Born in 1932 of a Syrian father and Russian mother, Boris Said lived many lives. He was the first American driver to win a race in Europe after World War II, taking an OSCA to victory at Rouen in 1953. After more good European showings in the OSCA and a Ferrari Mondial in 1953 and 1954, Said returned to America. He continued in Ferraris, but after crashing badly at Nassau in 1955, he didn't race for two years. While he was absent, he made one of his fortunes in a mining endeavor in Montana. He returned to racing, piloting a Ferrari at Nassau in 1957, but he raced only rarely. His last event was the first United States Grand Prix at Sebring in 1959 where he only made a lap in a Connaught. He got the entry because his mother had helped out the mother of Sebring organizer, Alec Ulmann, during hard times in Russia.

Away from the track, Said made another big killing in Westchester County real estate in the 1960s, allowing him a big estate in Pound Ridge, with a private zoo. People who met Bob in later years sometimes thought he was exaggerating, but he actually was a two-time Olympic bobsledder and an Emmy-winning TV documentary maker. At the time of his death, he was waiting to begin another project, Mysteries of the Goddess, which had been interrupted by the violence in the Middle East.

When spending time around Bob, one was immediately reminded why so few of today's drivers catch the imagination of the public. His knowledge of other subjects and his storytelling abilities were unparalleled. VeloceToday's condolences go out to his son, racer Boris Said, his daughter, Leesa, and his many friends around the world.