I toured with trike once, its such a personal thing, what works for one person doesn't work for another.
To me trikes are just too slow, I don't like the closeness to the ground, I don't like the width, and I don't like the fact that I am stuck in one position. What I do like is the fact that I can go up hill reading a novel or watching Murder, She Wrote on my portable

Honestly I found a trike to be too boring, but they work for a lot of people. If I were to get another trike it would be for short jaunts, kind of the equivalent of a beach cruiser. For the record I had an older Catrike Road.

As far as bents being faster, again that totally depends. If you are sitting on a painful saddle and barely feel like riding, you aren't gonna be a speed demon. if you were to break out scientific testing, they would be faster on paper if you live in a flat area and have a very aerodynamic one (a fairing or a low racer) and/or headwinds were an issue. More comfortable? Duh!

Still, speed for a lot of people is a mental thing, if you feel good on your ride you're gonna go faster!