Since the new champions always get to rewrite the rules, Ellison and his world-class sailors tossed out the plodding sloops that previously had been sailed in the America's Cup in favor of the fast catamarans.

NPR: America's Cup Fatality Raises Safety Questions

But in the past decade wealthy enthusiasts like Netscape founder Jim Clark and Atlanta developer John Williams have added to the fleet, building careful replicas of these narrow, tall-masted racing sloops according to original hull lines.

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