Any reason you don't hook the HD version up to your sound system?
I think it would be hard to really understand whether pirate versions increase or decrease (or impact at all) sales. The part that still surprises me is that he hasn't been more proactive about getting the word out about US release / screenings. Put a note on the website, send some press releases out to the motorcycle sites, etc. If you google "Hitting The Apex US", "Hitting The Apex USA", etc, all you get is the original results (on all the motorcycle sites) of it being released but not in the US. If people here knew it was coming out they would probably be less likely to be ordering from the UK and such.