Immediately after Larry Ellison


The Dream Becomes Reality in San Francisco New AC45 testing in New Zealand


SF AC34


Louis Vuitton Cup July 13–September 1, 2013 America’s Cup Finals September 7–22, 2013


By David Schmidt © Gilles Martin-Raget / www.americascup.com


The new AC45 is receiving glowing reviews on her performance during initial test sails.


and his BMW/Oracle Racing Team (now just Oracle Racing), along with San Francisco’s Golden Gate Yacht Club, won the 33rd


America’s Cup in


a lopsided Deed of Gift (DoG) affair that’s probably best forgotten, the questions started, most importantly, “Will the Cup return to the States?” Given that Ellison himself is a


Bay Area resident; that his company, Oracle, is based nearby; and that the yacht club whose burgee he flies are all situated in San Francisco, the answer seemed obvious. Not so fast. This being the America’s Cup, a


trophy that’s historically been mired in legalese ten miles long, things need to be done just so. Ellison should know: His team skillfully used Alinghi’s (the previous Defender) breach of Protocol to begin the first of several devastating lawsuits that eventually lead to the ugly DoG match last February. Rather than expose themselves to the same legal nightmares that he loosed on Alinghi, Ellison and company prepared what, at first glance, appeared to be an airtight Protocol (the rules that govern the next Cup). Yes, there were some raised eyebrows (wingsail catamarans are here to stay, at least for AC34), but on the whole the Challenger of Record and the other challenging teams seemed content. When the Protocol was published,


the world was told that we would learn the location of AC34 sometime on or before December 31, 2010. Back in late summer/early fall this seemed easy- breezy — plenty of time to organize a Bay Area regatta. First a touch of backstory. For


those of you who don’t follow politics, California is in some financial trouble. Layer on top of this the fact that the city of San Francisco is also in arrears, and likely more eyebrows were raised. “How, exactly, will this get


financed? This question loomed large, but the


response seemed self-evident: Ellison and Oracle will pay for the party. Not so, said the Defender (BMW/


Oracle Racing and the Golden Gate Yacht Club). While it’s no secret that Oracle is wildly successful, it’s also no secret that Ellison spent more than a couple of shillings to win the 33rd


48° NORTH, FEBRUARY 2011 PAGE 48


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