Everyone knows about crew. Freshmen get attractive letters from boathouse legends introducing them to the exotic, muscle-bound world of the oarsperson. And any dining hall is sure to have a table full of crew jocks comparing ERG scores and tales of post-stadia nausea.

But quietly and unassumingly, the University's other river inhabitants--the sailors--trudge back and forth from the campus to 45 Memorial Dr., home of the Harvard Sailing Center and the mainstay of Crimson skippers.

Harvard's sailing program has a grand history, dating back to obscure origins around the turn of the century. But now, as a Level II varsity sport, Harvard sailing enjoys a number of fairly recent benefits.

Fifteen years ago, each time a handful of fanatic Crimson sailors wanted to ship out, they faced a trip to the MIT boathouse to launch their boats from floating docks. Now, at least, the Harvard skippers (350 to 400 of them) can use the Harvard Sailing Center's modern launching system.

The sailing center is the product of Harvard sailing history. It is the most significant and ambitious addition to the program--providing a campus anchor for the sport.

Mike Horn, the present coach of the men's and women's sailing teams here, has watched the Harvard sailing program grow in recent years. A 1963 Harvard graduate and former sailor, Horn said this week, "In 1963 we did everything by ourselves. By comparison things are pretty good today."

Harvard was once the top sailing college in the Ivy League, winning the very first Ivy League Championships in 1962, the New England team racing championships twice, the New England sloop championships for three consecutive years, and placing in the top three for three consecutive North American championships.

These were the days of Carter Ford and Mike Lehman, who tested and modified the Interclub dinghy, which now can be found in almost every college fleet; and George Oday '44, who became a well-known boat builder and sailed in the Olympic games.

These are the people who built Harvard sailing. As Horn said, "We have had excellent support from the alumni. They built the building, they bought the boats...They did everything."

One of the people instrumental in building the sailing center is Walter Evert, who has been with the club for more than 15 years. Now in semi-retirement, he remembers his time as director of sailing.

"I helped to design and build this place," he said recently, pointing to the boat storage area. This part of the boathouse contains Harvard's 40 boats, which hang from an aerial track system that snakes along the ceiling. The boats can be moved along the tracks and out over the water by one person. A power lift then can lower them into the water.

David Kantor, a junior and member of the sailing team, said, "The facilities here are as good as or better than almost anywhere else, and the boats are certainly better maintained." Chuck Rogers, a Business School student, agreed. "This place is really well run, the equipment is good, and they show you how everything works," he explained.

There are, however, some gripes on the waterfront.

"It would be nice to get rebates on room and board from the athletic department," Horn said. "Tufts and MIT do. They also get a travel allowance." Sailing team members, as participants in a Level II sport, must pay for all their expenses and must drive their own cars to the regattas held across New England and the country.

"Last year," Horn said, "Yale beat us out in the bidding for the Women's National championships because of the extra 'perks.' Their facilities are no better than ours, but they could provide free housing for all the competitors--something we just couldn't do."