MOUNT VERNON - William C. Hayes, 74, a pioneer oceanographer, well-known locally as an outdoorsman and science teacher in the Mount Vernon public school for 10 years, died at the Augusta Rehabilitation Center on Tuesday, Feb. 12, 2008, of cancer. Mr. Hayes led a paradoxical life, combining staunch Democratic-Socialist convictions with membership in the National Rifle Association; and an almost libertarian view of personal responsibility and self-discipline. An otherwise spartan lifestyle was enhanced by his passion for loud motorcycles, fast cars and fly fishing. He was an expert fisherman, as well as a bow hunter and black powder enthusiast. He also competed in American Motorcycle Association-sponsored amateur motorcycle races, driving, sequentially, a Ducati, a Triumph and a Harley. His was a commanding figure, standing 6' 5' in his stocking feet; Hollywood handsome with a booming bass radio announcer's voice. Mr. Hayes moved to Maine from Truro, Mass., in 1973, buying the Lincoln Farmhouse on Dunn's Corner Road in Mount Vernon where he ran an electronic repair business for two years. In 1975, he sold the farmhouse, dismantled an old barn on the property and used the lumber to build himself a small cabin on 10 adjacent acres. He lived there for 28 years without central heat or running water, acknowledging the exigency of advancing age only five years ago when he retired to a small mobile home on the same road. Before moving to Maine, Mr. Hayes taught biology at the Sea Pines School in Brewster, Mass.; Stockbridge School in Stockbridge, Mass.; and the Walden School in New York City. After serving two years in the Army in Germany, Mr. Hayes returned to attend the University of Michigan at Ann Arbor, where his stepfather, George Forsythe, was chairman of the fine arts department, graduating in 1958 with a bachelor's degree, and went on to attain a master's degree in biology. In 1957, he married fellow student Marcia Hawley, who graduated in 1959 after giving birth to their second child. The couple subsequently moved to Oakland, N.J., then Demarest; and Mr. Hayes commuted to the Lamont Geological Observatory, now Lamont-Dougherty, in Palisades, N.Y., where he worked as a biological oceanographer, analyzing sediment from core samples in the first concerted effort to map the Atlantic Ocean floor. In the early 1960s, he accompanied the legendary oceanographer Maurice Ewing on voyages to the Arctic and Antarctic aboard the Dutch-built converted three-masted schooner, the VEMA, a research vessel with no watertight bulkheads and not outfitted for sonar, from which the crew heaved overboard 500-pound cans of dynamite to take depth readings. 'After we tossed the dynamite,' Mr. Hayes recalled recently, 'Ewing would bellow, 'Damn the icebergs, full speed ahead!'' Mr. Hayes was born on Oct. 24, 1933, in New Rochelle, N.Y., into an academically and socially distinguished family. His father, William C. Hayes Jr., was then the associate curator, later to become curator of the Egyptology department of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City. The family later moved to Manhattan, where they were listed in the New York Social Register, and Mr. Hayes mother, nee Mary Isom, was a well-known figure in Manhattan society of the late 1930s and early 40s. Her father, Edward Isom, a member of the Oil Scouts Association and graduate of the Colorado School of Mines, became a senior vice president of Sinclair Oil Company after developing a cracking process that made the company a major player in the 20th-century oil business. Mr. Hayes' great-great-grandfather, William, brought the Bessemer steel process from England to the United States in the late 19th century. Mr. Hayes was a member of the Mount Vernon School Board for several years and was active in community affairs and local politics, campaigning for Deane Jones and, after his death, for his wife, Pat, both of whom were close friends. Mr. Hayes loved working directly with the young students, especially those who had difficulty adjusting to school. After retiring from teaching, Mr. Hayes worked eight years as a substitute science teacher at Maranacook Community High School. He was a member of the International Brotherhood of Painters and Allied Trades for several years and also was a member of the Dunn's Corner Neighborhood Watch. In recent years, he sold antiques at flea markets and on eBay. Mr. Hayes is survived by his son, William C. Hayes IV, of Woodstock, N.Y.; daughters Pamela H. Baillie, of East Windsor, N.J., and Corinna Miller, of Augusta; a brother, Stephen Hayes, of Cotuit, Mass.; a sister, Hope Forsythe Platt, of Garrison, N.Y.; also his former partner, Robin Miller, of Augusta; his ex-wife, Marcia Hayes, the writer; four grandchildren and one great-grandchild. There will be a graveside service and later reception in May, at a date to be announced. Memorial contributions, in lieu of flowers, may be made to the William Hayes Memorial Fund, c/o Cheryl Hasenfus, 1507 North Road, Mount Vernon, ME 04352. Arrangements are in the care of Roberts Funeral Home, 62 Bowdoin St., Winthrop. www.khrfuneralhomes.com