Login
Login

Bob Said

{{short description|American racing driver (1932–2002)}}

{{Infobox racing driver

| name = Bob Said

| image = Trainingsdag sportwagenraces Zandvoort Amerikaan. Boris 'Bob Said bij zijn Ferr…, Bestanddeelnr 906-6631 (cropped).jpg

| caption = Bob Said at Zandvoort in 1954

| birth_date = {{birth date|1932|5|5}}

| birth_place = New York City, United States

| death_date = {{death date and age|2002|3|24|1932|5|5}}

| death_place = Seattle, Washington, United States

| related to = Boris Said (son)

| module1 = {{Infobox F1 driver

| subbox = yes

| nationality = {{flagicon|USA}} American

| Years = {{F1|1959}}

| Team(s) = Connaught

| Races = 1

| Championships = 0

| Wins = 0

| Podiums = 0

| Points = 0

| Poles = 0

| Fastest laps = 0

| First race = 1959 United States Grand Prix

| First win =

| Last win =

| Last race = 1959 United States Grand Prix

}}

| module2 = {{Infobox NASCAR driver

| subbox = yes

| name =

| Total_Cup_Races = 1

| Years_In_Cup = 1

| Best_Cup_Pos =

| First_Cup_Race = 1959 Daytona 500 (Daytona)

| Last_Cup_Race = 1959 Daytona 500 (Daytona)

| First_Cup_Win =

| Last_Cup_Win =

| Cup_Wins = 0

| Cup_Top_Tens = 0

| Cup_Poles = 0

}}

}}

Boris Said Jr. (May 5, 1932 – March 24, 2002), better known as Bob Said, was an American racing driver from the United States. The son of a Syrian father and a Russian mother, he grew up in Greenwich, Connecticut, and attended Deerfield Academy and Princeton. He discovered sports car racing during his first year at Princeton.

Career

In 1951, after doing well in local races and hill climbs, he left Princeton to pursue a racing career.{{cite web | url=https://www.geni.com/people/Bob-Said/6000000077922738340 | title=Bob Said | date=28 April 2022 }} His first race cars were a MG TD and a Jaguar XK120. In March 1953, he made his debut at Sebring 12 Hours, driving a Frazer Nash Mille Miglia to 14th-place finish. Said was the first American to win a road race in Europe after World War II, when he won a sports car race at Rouen-Les-Essarts, driving an OSCA MT4. Later that season, he notched another win at the Anerley Trophy at Crystal Palace circuit.

In 1954, Said switched to a Ferrari 500 Mondial Scaglietti, placing 3rd at Circuito di Senigallia; 2nd at Trullo d’Oro; and 9th at Syracuse Circuit.{{cite web | url=http://www.barchetta.cc/english/All.Ferraris/Detail/0454MD.500Mondial.htm | title=500 Mondial Scaglietti Spyder 0454MD }}

On February 21, 1955, Said set a new post-World War II speed record on the Daytona Beach and Road Course, driving a 1954 Ferrari Formula One Grand Prix car, with a two-way average speed of 170.538 mph.{{cite web | url=https://www.gettyimages.com/detail/news-photo/february-21-1955-bob-said-of-greenwich-ct-set-a-new-post-news-photo/148162221 | title=Bob Said of Greenwich, CT, set a new post-World War II speed record | date=11 July 2012 }} He also made one NASCAR start, the 1959 Daytona 500, driving a Chevrolet, where he was credited with 50th after dropping out on lap 42 due to transmission failure. He participated in the first Formula One United States Grand Prix at Sebring on December 12, 1959. He spun off on the first lap and scored no World Championship points.{{cite web|title= Formula One at the Olympics|author= Viva F1|accessdate= 2012-07-26|url= http://www.vivaf1.com/blog/?p=11707|url-status= dead|archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20120808002447/http://www.vivaf1.com/blog/?p=11707|archivedate= 2012-08-08}}

Said was also a bobsled racer, competing in the Olympics twice, 1968 in Grenoble and in 1972 at Sapporo, Japan achieving a best result of tenth. The 1968 games were notable as he competed against another racing driver-come-bobsledder, Robin Widdows.

Later he was the executive producer of a documentary entitled The Mystery of the Sphinx.

His son, Boris Said III, is a retired NASCAR driver and road course ringer.

Motorsports career results

=Complete Formula One results=

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:90%"

! Year

! Entrant

! Chassis

! Engine

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! WDC

! Points

1959

! Connaught Cars / Paul Emery

! Connaught Type C

! Alta Straight-4

| MON

| 500

| NED

| FRA

| GBR

| GER

| POR

| ITA

|style="background:#EFCFFF;"| USA
{{small|Ret}}

! NC

! 0

=NASCAR=

(key) (Bold – Pole position awarded by qualifying time. Italics – Pole position earned by points standings or practice time. * – Most laps led.)

==Grand National Series==

class="wikitable" style="text-align:center; font-size:75%"

!colspan=69| NASCAR Grand National Series results

Year

! Team

! No.

! Make

! 1

! 2

! 3

! 4

! 5

! 6

! 7

! 8

! 9

! 10

! 11

! 12

! 13

! 14

! 15

! 16

! 17

! 18

! 19

! 20

! 21

! 22

! 23

! 24

! 25

! 26

! 27

! 28

! 29

! 30

! 31

! 32

! 33

! 34

! 35

! 36

! 37

! 38

! 39

! 40

! 41

! 42

! 43

! 44

! {{Tooltip|NGNC|NASCAR Grand National classification}}

! Pts

! Ref

1959

! Buck Baker

! 89

! Chevy

| FAY

| DAY

| style="background:#EFCFFF;"| DAY
50

| HBO

| CON

| ATL

| WIL

| BGS

| CLB

| NWS

| REF

| HCY

| MAR

| TRN

| CLT

| NSV

| ASP

| PIF

| GPS

| ATL

| CLB

| WIL

| RCH

| BGS

| AWS

| DAY

| HEI

| CLT

| MBS

| CLT

| NSV

| AWS

| BGS

| GPS

| CLB

| DAR

| HCY

| RCH

| CSF

| HBO

| MAR

| AWS

| NWS

| CON

! N/A

! 0

!{{cite web|url=http://racing-reference.info/drivdet/saidbo01/1959/W|title=Bob Said – 1959 NASCAR Grand National Results|work=Racing-Reference|accessdate=January 15, 2016}}

References

{{Reflist}}

External links

  • [http://www.grandprix.com/gpe/drv-saibob.html Bob Said biography at Grandprix.com]
  • [https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0316293/ Mystery of the Sphynx at IMDB]

{{DEFAULTSORT:Said, Bob}}

Category:1932 births

Category:Sportspeople of Syrian descent

Category:American male bobsledders

Category:American Formula One drivers

Category:Connaught Formula One drivers

Category:American people of Syrian descent

Category:Bobsledders at the 1968 Winter Olympics

Category:Bobsledders at the 1972 Winter Olympics

Category:NASCAR drivers

Category:2002 deaths

Category:Racing drivers from New York City

Category:World Sportscar Championship drivers

Category:Olympic bobsledders for the United States

Category:20th-century American sportsmen

{{F1-bio-stub}}

{{US-autoracing-bio-stub}}