Originally Posted by
elcruxio
I have a 700c LHT of around the same time period and I regularly ride it at 18mph averages. Even did a century with it at 18mph (breaks included, which there were four of). Though there were groups me and my friend tagged along with at times, but were just us two sharing pulls at 21mph. It's not like the bike is inherently slow since that depends on bearings, aerodynamics, drivetrain, tires and all that. My LHT in road configuration has schwalbe g-one allrounds at 40mm (those are some seriously fast tires, I'll tell you), Sram 1x11 road configuration, EXTREMELY long riding position which is subsequently also pretty dang aerodynamic, and pretty standard bearings. Though after that ride I did notice all of the bearings in my Hope Mono RS rear hub were pretty spent AND one bearing was actually cracked, so that may have slowed me down some. Shows that even cartridge bearings should be looked at at times. These were three years and at least 8k touring miles old. And the LHT is also my commuter so there's that too
The fact you can achieve that kind of speed on a LHT is certainly impressive! You're really putting out some wattage there.
From your description of your bike, I'd say the only thing our bikes have in common is the frame material and the Surly stickers (and the color? Is yours red?). It's interesting to hear that you can set a LHT up for performance and actually extract some out of it. Mine's stock (26", with 2 inch marathon tire and a Brooks). It's nearly 30 pounds dry. It's slow and comfortable. If someone wants to split the difference between workhorse and sprite commuter, I'd stick with the common wisdom and say a LHT/DT isn't the best option.