Out here in N. Kali and Oregon, with some really big, strong and fast trout or steelhead, most automatics would becomed fused after one or two runs or have parts and pieces on your reel seat and in the river at your feet. A twenty inch red side trout on the Deschutes in Oregon can be past 50 to 100 yards of your backing before you can yell fish on. The basic Orvis Battenkill is at a loss with these hot fish.
When you are fishing for steelhead which are so fast and powerful, if you get you fingers into the handle as it is spinning around during a run. You could get fractures on your finger tips if they get in the way of the spinning handles as the line shoots out.
As I get more into the big trout and the powerful fish, I use the Gunnison reels, Lamsons, Loop and the new BattenKill Large Arbor reels. With the come back of salmon from late summer throughout the winter, you can be fishing for trout or steelhead and end up with a 30+# King salmon here or in Oregon last fall a hot 10 to 12 pound Coho/Silver. These fish will destroy any rod below a 7 weight and any basic reel. Many guides now will not let you fish with less than a 10-wt fly rod if you are after salmon and steelhead in late summer or early fall.
A good friend bought my Orvis, 4 piece five weight with the Orvis BK 5/6. He didn't listen to me and went on the lower Sac in October. He hooked into probably a 35# fresh king. It broke off half of the last rod section, took off and burnt up the reel and broke the last knot on a hundred yards of backing on a 90 foot line. In about 40 seconds, he lost about $500 of gear. His friends had to help him to shore, and he shook for about 10 minutes. He is lucky that the line didn't get around his fingers, hand, wrist or some other part of his body.