Crimson Sailors Clear Decks For Three Weekend Regattas

A busy weekend of three regattas, including the race for the Hoyt trophy, lies ahead for the Harvard and Radcliffe sailing teams.

Skippers Chris Middendorf and Jim Black will each lead two-man dinghies in the Hoyt Trophy regatta to be held on the Charles River at 9:30 a.m. today. "I think Chris and Jim can take the trophy," said sailing coach Mike Horn yesterday.

The toughest competition for the Crimson will come from Tufts, Brown and MIT. However all teams use the host's boats in sailing competitions, and Harvard will have a slight advantage in manning its own.

Traditionally held at Brown, this major regatta is being run here for the first time in its nearly 25-year history because the Brown boat house was recently condemned.

At the same time today, George Putnam will skipper a four-man boat in the New England Sloop Championship being held at the Coast Guard Academy.

In sloop racing, the boats are twice the size of the dingys used in regular sailing competitions. Putnam--along with a crew of David Brownlee. Rick White and Francis Ganong--has won both preliminary and semi-final trials held earlier in the season.

A victory here would result in the first New England Championship for Harvard in ten years and would proper the crew into the North Americans.

Cord sailing, a rarity in competition, will highlight the minor invitational tournament to be held on Sunday at MIT. Two boats are entered, each with a two-student crew. Women's lib wins out here, as the man and woman will alternate as captain from race to race.

In the regattas requiring two entries, the score for each school is computed by adding the day's finishing places for the two boats. The team with the lowest total finish places is awarded the meet.