I need to get a spinning reel for a ten foot surf rod.

[blynch]

I am generally not one to reccomend the baitrunner, but if you really dont want to do anything other than baitfish, i guess it is a good option.  Alternatively, i would suggest a Daiwa Emblem (light, casts a mile)  or penn slammer 560 or 760 (heavy but a tank)

[Bucktail]

90% of beach fisherman are not hardcore, jumping around the jetties in a 25mph NE blow, kind of people.  Most folks would just as soon put a chunk of bait on a hook, toss it out, set the rod in a sand spike and watch the rod tip.

A baitrunner makes that easier.  How many times have you seen guys with regular spinners get a bite and wind up chasing their rod and reel into the wash because they didn't back off the drag?    Or, if they do back it off and then get a bite it is much harder on a regular, front drag spinner to reset the drag back to the correct tension.

I'm not saying a baitrunner is the only way to go.  Personally, I've never owned one.  But, I've sold a ton of them over the years and had a lot of positive feedback on them.

BTW, when spinning reels first came out, many people called them gimmicks too.