I've casted the real long spey rods at the shows and then on the river with Gizmo's high quality spey rod. This is an individual preference thing of course, but I agree with Silver Hilton that they aren't really necessary for the majority of steelhead flyfishing. And they are very expensive and a bit cumbersome. I have no problem roll casting my 7 wt.(DT)/8 wt.(WF) line with my GL3 blanked 9.5' LL Bean flyrod fairly long distances when trees prevent backcasting. And they are much more comfy to use. And I think faster and more effient for normal casting on most steelhead rivers. I guess if you are a fly purist that won't use conventional gear, the spey rods would have some usefullness in large river scenarios. Just my 0.02 opinion.

RT