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The power requirements go up drastically after about 15 mph or so, it takes about 160 watts to go 15 mph on a mountain bike but over 220 to go only 17 mph and 330 watts for 20 mph.
Here's another graph that might help you with your quest for more speed, it's human power output versus time, we can sprint fairly well but a ten hour stretch at 220 watts is going to be in the realm of a pretty good athlete..
On the other hand a full recumbent is only using 100 watts to go 17 mph and 150 watts to go 20 mph, less than half the power needed on a mountain bike for the same speed. A road bike at 20 mph is 250 watts in a full tuck.
The aerodynamics of a standard bike just suck, even Superman doesn't fly standing up straight.
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