Having a somewhat longer than normal rudder and keel, I believe I may have something to say.
My present boat, would I cross the ocean with it? No I wouldn't, it would be a short but very demanding crossing.... Would the boat cross the ocean, yes it would, in fact its even good for a circumnav if needed to. A fast one at it...but not a calm one. Not a relaxing one.
Question here is would I do it? NO..my keel and rudder were designed and installed with one objective only. Performance. That is the objective of these designs..performance..
Then you sacrifice sturdiness and ease of operation for weight and speed. If its heavy it aint fast, if its fast, it aint very sturdy...
Mind you, another point...the fact that my boat is sailed hard in conditions where most will be coming home or reefing, at loads you can't imagine, forced us to increase sturdiness without affecting weight, enter the carbons kevlars etc...
So in reality while the boat has a sturdy keel and rudder, the forces it is subjected to are also greater. Either on impact as well as in motion at higher speeds.
With my boat, where I sail I worry not with groundings, but I do worry with fishing pots and other...I have the added problem of a staright keel and a bulb in the end...
I have passed pots that passed the keel and snag the rudder...so with my boat, you really need to see where you're going.
Most pots have the
lines at surface or near it, so when they hit, they hit the upper part of the rudder shaft, so its not a big problem.