<OT> FYI - Looks like Ellisons life really was in danger this time. Someone from Oracle sent me this and there are a few posts about it on the Orcl thread... I thought some here might be interested.
dailynews.yahoo.com
HOBART, Australia (AP) -- U.S. billionaire Larry Ellison, in tears after battling through the horror of the Sydney-to-Hobart yacht race, said he had never experienced worse conditions at sea.
Ellison, the founder and chief executive of computer giant Oracle, won his second Sydney-to-Hobart race but arrived in Hobart early Tuesday to a funereal atmosphere.
Asked if he'd come back again, Ellison said, ''My first reaction is not if I live to a thousand years. But who knows?''
''It was just awful, I've never experienced anything remotely like this,'' said Ellison, whose company is a key competitor of Bill Gates' Microsoft. ''It's been a very emotional experience to get here. This is not what this is supposed to be about. A lot of us are upset.''
Ellison said it was an extraordinarily difficult as his yacht battled ''right through the eye of a hurricane'' and his crew heard by radio of the deaths in the battered fleet.
At least three sailors have died and three others are missing in the worst tragedy to hit the race in its 54-year history.
Ellison's yacht, Sayonara, crossed the finish line to a subdued welcome by a smaller-than-usual spectator fleet and dockside crowd. One member of the 23-man crew had a broken ankle, but otherwise they were safe.
A welcome celebration was postponed and the trophy presentation was delayed until Saturday.
''That's as tough as it gets,'' said Sayonara's helmsman Chris Dickson. ''Being here first is nice but being here at all is a big thing and we're thinking about those who are still out there, not thinking too much about how we've done.'' |
