I can easily raise my rudder, but I've never tested how the boat would behave without one, other than for a few minutes when it kicked up after hitting or snagging something (it rounds up on a reach until the main loses its wind; after that I don't know because I've always been focused on putting it down again).

Some time this coming season, I'm going to try rigging a drogue on a bridle with a leg attached to a cockpit winch on each side, so I can tension one side then the other to see if I can control steering that way, as a practical option. Will report results here.