Originally Posted by clinto
I don't know how much it'll help, but I'm shoping for a surly LHT as well and have been having the same test ride problem. The best solution I've found so far is a fellow at a local shop told me that one of their employees rides a surly steamroller that I can test-out which, according to him, is essentially the same frame as the LHT minus the braze-ons.
Completely different geometries. Check the website, and then get a metric tape measurement and compare to your current ride. That's what I did. The LHT is comparable to the Riv atlantis, low bb, long chainstays for panniers.
Mark