Is it me, or has the AC always been a boat race between uber-wealthy narcissists? That's what makes it so entertaining

Would you rather watch "Lifestyles of the lower middle class & nominally known" on television? I think not.

Having Robin Leech ride in my half-destroyed car with his camera crew would be a little un-nerving, but he could help keep that window from leaking while he's there...

Suspending racing for a short while until people can determine if there is something inherently wrong with ALL the boats sounds reasonable. But if it turns out one team or boat was cutting the margin too thin, then the rest of the teams shouldn't be penalized

I've recovered a few bodies of offshore power boat racers in my earlier days (dive rescue), but I don't recall the industry cancelling the entire fleet/division/calendar because of one (or a few) accidents.

I'm sure that some of the accidents may have actually been the result of design deficiencies, too...

I recall diving on one boat (maybe a 60 foot tri) that stuffed hard in a wave while rounding a mark and killed the throttle hand (traumatic asphyxia from what we figured - our response was literally 30 seconds from when the boat crashed to our getting hands on him, but CPR attempts were unsuccessful). The boat literally disintegrated below us (our safety team was following in a small helicopter at about 100' asl). The driver denied being hurt, but we got him packaged (backboard/CS collar) on the rescue boat and later found out he had a C-6 fracture.

While tragic for all involved, the general racing community believed it was one of the inherent perils of the "game" and soldiered on. I would hope to see the same out of the AC

Even back in the early AC events, the danger of injury or worse was always present. A parted sheet or blown block could easily maime or kill a sailor. Collisions between boats have and will break bones or worse.

Booms swinging can knock sailors overboard unconscious, and until recently I don't recall any of them wearing PFDs while training or competing.

Learn all we can from this incident, apply those lessons to protect life and property, and let's develop the sport and its associated technologies in a safe and effective manner.