What's a Good Boat - My Thoughts

Look at a boat and try to imagine putting it under a big waterfall. With tons of water falling on it what's going to break, how is water going to get in? Where’s that water going to go?  What happens to the boat’s stability when the cockpit fills up?

Imagine dropping the boat off a fairly high dock, say 10 feet or more. Imagine dropping it at different angles, letting it land on its top, sides, bow, stern. What's going to break when you do that?  What’s going to happen to the things inside the boat, the gear, the tankage, the engine, you?

To a point (and comfort aside), the more experience you have, the less boat you need. Conversely, someone with a couple years daysailing experience is going to need a pretty good boat, at least initially, to cross an ocean.

Someone with 30 years blue water experience should  be able to look at a boat and instantly decide if that type of boat is suitable for a long voyage.  This is not only because the experienced sailor has seen a lot of design devices but also because they can imagine that boat being hit by tons of water or dropping from a large wave. Perhaps they've seen it.