Can be like that on days and on others you could just have a couple of wraps and thats your bite, I only use baitrunners as a safty aspect so I dont loose the rod If Ive lost my concentration

always pays to watch the tip as much as you can to try and identify whats actually going on under the water

You can use carp rods if you like, I do on the trent because of flow and feeder size, but on a small river I use my bomb rods, so its horses for courses.