Defending champion Jessie Kirkland will be favoured to retain his Long Distance Comet Race title when the fleet sets sail from the Great Sound to St.George's Harbour next Monday.

The three-time All-American sailor captured a maiden Edward Cross Cup sailing with elder brother Zander as crew last year and more recently helped St Mary's College to a first Inter-Collegiate Sailing Association National Championship in seven years in San Francisco.

The 21-year-old sailor will compete in next week's Long Distance race with soon-to-be St Mary's schoolmate, Joshua Greenslade, who helped Christ Church School to a maiden Leukaemia Cup and the Virginia Interscholastic Sailing Association Spring Series Fleet Racing Championship earlier this year.

Kirkland says he is excited to be sailing with a new crew this year and competing in what he predicts will be another enjoyable race.

"I'm definitely excited about the race and also excited about having a new person in the boat," he said. "It should be a fun race and we will just try and go out there and treat it like any other race.

"Hopefully we will have good breeze and it should be a great race."

Kirkland sailed Mid Atlantic Boat Club entry, Shaka Zulu, to victory in last year's race after outduelling class heavyweight Stevie Dickinson in a gruelling "two hour match race".

The St Mary's Seahawk led the fleet out of St.George's Harbour but surrendered the lead off Ferry Reach when he had to complete two penalty turns for forcing Dickinson to alter course.

However, the Kirklands regained the lead midway through the course and never looked back with Dickinson ultimately paying the price for sailing with a lighter crew in Martin Finegan in breezy conditions.

Multiple Edward Cross Cup winners Dickinson, Gladwin Lambert and Rudy Bailey are among the pre-race favourites this year and could pose a serious threat to Kirkland's hopes of defending his crown.

Asked to share his thoughts about his senior rivals, 2012 Olympic hopeful Kirkland chose to stay focused on himself rather than others.

"You just have to put everything else aside whenever you go out to compete," he said. "It's just another sail boat race and hopefully we can come out on top."

Monday's race begins at 10 a.m. off the shores of the West End Sail Boat Club in Somerset.