Good post! I am a long rod fan too. I have 4 8 foot rods that I use in freshwater. Three rainshadows and an 800L. I have been using the rainshadows for c-rig and crankbaits lately as well as for swimbaits. I hate throwing fat free shad and manns 30+ on wimpy crankbait rods. I caught a few last year on fat free shad on the rainshadow and it whips them good. The only drawback is if you are fishing in a kickboat or fishing solo. It can be hard to net your own fish. But if you have a net man (or a net wife!) I think the 8 foot stuff is awesome. The only place I am considering getting some shorter rods is for flipping heavy cover. I do feel like I can get a faster hookset with a shorter rod. It is hard to whip an 8 footer back like a 6'6". I still haven't found any short rods I like for jigs yet, so I'm using my 7'6" Castaway, but at some point I may pick up a 6'6" x-heavy stick.

Oh and PS, in the ocean stick department, I have a 900L, a Sabre 190-9 (which is 9' 4") and a T100J. For private boater fishing they aren't a must, but on party boats, the 9 and 10 footers will get you out there past and over everyone else.