Citybikes www.citybikes.coop has a version of the urban xpress with drop bars. You could take a look at what they did to see if you want to try it yourself. I test rode it and a Surly Long Haul Trucker at the same time and the ride seemed really pretty similar. I'd think it might be worth taking it into a couple shops and finding out how much it would be to upgrade. Then you'd have more data to decide.