First I need to show events that occur when Knuckles enters Icecap 2 from Icecap 1 by gliding over Sonic's boss. In the underground caverns, things get messy, as the attached video shows. Penguins respawn, platforms disappear, and boxes can fail and reappear randomly. (Note: the video only shows a robotnik box respawning, but the ten ring box above can respawn too.)
I proposed a solution on the chat room, but I need an official ruling on this: Can I enter and exit a bonus stage to avoid this phenomenon?
The main issue I know of that should be considered is the "tangible benefit" issue. I'm not trying to gain extra rings (or access to extra rings) by entering the bonus stage. I'm trying to actually prevent disaster in mid-attempt.
EDIT: Nevermind. This level's been removed from the s3 charts.