Sorry, but I don't get the part about occasionally having to reverse the rudder. That, to me, indicates that it is not truly hove to and that the sail balance is not right, and I still think that when you are hove to, the rudder is supposed to be centered.

On a cruising boat, when you heave to, to ride out a storm, you set it and forget it and go below and eat and sleep, for hours or days, and don't worry about having to do something like go topside to reverse the helm. Seems like it would be dangerous to have the helm set to one side or the other, in case the boat accidentally gets tossed onto the other tack. Doom!

Again, I am still looking for more guidance on this, because I may be completely wrong. I know somebody out there has experience with heaving to on big boats, and the same principles would apply to small boats.