At the end of the day, Bob is right, it's a free country and you can do whatever you want.
In any country, you are free to break the law if you want.
BUT, don't expect much (any?) leeway at major events, and for those of us that are certified by USSA, we are expected to uphold the rules that are in place.
We are
all expected to uphold the rules, whether or not we are certified. Again, I refer everybody to the rule titled
Sportsmanship and the Rules, which preceeds Part 1 of the rulebook.
I am intentionally not discussing the merits of CE vs USCG, because that argument can go around forever.
For the sake of argument, let's assume that PFDs meeting either certification provide adequate flotation. We're not discussing design differences, but regulatory ones.
If enough sailors feel strongly enough about this, why not petition USSA to make a change? They might go for it, or they might come back with other answers you won't like.
I'm sympathetic to this cause (really, I am), but I'll bet money that US SAILING won't rewrite this prescription to permit competitors to break the law. The only real solution I see is to lobby the USCG to change their regulations (or certification process). Of course, I don't see much hope there either.
All the RRS 40 prescription does is make the existing laws (regarding life-saving equipment) also rank as rules. It doesn't in any way add to existing legal requirements. The only difference is that in addition to breaking the law and risking a fine, you also break a rule and risk disqualification if you don't carry the mandated equipment.
Sincerely,
Eric
