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When all aspects of land, air and sea serve as a passionate underpinning of one’s life, you may end up living in seven countries on four continents in pursuit of adventure and all that entails. Undertaking most of those adventures during the 20^th century, without the technology that exists today, makes such a life even more remarkable.

Robert Teese Waid, Jr., born in Akron, Ohio, lived an extraordinary life. As a pilot and flight instructor of planes and helicopters, and as a racing enthusiast (both cars and motorcycles) and highly successful driver, ­Bob pursued professions and hobbies that aligned with his passions. Mechanically gifted, he took pride in restoring some of the world’s great cars – including Duesenbergs, Hispano Suizas, Hudsons, Packards, Pierce Arrows, and Porsches – and thrilling fellow automobile aficionados with the results.

Bob died on October 18, 2020, of a heart attack, in Fresno, California, at age 89. Gloria, his beloved wife of 56 years, was at his side.

As the son of an American who served abroad as U.S. Naval Attaché, Bob grew up around the globe. He spent much of his youth in Spanish-speaking countries, including Bolivia, Chile and Mexico, and was thoroughly bilingual with a deep understanding of the historical and etymological roots of English and Spanish. He considered English his second language after attending grade school in Mexico, and had to learn to read and write in English after returning to the United States. He later attended boarding school in Valparaiso, Chile.

While living in Chile as a teen, Bob developed his life-long passion for all things mechanical. He raced motorcycles and worked on whaling boats during summer breaks. (One particularly serious motorcycle accident at age 15 nearly led to the amputation of his left leg, until an American sports doctor who happened to be in Chile administered ampicillin, then a brand-new penicillin antibiotic that was not available yet in Chile.)

After attending the U.S. Naval Academy in Maryland for one year, Bob transferred to Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (RPI) in Troy, New York, to study mechanical engineering, where his youthful energy and predilection for automobiles could be more fully indulged.

In preparation for service during the Korean War, around age 22, Bob attended U.S. Army flight school in Fort Bragg, North Carolina. After obtaining licenses in fixed and rotor-wing aircraft, he served in the war while based in Japan, flying many dangerous missions in and out of Korea. While there, his interest in languages and culture deepened, and continued throughout his life.

Post-war, Bob leveraged his bilingualism and love of maritime endeavors by running a transportation company with his father. Based in Las Palmas, Gran Canaria (Spain), the company specialized in transporting heavy equipment between mainland Spain, the Canary Islands, Western Sahara (Africa) and the United States. He would later proudly recall coordinating the transportation of hundreds of camels (not quite equipment but certainly heavy) from Morocco to Spain, where much of the 1964 Academy Award-winning movie Lawrence of Arabia was filmed.

In an Oct. 19, 2020 Motor2000 Magazine article, Juan J. Alonso wrote (in Spanish), “Passionate, greatly knowledgeable of mechanics and very competitive, Bob enjoyed analyzing in full detail the characteristics and drivability of the wide array of vehicles that passed through his hands: BMW 700 Sport, Sunbeam Rapier, Sunbeam Alpine, Sunbeam IMP, Sunbeam Tiger, Austin Cooper S, Austin Sprite and Lotus Elan.”

After a decade in Spain, Bob and Gloria moved to Long Island, New York, where he eventually became general manager of the Porsche-Audi Manhattan dealership. He later owned and sold a range of exotic cars including Aston Martins, Ferraris, Ford GT-40s and Lamborghinis.

Between 1970 and 1979, Bob and Gloria pursued their love of auto racing up and down the East Coast, and enjoyed a wide network of friends throughout the racing world. With three kids in tow, the Waid family spent many weekends at racetracks such as Bridgehampton, Lime Rock, Watkins Glen and Pocono. Among Bob’s favorite cars to race in the United States were the Lotus Europa and a variety of Porsches, including the 911S, 914-4, 914-6 and Carrera (European version). The wins and accompanying trophies piled up.

After moving to Fresno, California in 1979, Bob’s career shifted to his aviation expertise. He served as a pilot of planes and helicopters for private companies as well as in the U.S. Army National Guard, reaching the rank of Chief Warrant Officer (CW-4). In the National Guard, he relished flying the de Havilland Canada DHC-4 Caribou (a specialized cargo aircraft with short takeoff and landing capability) throughout the Western states, often in support of wildfire response efforts. But Bob’s true passion was working as a flight instructor (military and private) of fixed and rotor-wing aircraft, teaching many dozens of ­students from around the world who went on to become pilots.

Never idle, upon retirement from the National Guard in 1990, Bob moved to Belize for two years to pilot aircraft for the U.S. Drug Enforcement Agency in their effort to contain the growth and shipment of illegal drugs to the U.S. He often described those missions as the most dangerous of his life, over thick jungles filled with gun-toting drug cartels who defended their crops by shooting at his aircraft.

When he did finally “settle down,” Bob and Gloria were eager to relive their early days together by designing and building a house in San Felipe, on the coast of the Gulf of California in Baja California, Mexico. There, they lived full-time, while enjoying the then-sparsely developed coastline and its renowned marine life. From 1994 to 2003, they hosted many holidays and celebrations with their adult children and grandchildren, as well as friends from around the world.

The last 17 years of Bob’s life were based in Fresno, California, where he continued to rebuild and modify cars while also forming closer ties with his adult children and grandchildren. He also grew as a voracious reader and researcher, focusing primarily on the history of religions, nautical, aviation and train-transport history, genealogy, and the nascent field of genomic research.

Known for his soft-spoken and modest demeanor, many who knew Bob and who will read this may be surprised to learn of his many accomplishments and adventures. His children only learned about them as adults, during holiday dinners, when he would discreetly mention an adventure or undertaking that would leave everyone around the table astounded. Above all, his family remembers his inquisitiveness and problem-solving affinity that inspires them to take a similar approach to history, languages, politics and life’s perplexities.

In addition to Gloria, Bob is survived by their three adult children, Susan (and deceased husband, Carlos Fernandez), Robert (and wife Cristina, née Babio) and Patti, and four grandchildren: Carlos Fernandez, Patricia Fernandez (and husband Daniel Wangpraseurt), James Waid and Natalia Waid. Without exception, they all drive cars with manual transmissions, including some with turbo-chargers, in keeping with Bob and Gloria’s love for the authentic driving experience.

Bob’s first wife, Helen, passed away in 2012. Together, they had four children: Bruce Waid (and wife Angelica, née Guzman), Margaret Waid (deceased), Andrew Waid and Carol Waid. His grandchildren from his first marriage include: Robert Ardoin; Anthony Scruggs; Richey Scruggs (deceased); Kenneth Waid; Stephen Scruggs; Andrew Waid; Julian Pagan; Nathaniel Pagan; Claudia McCollum (née Waid); Triana Waid; and Parrish Little. In addition, he had nine great grandchildren from his marriage to Helen.

Bob is also survived by the children (and grandchildren) of his brother, Buchanan, who passed away in 1976: Maria Waid, Roxana Waid Mantica, Buchanan Waid, and William Waid.

Funeral services in honor of Bob will not be held at this time due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

In honor and appreciation of his years of military service, Bob’s ashes will be interred later at Arlington National Cemetery, alongside several generations of his family who served valiantly in the U.S. military, as far back as the American Revolutionary War.