I dunno, Fudgeurpizzy. First, SPEED is relative; are you going to achieve racing road bike speed riding your hybrid in a less than aerodynamic posture (torso at 45-60 degrees from horizontal, vs nearly parallel to ground on a racing road bike)? I doubt it, since most of the speed impediment above 12-15 mph is wind resistance. Then again, you will be going faster than I will go on my steel hybrid loaded front & rear with racks & gear, including my 1.6 inch wide stiff, heavy, flat resistant tires. We can both go on gravel roads or even some improved trails, but optimal speed on those surfaces is not a large number. Of the advantages of a hybrid, perhaps a more comfortable (a matter of opinion for discussion in another thread) riding position is one, diversity of riding surfaces is another? Speed? I'm not sure. I have a humble entry level hybrid made for comfortable loaded touring on crumpled rough asphalt and dirt/gravel roads. If I want to go fast, I'll have to take a road bike down from the hook and seek the freshly paved smooth asphalt. I have gotten used to sub-14 (and often sub-13)mph average speed on my training rides. Who knows what my average speed would be on my RB-1? But I'm not training to go fast, I'm training to go far and see what I can see. It is a difference of philosophy. Noticing your post in another thread where you display a pic of bike computer showing avg speed >17, I must say you're doing pretty well on SPEED, even considering you live in Flatland, I mean Florida. I call that number pretty darn fast.