Smooth sailing is readily and easily available locally for those students who prefer to spend their free time out on the water.

The chief drawback to this sort of entertainment, is of course financial. Most boat rentals are fairly high; even your personal dinghy won't fit comfortably in a car. The outstanding exception to the price rule is a purely local organization: the Harvard Yacht Club.

An informal association of sailing enthusiasts, the Club charges members an exceedingly low $5 membership fee. In return, one has a chance to sail virtually every fair afternoon. An agreement with M.I.T. affords members the use of Tech boathouse and dinghies. Successful completion of a boat-handling exam is the only other membership requirement.

Another worthy feature of the Club is its extensive racing program. Club members make up the Crimson Yacht Team, and as such compete in a regular schedule of intercollegiate meets. Current composition of the team is determined by a flexible ladder.

In addition, for less experienced members, the club offers the Charles Basin League, which serves as a kind of farm club for the varsity with instruction offered.

Other nearby opportunities for free-time boating include Community Boating Inc., located at 21 Embankment Road (Telephone: CA 7-6272).

Membership fee here is $15 for 30 days. Besides this, a simple sailing test is required.

One of the nice features of the arrangement at Community is that one is permitted to take two guests along; both must know how to swim. Equipment consists of dinghies only.

On the North Shore, Raymond Hunt's with offices on the town dock (next to the Boston Yacht club) offers an attractive series of rental deals.

Water bugs are available for hourly charter nearly all year 'round, and 210's and 110's for day or for morning or afternoon. Rental fees vary with the seasonal demand, but $10 should cover a day's sailing in one of the larger boats at this time.

If you think you're going to play much golf this spring, you need either ready access to a car or else plain and overpowering determination.

Harvard has no gold course. Although at least seven public courses are within a ten mile radius of the Square, none of these is serviced be a direct bus line.

The outlook for the golf enthusiast, however, is not completely black, for some of the surrounding clubs are of championship calibre. Foremost among there is Ponkapoag Golf Course near Canton. Slightly more than a 20-minute drive from the Square, Ponkapoag is reached by driving along Memorial Drive to Route 1, turning off Route 1 when it intersects Route 138, and following Route 138 for eight miles.

Ponkapoag has 27 holes, nine for beginners and 18 in the championship class. Formerly rated as a par 72, the eighteen hole course was changed to a par 73 two years ago after topflight professional and amateur golfers had failed to either equal or break the existing par.

The course is in excellent condition, extremely long, and well laid out. In addition, Ponkapoag is not generally overcrowded.