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Most of my rods are between 6" and 15" for the sole purpose of line management in windy conditions. Since many of my rods (both palm and jigging) are short, I can fish outside and hole hop in the nastiest weather and still have complete control over my line and block the wind. This translates into detecting more bites and catching more fish.
Beatis62- Your going to like those Ice Strong Titanium Spring Bobbers. They are really good. As for wind just do like others have suggested.