In 1851 the America's Cup competition started. Originally it was a contest between us and the Brits. The original boats were magnificent single hulled things with a large keel for stability. The boats raced offshore in open ocean conditions. The results were necessarily a slower race and largely out of view except for devotees who sailed into the vicinity and made a grand day of it. The spectacle was worthy of oil painting and indeed it was with renditions commanding six and seven figure price tags in todays auctions..
Enter super Jew Larry Ellison. He founded Oracle Software and finances Team Oracle in America's Cup current competition . Due in part to his instigation, today the competitors use double-hull catamarans which do not have a keel. Also in part to his influence the race venue was changed from open ocean sailing to a competition that took place in San Francisco Bay. The bay is infamous for its strong cross currents and changeable strong winds. Larry wanted to make the event faster and more dangerous so spectators would be thrilled in a closer-viewed situation. Maybe he also wanted the giant Oracle logo on the sails to better noticed also?
Long story short, today The Wall Street Journal is carrying a post mortem story on Andrew " Bart" Simpson who died Thursday. he was the skipper of Team Artemis. In a nautical tactic called a "bear away" where the boat turns away from the oncoming wind, the boat capsized and killed Simpson outright. The other ten crew members were hurled into the bay but immediately rescued. Tricky tactics in strong winded cross current bays without a keel made this accident possible. It was completely avoidable according to WSJ questioned race participants. It was the design change and venue change that caused the accident. The WSJ contacted Ellison's spokeswoman about any comment that Larry Ellison had on the death. She declined to comment.
Seems Larry's cup, that personally runneth over, didn't have enough to spill one drop of condolence.
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