The fifth biennial New York Yacht Club Race Week at Newport presented by Rolex will start tomorrow, hosting 161 boats and filling nine straight days with a variety of competitive sailing choices. The event’s unique split-racing format makes it a popular draw, allowing sailors to customize their competition experience with handicap racing in the first half of the week (July 15-18) and/or one-design racing in the second half (July 20-23). An Around-the-Island Race, open to all entrants, takes place mid-week (July 19) and is scored separately.

One sailor who will compete in both segments is Gary Weisberg of Gloucester, Mass., whose J/109 Heat Wave is PHRF-rated for tomorrow’s racing but will sail one-design with 19 other J/109s for that class’s North American championship starting in six days. (Also sailing for their North American Championships in the second half are the Beneteau First 36.7, Farr 395 and Farr 40 classes, with the Melges 32s sailing their nationals.)

Weisberg’s boat is the only shoal-draft boat among the J/109s registered, a configuration which has helped make him “scratch boat” in his PHRF class — whereby all other boats owe him time on handicap. “It helps my PHRF rating but will most likely hurt me in the second half,” said Weisberg, “since we’re all sailing one-design then.” Nevertheless, Weisberg is anxious to match up against old rival Superstition, another J/109, skippered by Chris Zibailo of Boston, Mass., which is also doing both sailing sessions.

Big names are lining up in the first-half’s IRC Class A for the largest yachts competing. Taking the helm of Bob Towse’s (Stamford Conn.) new Reichel/Pugh designed Blue Yankee will be Steve Benjamin (Norwalk, Conn.). Towse, who serves as navigator, said it will be “all about tactics,” matching up with the other new Reichel/Pugh design Stark Raving Mad, owned by Jim Madden (Newport Beach, Calif.); Hap Fauth’s (Newport, R.I.) 66-foot Bella Mente and the two Farr 60s Hissar and Numbers, owned by Edgar Cato (Charlotte, N.C.) and Dan Meyers (Boston, Mass.), respectively. “The remaining four boats in the class have lower ratings and will sail their own race,” added Towse. “We just hope to sail fast enough to keep our time on them — it’s a great class.”

Since Edgar Cato will be sailing his Farr 60 in the IRC division, his 12-Metre of the same name will be missed on the race course in the seven-boat 12 Metre class. The 12-Metres racing in Grand Prix division include Kiwi Magic, Right on White and USA 61, which has taken 1500 pounds out of its keel and made dramatic rig changes recently. All eyes will be on skipper Andy MacGowan (Middletown, R.I.) to see how the boat fares as these boats prepare for their North American Championships here later this season.. The legendary S&S designed classic 12-Metres Columbia, Courageous, Intrepid and Freedom will round out the fleet.

Two high-profile dinghy sailors and one Volvo Ocean Racer are adding color to the mix. Miami’s Charlotte Hill, who was just named to the Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association’s 2006 All-American Team, will be calling tactics aboard the Navy 44 Flirt in IRC Class 4. Flirt is one of three boats entered in Race Week by the U.S. Naval Academy and skippered and crewed by midshipmen. “We have to do a certain amount of training in the summer,” said Hill, “and this counts toward that. All of us here are either on the dinghy team or the offshore team and have completed at least our freshman years.”

Another Miami resident Morgan Reeser, who won an Olympic Silver Medal in 470 Men’s Class in 1992, will serve as tactician aboard Numbers, while Jerry Kirby (Newport, R.I.) will enter his comfort zone on the bow of the same boat. Kirby just completed sailing around the world in the Volvo Ocean Race doing the same position aboard third-place finisher Pirates of the Caribbean and will be assisted by his teenage son Rome in his duties.

A total of 66 boats will be sailing on two racing circles for this handicap portion of RaceWeek at Newport in three classes for IRC, three for PHRF and one each for Classics and 12-Metres. A total of up to 11 races are scheduled per circle, with competition taking place on Rhode Isalnd Sound or Narragansett Bay, depending on the weather. A Rolex timepiece will be awarded to the best overall performance in IRC and PHRF divisions.

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