The Billionaire and the Mechanic: How Larry Ellison and a Car Mechanic Teamed Up to Win Sailing’s Greatest Race, The America’s Cup
Larry Ellison, billionaire founder of Oracle Corporation, the worldwide computer technology company, was looking for a challenge. He decided, in early 2000, to race for the America’s Cup. Of course, the America’s Cup race isn’t between individuals but between sailing clubs; Ellison figured that shouldn’t be a problem. He’d have no trouble finding a club to sponsor him. Turns out that wasn’t as simple as he thought, until Norbert Bajurin, the mechanic of the title and the newly appointed commodore of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Yacht Club, faced with a shrinking membership and the very real possibility that the club might have to shut down, came up with the brilliant idea of sponsoring Ellison. This energetically written book recounts the partnership that grew into a friendship, as Ellison and Bajurin mounted multiple runs for the Cup (they won it in 2010, and that story alone, with its pitched legal battles and their attendant publicity, could fill a book). Published only months before the 2013 America’s Cup, with Ellison’s team defending, the book is sure to spark interest among racing fans. --David Pitt