I bought my first road bike from bikesdirect some months ago. IMO, for the componentry they offer, their price is hard to beat($300 less than my LBS). You just got to learn how to wrench it yourself, which I find not hard to do at all.
I'm happy with my purchase, is just that, I want a steel frame bike and vintage bikes offers that and a lot more for the money if you know what you're getting.

Were you running slicks or knobbies? Slicks will give much less resistance and feel much faster. A road bike, with more forward geometry, will be faster, but you're looking for a touring type ride bike, which will not feel as fast as a more aggressive road geometry.

A good bike for almost nothing (plus shipping):

Lotus

Any leads on this bike. Looking for Trek Hybrid Dual Sport 4 used. Thanks

slojotaa, This is a 13 year old thread, you may have better luck asking a WTB in the CV for sale thread.
Good luck, Ben