but the title lives on, with the winner of the V8 Supercar Championship Series awarded the trophy and title of Australian Touring Car Champion.-History:The...	27th	Ford Sierra RS500	Glenn Seton Racing Glenn Seton Racing Glenn Seton Racing was a V8 Supercar racing team that competed in the V8 Supercar series in Australia.Glenn Seton formed his own team in 1989, using Ford Sierras. Seton had been a protege of the works Nissan team, and took the Peter Jackson cigarette sponsorship of that team with him. Former F1...
1999	V8 Supercar Championship Series V8 Supercar V8 Supercars is a touring car racing category based in Australia and run as an International Series under Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile regulations...	28th	Holden VS Commodore Holden VS Commodore The Holden VS Commodore, released in 1995, was the ninth model of the Holden Commodore, a large car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors. The VS Commodore served as a mechanical update of the second generation architecture, destined to assist sales before the all-new VT model... Holden VT Commodore Holden VT Commodore The Holden VT Commodore, Berlina, and Calais are the tenth iteration of the Holden Commodore, a full-size car built by Holden, the Australian subsidiary of General Motors...	Owen Parkinson Racing Gibson Motor Sport Gibson Motor Sport Gibson Motor Sport was an Australian motor racing team. Originally established by Howard Marsden as the in-house factory Nissan motorsport operation, the team later passed into the ownership of Fred Gibson., who had won the 1967 Bathurst 500 as a driver, sharing with Harry Firth. In 1993 the team...