Switch Rods... What's the deal and do they live up to the hype?

I caught a comment from D Hise on Facebook about how great the 11' 5wt Helios Switch rod is for trout. A ton of pictures on his page have switch rods in them. I have been seeing a lot of stuff recently about the switch rods and was wondering if anyone had tried one or how they even work. I am not familiar with two fisted casting techniques and can't quite get the feel of it. They look impossible to fish on our small waters in North Carolina but the idea does pique my interest.

Just curious.....

I'm not a skagit/switch roder, but I do know they are excellent ways to cast a fly. Here's a 9 minute video about Switch rods. One of the advantages of two handed rods is that they can relieve the stress of casting with a one handed rod. They can also cast further and mend better, given they're longer rods. It seems like Dave always uses a switch rod. I can see why!

I don't know much about using these types of rods, but if I can quote Orvis, the Switch rod is the most versatile 5-weight ever. Easy to cast one-handed, but also casts two-handed when distance is necessary. Tremendous reach and mending ability for big water nymphing in Western rivers and tailwaters both in and out of drift boats, and in Midwestern tailwaters where shorebound anglers are faced with generation periods and want greater distance. Also good for beach fishing for sea run cutthroat and brook trout.

Sounds almost like a hybrid between a regular fly rod and a spey rod. Could possibly work on a river like the French Broad.

You explained it well Mark. They're more robust rods, in that they are longer, stouter, and heavier than their smaller one handed counterparts. Swithc roding sounds like a lot of fun. It's definitely a change of pace from the regular 10-2 strokes of a one handed rod. Bad part is, you have to be really careful. A skagit cast loaded with a heavy fly will buzz right past your head!!

I would imagine an 11' rod would create quite a bit of leverage with the potential for a lot of fly line to turn over. Sounds perfect for a hook in the earlobe.

A #6 Woolly Bugger, constructed with 12 wraps of .25 lead wire and a beadhead, casted with a switch rod would kill an earlobe!!