4) I have the prices on new N20 performance sails, and the bottom line is very favorable for EP given the current exchange rate. Most people are happy with EP's build quality, the prices are slightly high, but I can tell you that no one in the U.S is going to pay $700-$1000 more for a complete set of PS sails vs. EP sails

As far as new boats are concerned, its tough to grow the class when the top sailors aren't buying new boats. In all active classes, the top sailors are typically turning over boats once every 2 to 3 years; perhaps not because they absolutely need to, but if they sell the boat to someone they know will race it, they helped out the class significantly by adding a boat to the fleet. This isn't happening, as far as I can tell, in the N20 class. Part of this is the price; I'm not going to spend $25k on a new N20 when, for 3k more, I can have an all carbon F20, or for $5-10k LESS I can get an F18. The aluminum mast, however, is a real option and needs to be taken seriously by the class in order for growth to occur; if we don't accept the aluminum mast, people are going to write off there boats when they break the carbon mast, and people aren't going to buy new N20's with expensive carbon masts because the price doesn't make sense. I'm not suggesting the aluminum mast is tougher or necessarily faster than the carbon mast. I do believe it is more tunable, and the same sailor should be able to make it perform equally to the carbon rig.