"With the competition out here, it really elevates this regatta to a national level," Falsone said.

Falsone has been winning in class in his new, custom boat and hopes to place well in the two-day event this weekend. He'll face such standouts as national champ Neal Fowler, of Massachusets, and past winner Ed Adams of Newport, R.I..

Racing will be conducted in collegiate style, allowing for a rotation of skippers and crews that can introduce many to the fleet while keeping the competition serious at the front of the pack.

Falsone said the Interclubs are a rare revival story in the local dinghy circuit. The 1940s design may look like a washtub, but the end result is actually a stable, speedy two-man boat that people are taking a second look at.

The Interclub fleet was down to about four or five sporadic racers in 1996, when Falsone dumped big boat sailing and found the small boats to be affordable.

"We worked at it steadily and now we've got 20 out regularly. It's been a real success story," he said.

SSA, which has hosted the mid-winters twice now including one in a snowstorm last year, got much of the credit for the revival of the fleet from sailors interviewed this week. Member John Potter (aka Alden Bugly) has been organizing regular racing and contests in this mild winter have drawn more than a dozen boats to the line regularly.