Why a Reverse Valve Body?

I have Cheetah valve body which has the disadvantage of not being able to downshift into first. I love the pattern though. P R N 123. It feels more natural to pull the shifter towards me instead of upshifting towards the dash. The major advantage to me is that there is no way I can accidentally shift into neutral in the heat of the moment. I also like being able to bark the tires on command. It's not a daily driver so I don't ever get tired of shifting. I would have bought a different one but I got this brand new still in the box for 80 bucks....
It was also my understanding that installation of a manual valve body would not only produce neck snapping shifts and absolute control of the tranny but would also increase transmission life, not to mention elimination of the Rube Goldberg downshift linkage.