Yeah, I may have jumped the gun with the bike. I test rode some bents at budget bike/ motorlessmotion and they were all too big, used, too high off the ground, and the salesperson was not very knowledgeable at all. Hostel Shoppe seems to have mostly trikes now and not a large selection of bikes.
I need something to take the weight off my low back and am still young enough that I want speed and ability to at least be in the same ballpark (understanding the yo-yo effect and need to develop bent legs) with my riding friends. I am also not a fan of the recurve/heavily padded seat. And then there is the price. I can live with $1500 if it doesn't work out. Can't live with $2000 + if it doesn't work out.
I also like to mod my bikes. I am already substituting 451 wheels for the stock 700 (with appropriate fork) and planning on adding vibration bobbins to seat interface.