To add to this discussion, I would suggest thinking about the big picture. We should encourage more sailors to sail Lasers and by doing so built the local fleets and that will eventually increase participation in ILCA events. Most of the Laser sailing occurs at the local clubs. The goal of most clubs is to encourage people to come out on the water and have fun. If they do, perhaps they will sail more actively, build their skills and the occasional one will want to sail in a sanctioned event. ILCA bylaws describe these as District championships or above. In these events, adherence to the class rules is a must. You have to be an ILCA member and your boat and equipment must be compliant.
However, 90% of the Laser sailors never get this far, they just sail in their local fleet or less formal nearby regattas. In my fleet we don’t care if someone shows up with a Rooster sail, we just want to encourage them to sail with us. Sooner or later, if they catch the bug, they’ll upgrade and buy the proper kit, but meanwhile, they are sailing their boat, which enhances everyone’s experience. The more, the merrier.
The other factor, at least in North America, is that parts availability has been awful in the past several years. At one time or the other, it was impossible to get class legal gudgeons, bailers, battens, booms and sails. So, do you give up sailing or use what is available? I’d vote for staying on the water.
This approach gets a little sticky at sanctioned events. We had a sailor (ILCA member) willing to drive several hundred miles to a District event, but opted out because his boom was broken and the only thing he could buy was a non class legal part. I would have liked to have seen this sailor sailing. He wasn’t hiding anything, wasn’t trying to cheat, he was just trying to compete with whatever he could cobble together. What’s the right answer when you literally cannot buy the parts to keep your boat compliant and on the water? Maybe this will change with the new manufacturers, but to date, it’s still an issue.
In short, I would err toward getting sailors to sail. Especially while ILCA sorts out the distribution channels.