The world's premier sailing race, the America's Cup, could still play out on San Francisco Bay according to race officials. That news became official Thursday.
The BMW Oracle racing team, which recently won the latest cup in the name of the Golden Gate Yacht Club, gets to choose the format and location of the next race.
Larry Ellison, Oracle's CEO and the yachtsman behind the challenge, said says that the next race might feature smaller, cheaper but still fast boats in order to make it possible for more teams to enter the race and to take the emphasis away from engineering and more towards sailing skill.
He also wants the race to appeal to younger viewers and potential broadcasters by keeping the races short and fast and providing lots of exciting camera angles from on board, on shore and in the sky.
A major problem for any hopes that San Francisco would get to host the race is that the city would be on the hook for building the necessary infrastructure for the racing teams and the fans, which could cost as much as 9 figures.
San Francisco is currently facing budget shortfalls of $700 million annually or more for the foreseeable future. The race is expected to be held no later than 2014.
Jackson West would love to see a playoff-format type race with lots of teams, especially so close to home.
