Not that I totally disagree with this, because in reality, no two people are alike and what's comfortable for one may not be for another. But generally speaking, steep angles and short wheelbase does not say "road rides" to me. Also, I guess "road rides" is a broad term. Are we talking 10-30 mile city rides? 100+ mile country roads? So it depends on what you're wanting to do with the bike. If 10-30 milers is all you'll see, and you don't mind the discomfort if/when you decide to do longer distances, it really doesn't matter which bike you get. But if you regularly will do longer distances or if you want to be more comfortable on the longer rides, I'd say go with slacker angles and longer wheelbase. Look at the numbers on the Rush and say a road bike like a Madone or Tarmac. Notice the slacker angles and the longer wheelbase, even comparing it to these "race" bikes.

The Rush looks like a fun bike, though, and I'd love to have one. I like that it still has the 1" steerer that I can put a quill stem on for the retro look. And the color is nice. Only thing that keeps me from getting a bike like that (again) is: No velodrome.

BTW, I hadn't looked at the Lightning too much, but it seems like there is some difference between the Lightning geo and Classic/Special geo.