It's definitely been quicker on the whole for the past week or so -- taking only maybe 5-seconds too long for the initial load, rather than 10-15 seconds.

So earlier today I took your suggestion of "Mark All Read" on the main page -- including the non-empeg forums. Since then, initial load time is 1-2 seconds, about normal for any BBS-like site I visit.

Cool. Thanks, Tom.