The Billionaire and the Mechanic
How Larry Ellison and a Car Mechanic Teamed Up to Win Sailing's Greatest Race, the America's Cup
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Narrated by:
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Mark Ashby
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By:
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Julian Guthrie
About this listen
The America’s Cup, first awarded in 1851, is the oldest trophy in international sports, and one of the most hotly contested. In 2000, Larry Ellison, co-founder and billionaire CEO of Oracle Corporation, decided to run for the coveted prize and found an unlikely partner in Norbert Bajurin, a car radiator mechanic who had recently been named Commodore of the blue collar Golden Gate Yacht Club.
Julian Guthrie’s The Billionaire and the Mechanic tells the incredible story of the partnership between Larry and Norbert, their unsuccessful runs for the Cup in 2003 and 2007, and their victory in 2010. With unparalleled access to Ellison and his team, Guthrie takes readers inside the design and building process of these astonishing boats, and the management of the passionate athletes who race them. She traces the bitter rivalries between Oracle and their competitors, including Swiss billionaire Ernesto Bertarelli’s Team Alinghi, and throws listeners into exhilarating races from Australia and New Zealand to Valencia, Spain.
With new television coverage and huge media, the America’s Cup is poised to be bigger than ever, and The Billionaire and the Mechanic is a must-listen for anyone interested in the race or this remarkable story.
©2013 Julian Guthrie (P)2013 Audible, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
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Pirate Hunters
- Treasure, Obsession, and the Search for a Legendary Pirate Ship
- By: Robert Kurson
- Narrated by: Ray Porter
- Length: 8 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
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Finding and identifying a pirate ship is the hardest thing to do under the sea. But two men—John Chatterton and John Mattera—are willing to risk everything to find the Golden Fleece, the ship of the infamous pirate Joseph Bannister. At large during the Golden Age of Piracy in the seventeenth century, Bannister should have been immortalized in the lore of the sea—his exploits more notorious than Blackbeard’s, more daring than Kidd’s. But his story, and his ship, have been lost to time.
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Pure Gold
- By Mel on 06-24-15
By: Robert Kurson
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A Man and His Ship
- America's Greatest Naval Architect and His Quest to Build the S.S. United States
- By: Steven Ujifusa
- Narrated by: Pete Larkin
- Length: 13 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
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At the peak of his power, in the 1940s and 1950s, William Francis Gibbs was considered America's best naval architect. His quest to build the finest, fastest, most beautiful ocean liner of his time, the S.S. United States, was a topic of national fascination. When completed in 1952, the ship was hailed as a technological masterpiece at a time when "made in America" meant the best.
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Good read and lots of great history on naval engineering history in the 20th century
- By Amzbuyer on 01-03-24
By: Steven Ujifusa
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Go Like Hell
- Ford, Ferrari, and Their Battle for Speed and Glory at Le Mans
- By: A. J. Baime
- Narrated by: Jones Allen
- Length: 8 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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By the early 1960s, Ford Motor Company, built to bring automobile transportation to the masses, was falling behind. Baby boomers were taking to the roads in droves, looking for speed not safety, style not comfort, and Ford didn’t offer what these young drivers wanted. Meanwhile, Enzo Ferrari lorded over the European racing scene, crafting beautiful, fast sports cars that epitomized style.
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Goldern age of racing
- By Dan R. on 01-26-15
By: A. J. Baime
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Fly Girls
- How Five Daring Women Defied All Odds and Made Aviation History
- By: Keith O'Brien
- Narrated by: Erin Bennett
- Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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Between the world wars, no sport was more popular, or more dangerous, than airplane racing. Thousands of fans flocked to multi-day events, and cities vied with one another to host them. The pilots themselves were hailed as dashing heroes who cheerfully stared death in the face. Fly Girls recounts how a cadre of women banded together to break the original glass ceiling: the entrenched prejudice that conspired to keep them out of the sky.
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For women, and dads
- By Cecilia Avanelle on 08-08-18
By: Keith O'Brien
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Calling the Shots
- How to Win in Football and Life
- By: David Dein
- Narrated by: Arsène Wenger, David Dein
- Length: 12 hrs and 40 mins
- Unabridged
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There's no doubt that Dein has been one of the most significant and influential figures in British football for over three decades—operating at club and international level. He was a prime mover in the creation of the Premier League, hugely influential within the England set-up and, of course, was the mastermind—along with Arsène Wenger—in creating the glory days of Arsenal Football Club, leading the team for almost a quarter of a century.
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Modern Day Herbert Chapman
- By Will on 02-10-23
By: David Dein
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Destroyer Captain
- Lessons of a First Command
- By: James Stavridis
- Narrated by: Chaz Allen
- Length: 6 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
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This memoir of James Stavridis' two years in command of the destroyer USS Barry (DDG-52) reveals the human side of what it is like to be in charge of a warship for the first time and in the midst of international crisis. From Haiti to the Balkans to the Arabian Gulf, the Barry was involved in operations throughout the world during his 1993-1995 tour. Drawing on daily journals he kept for the entire period, the author reveals the complex nature of those deployments in a 'real time' context and describes life on board the Barry and liberty ashore for sailors and officers alike.
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Great Navy book
- By Richard Giddeon on 03-04-15
By: James Stavridis
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Get Out of Your Own Way
- How to Overcome Any Obstacle in Your Life
- By: Larry Winget
- Narrated by: Larry Winget
- Length: 4 hrs and 19 mins
- Original Recording
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You think you know what you want in life. You've tried to achieve those things. But if you still don't have them, the culprit may be closer than you think. In this perspective-altering program, the world-renowned Pitbull of Personal Development(tm), Larry Winget, exposes the things you are doing right now to unknowingly prevent your own success in the most important areas of your life.
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Was just OK
- By KatieReviewsStuff on 01-30-17
By: Larry Winget
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The New New Thing
- A Silicon Valley Story
- By: Michael Lewis
- Narrated by: Bruce Reizen
- Length: 9 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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In the weird glow of the dying millennium, Michael Lewis sets out on a safari through Silicon Valley to find the world's most important technology entrepreneur, the man who embodies the spirit of the coming age. He finds him in Jim Clark, who is about to create his third, separate, billion-dollar company: first Silicon Graphics, then Netscape - which launched the Information Age - and now Healtheon, a startup that may turn the $1 trillion healthcare industry on its head.
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A fun book about Jim Clark
- By Horace on 07-07-10
By: Michael Lewis
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The Mechanic
- The Secret World of the F1 Pitlane
- By: Marc 'Elvis' Priestley
- Narrated by: Marc 'Elvis' Priestley
- Length: 7 hrs and 15 mins
- Unabridged
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Random House presents the audiobook edition of The Mechanic written and read by Marc 'Elvis' Priestley. In the high-octane atmosphere of the Formula One pit lane, the spotlight is most often on the superstar drivers. And yet, without the technical knowledge, competitive determination and outright obsession from his garage of mechanics, no driver could possibly hope to claim a spot on the podium.
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Great insight.
- By Justin on 01-25-19
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Until the Sea Shall Free Them
- By: Robert Frump
- Narrated by: Luke Smith
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
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The men on the SS Marine Electric sailed into a storm in February 1983 not knowing that they would make history - at a great cost in lives. Just three men survived the wreck of the Marine Electric off the shores of Virginia and they found that their struggle had just begun once they got back to shore. Blamed for the wreck, they fought back and broke a code of silence that had covered up sloppy ship inspections for decades and revealed the flaws in old World War II rust buckets that were still at sea long past their functional lifetime.
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Interesting, but not a great listen
- By Eric on 02-22-13
By: Robert Frump
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Wreck of the Carl D.
- A True Story of Loss, Survival, and Rescue at Sea
- By: Michael Schumacher
- Narrated by: Gary D. MacFadden
- Length: 7 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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On November 18, 1958, a 623-foot limestone carrier - caught in one of the most violent storms in Lake Michigan history - broke in two and sank in less than five minutes. Four of the 35-person crew escaped to a small raft, to which they clung in total darkness, braving 30-foot waves and frigid temperatures. As the storm raged on, a search-and-rescue mission hunted for survivors, while the frantic citizens of nearby Rogers City, Michigan, anxiously awaited word of their loved ones' fates.
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A harrowing story of survival and loss
- By Ron T on 03-25-16
What listeners say about The Billionaire and the Mechanic
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- carolyn
- 08-01-16
fiery spirits of racing energy
loved the book, action throughout. telling of the big egos and high stakes of ocean racing
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1 person found this helpful
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- escapewheel
- 10-04-18
Type A rich guy and oh yeah some blue collar schmo
Meh. I was expecting more of a story of two unlikely partners each having something special that combined to make them win. Instead this is a story about a rich guy spending money for years until he wins. Ok story but it isnt the underdog overcomes against all odds story i expected.
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1 person found this helpful
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- Michael Dow
- 10-06-17
Great story
Enjoyed the story from start to finish. Has a nice mix of business, ego, and sailing.
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- Domenic Seibold
- 07-11-16
Engaging and well written
This was a very compelling storyline for me as a sailor but I was dragged away too many by parts of the 'Ellison Story' that were unrelated to sailing . I wasn't looking for his biography, but more about the sailing and how the cup was won back. The sailing and regatta stories were excellent. Larry Ellison's personal story was good and well written, so I wouldn't deter anyone from reading this book as it is.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Jose F Guzman
- 11-05-14
Fantastic Story
What made the experience of listening to The Billionaire and the Mechanic the most enjoyable?
If you are a sailor, want to become one or want to understand the America's cup, this book is a must read. Very sorry that I am done with it as it made my 2hr round trip to and from work, so short!
What other book might you compare The Billionaire and the Mechanic to and why?
Have you listened to any of Mark Ashby’s other performances before? How does this one compare?
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Yes, hard to put down
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1 person found this helpful
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- David S. Culpepper
- 06-17-15
I'm a mechanic, and a radiator shop owner.
And a sailor. I was told to read this book. My grandson and I drove east coast to west coast. I bought the Audible version. The story is authentic. The facts are real. No fluff. What these two men did was a real adventure. Mark Ashby did a wonderful job. When my 12 year old grandson ask for me to turn on the book, well that says it is a good listen.
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2 people found this helpful
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- Matthew
- 08-02-17
Fantastic
Great book with enough sailing and biographical info on Larry to make it very interesting.
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- Blaine
- 01-29-16
Good but incomplete
As a novice sailor this was very engaging and insightful. That being said, the audiobook is NOT the latest version of the book and is missing the coverage of the AC in San Francisco which was added to the print edition.
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7 people found this helpful
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- merv
- 02-09-22
More Mechanic and Less Larry
I loved the history of the America's Cup and found the evolution of boat design fascinating. The battle between Alinghi and Team Oracle was very interesting. I would have liked more back story of SFYC and Commodore Norbert. All in all it was a fun listen and Id recommend it to anyone with an interest in yacht racing and the AC.
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- g.joze
- 10-30-22
waste of time
I had expectations to learn something from this book.
instead I fast forwarded through a long , long, long too long story that I find no meaning of.
I apologize to those who put effort into creating this, but I just don't get it.
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