Best finish 30th (1958) | Name Jim Parsley | |
 | ||
Born May 4, 1927
Wheaton, Maryland, U.S. ( 1927-05-04 ) Died January 30, 2014(2014-01-30) (aged 86)
New Smyrna Beach, Florida, U.S. First race 1958 Race No. 13 (Old Dominion) Last race 1959 Race No. 11 (Reading) First race 1959 Race No. 5 (Marlboro) | ||
Cause of death Alzheimer's disease | ||
Swimming jim parsley center
James Roger Parsley (May 4, 1927 - January 30, 2014) was an American stock car racing driver. Born in Wheaton, Maryland, he competed in the NASCAR Grand National Series (now Monster Energy NASCAR Cup Series) in his career, earning five top-ten finishes in eleven races.
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Career
Parsley's NASCAR debut came in 1958, when he finished 30th in points. and had four top ten finishes He debuted at Old Dominion Speedway in Manassas, Virginia where he finished 15th. He would struggle in his next three starts but hit his stride late in the year, earning three straight top-tens and four top-tens overall: 6th place at Richmond International Speedway and at Rochester, 8th place at New Bradford, and 9th place at Reading Fairgrounds. Parsley's final finish came in 1959, when he competed at Reading again where he finished eighth. Parsley also competed in a NASCAR Convertible Division event at Marlboro Motor Raceway in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, and two USAC/ARCO Stock Car races at Willimas Grove Speedway in Mechanicsville, Pennsylvania.
Parsley's final attempt at competition was on 13 February 1960 when he entered a 1957 Chevy in the 500 mile Modified Sportsman Event at Daytona International Speedway (now notorious for having the largest crash in NASCAR history). While nearing the conclusion of lap 1, Dick Foley's car slid sideways through the final turn. He was able to straighten out and continue the race but some thirty plus cars stacked up behind him. Over 20 cars were eliminated, including Parsley.
Personal life
Jim Parsley was one of six children born to Rodger and Elysie (Nichols) Parsley in Layhill, Maryland. After high school he went to work for the U.S. Post Office and was named to the team of five who were the first to experiment with the newly invented 5 digit zip code machine. He joined the U.S. Army in 1945 and served in World War II where he was stationed in Paris as a message center clerk. During the war he received an Army of Occupation Medal and World War II Victory Medal. James Parsley was married to Judith Hawkins Parsley for 30 years before his passing. He had 2 stepchildren, Steven Allen and Kelly Jenkins along with 2 granddaughters, Kierstyn and Kragan Olliff. One great grandson Tallen Nowack.
Becoming an entrepreneur, Parsley operated several businesses in and around College Park, Maryland.
Following his racing career, Parsley retired to New Smyrna Beach, Florida, where he operated Causeway Marina. He died on January 30, 2014 after a brief illness with Alzheimer's.