Swapped out the crank after work tonight. Turns out the Sugino that was on it is a 170mm crank arm length. I'm thinking that will make a huge difference going to the 175mm Deore crank. Hoping to get out for a ride tomorrow after work. Pretty sure I will now need to adjust the saddle height, but I will hold off on that until the stem is replaced, expected arrival Monday or Tuesday. You know, I'm getting kind of excited to see what these changes will do to the ride of this bike...

The Vittoria Hypers are supposed to be great in terms of low weight and rolling resistance for a "larger volume" tire made for touring/commuting tire. I've read it over and over, and never anything to the contrary. Maybe try a set of those out for your next $100. You can get them in sizes from 32-38, I think. I've heard that LHTs are just what their name implies, though, trucks. Is your problem in the handling or moving forward? And if it's in moving forward, I'd say try riding it unloaded for a while and see what you think after swapping the tires, or after comparing to your faster bike with "touring" type tires so that you can see the difference that the tires make. I know my road bike with 25mm tires is faster than my touring with 38mm tires. If I swap the 25mm tires onto the touring bike, there is a noticeable difference. I think the geometry of the LHT would still make it handle more slowly than a narrow tire road bike, but that's something touring bikes are made for. It keeps them stable when loaded.