Motorsport Australia is saddened to learn of the passing of highly esteemed Queensland official, Dave Wood.

An award-winning Motorsport Australia official, Dave was a longstanding contributor to motorsport for more than five decades.

Born in 1939 and raised in Brisbane, Dave got his first taste of the sport in 1971 whilst serving in the Australian Army and posted in Townsville.

Always interested in motor vehicles growing up, Dave was a highly motivated and passionate individual and first started out as a Scrutineer at motorkhanas and local level speed events.

Dave worked overtime as a volunteer official, working his way up the ranks within the motorsport community. 

After his first major appointment as Chief Scrutineer at Lakeside Raceway in 1987, Dave continued to excel, which led to gaining a Gold Level licence in 1991, highlighting his commitment to the sport.

So highly respected was Dave as an official, the inspirational figure also became the Scrutineer responsible for Australian Touring Car Championship and V8 Supercars events for many years.

It was also during that 1987 motorsport season that Dave discovered his passion in rallying, and would go on to spend time volunteering at rally events in and around New South Wales and Queensland.

Dave’s ability as a scrutineer was identified by the rally community and he was soon appointed as the Chief Scrutineer for World Rally Championship events in northern New South Wales.

In his senior years, his career took a new turn when he became an educator for the next generation of officials through courses and training.

Part of this included being a State Training coordinator, Course Presenter and in association with the National Training Manager developing Training Packages. He was also an active SOP panel member.

Most recently, Dave sat on the Eligibility Committee and was very involved in the presentation of the highly important Critical Incident Webinar.

While he served the sport for five decades, he received most of his official recognition in the last 13 years, starting off with a Motorsport Australia Service Award in 2010, the John Goasdoue Award for his services to Queensland Rally in 2014 and the prestigious Ann Thompson Award in 2019.

Dave is survived by his wife Judith, his children Kate and David, as well as many grand children and great grandchildren.