NEWPORT, Rhode Island -- You'd think having your navigator sing the theme song to Gilligan's Island would be a bit unnerving with less than 24 hours to go before the start of the Newport to Bermuda race, but that's exactly what Scott King was doing aboard Tsunami yesterday.

But it fits in perfectly with the way skipper Buddy Rego wants this 635-mile voyage to be approached.

Rego's Tsunami will be one of nine local boats on the starting line at 2 p.m.

(Bermuda time) today when the 39th Newport to Bermuda spectacle, one of sailing's premier ocean races, begins.

It will be a much different fleet than in the past; a smaller percentage of racing machines, a smaller percentage of professionals who earn their living from the sport and a higher percentage of amateurs who sail strictly for fun.

And Rego wouldn't have it any other way.

Tsunami , a 41-foot Frers, is one of 100-plus boats classified as cruiser/racers, and Rego is hoping to turn in a better performance than in 1992 when he finished 12th out of 25 boats in his division. He would also like nothing better than to duplicate his finish during last year's Marion to Bermuda race when he took Class A honours and made it home in three days and 14 hours.

There are only two crew members remaining from that race, with Rego being joined this time by King, Michael Boyd, Peter Shrubb, Clifford Nolan, Mark Hennenberger, Robert Bohnar, Kate Williams and Jim Drijgers.

While he considers them all top-rate sailors, he is especially pleased they will be bringing with them a healthy sense of humour. "The best ingredient I think we have is that,'' Rego said from Newport Harbour yesterday. But that doesn't mean this is going to be a joy ride for this crew of nine. "I think we're all pretty much driven equally,'' added Rego. "I mean we all have different personalities, but we all have a sense of humour which is a common language on board.

"Going to sea for four days with a bunch of people is always an interpersonal experience.'' Rego and his crew were busy making final preparations yesterday when brilliant sunshine and warm temperatures finally replaced the stubborn fog which hung over the area all week.

The 37-year-old president of Rego Limited ("For me this race is one of the easiest ways to get away from the telephone, it's the only way'') also attended the captain's meeting at the Marriot Hotel last night (see accompanying story), buoyed by news that the weather is expected to keep improving.

"I understand there's a big high pressure system at this stage, I mean anything can change, but if it's a relatively moderate to light air race then we have a good chance of doing well. It'll be very hard for the big boats to get away under those conditions.'' Rego is especially eager to begin the race, having spent the last 10 days in Newport, primarily to get Tsunami ready.

"I can't wait to leave,'' he said, laughing. "I've only got a couple of things to do, but everything's pretty much under control. Everyone else may want to get rid of me because I may be calm now, but I've been pretty hyper over the last seven days.

"You always have that little bit of apprehension. And by nature, I always sort of feel there's one more thing that could have been done, but I think we're pretty organised.'' Rego and King were busy working on the steering system yesterday, tightening it just right for the start of the race on Narragansett Bay.

Other Bermuda boats in the Racer/Cruiser Division, vying for the coveted St.

David's Lighthouse Trophy, will be Alphida (Kirk Cooper), Jalapenos Dos (Jordy Walker) and Monterey (Les Crane). Boomerang , skippered by George Coumantaros of New York City, is also in the class, the yacht with the best elapsed time during the last two races, along with Constellation , the Racing Division winner in 1992.

"I feel better going into this race than the one in 1992,'' Rego said. "I know exactly what I have to do this time. The first Newport race we had very good crew on board, less experience as far as offshore crew is concerned, but good sailors. But when you do it the first time you're never going to get it 100 percent right.

"Clearly a few people are going to be right and some people are going to be wrong. One person is going to be very right. And there's luck...you can't get away from that. I don't care how much electronics you have on board. You always have to make decisions and you're always taking a gamble on whether the weather is going to be right on one side of the course or the other.

"Typically the first day you have the same adrenalin as if you're racing around the buoys. But the hardest thing, of course, is to maintain that level of concentration once the sun goes down. And once the other boats go out of sight.''