Localized vs. systemic failures in buildings. Also, these boats don't have a lot of "tells" for distress (the interiors are open, etc.) Further, the failures involve a very narrow band of "looks okay" to "explodes". We face similar issues with wood vs. aluminum shoring systems for concrete constuctions. With wook you get visual signals of splitting and buckling as well as auditory warnings -- with aluminum posts and shoring members, they are there one second, then pow...

As you know, Tom, You have similar situations with truss members in houses these days. A failure of a component (small) is harder to detect than, say, splitting of solid joist or even a beam. You have deflections that give you clues.

In the case of rod rigging -- it's really hard to get clues (especially under way).

That Open 60 had been hammered before (keel lost = upside down), holed at speed, etc. Who knows what the repairs of the hull system were like or whether they were complete.

With carbon fiber masts -- you have little warning. If the boat is hit by lightning, you can get seperations of the fibers from intense heating which give little notice. Wood spars give you some notice (unless you dip a boom into a big wave at speed -- remember that, Tom ;^)))