Personal Life
Beyond the design of computers Cray led a "streamlined life". He avoided publicity and there are a number of unusual tales about his life away from work (termed "Rollwagenisms", from then-CEO of Cray Research, John A. Rollwagen). He enjoyed skiing, wind surfing, tennis and other sports. Another favorite pastime was digging a tunnel under his home; he attributed the secret of his success to "visits by elves" while he worked in the tunnel: "While I'm digging in the tunnel, the elves will often come to me with solutions to my problem."
Cray died October 5, 1996 (age 71) of head and neck injuries suffered in a traffic collision on September 22, 1996. Cray underwent emergency surgery and had been hospitalized since the accident two weeks earlier. Daniel Rarick, 33, had tried to pass Cray on Interstate 25 in Colorado Springs, Colorado, struck another car, which then struck Cray's Jeep Cherokee, causing it to roll three times. Rarick received a citation for careless driving causing serious bodily injury. He was unhurt in the accident. The entrance/exit at Academy Blvd and I-25 was later reconfigured to be less dangerous.
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