I have what appears to be a very friendly but quite slow Chocobo.

What I mean is, I've noticed, running with a mounted FATE pack... just about everyone else can open the distance between me and my bird, and themselves, following the same path. Especially the smaller folks. Lalafel ZOOOOM!

Is this just poor perception or does bird speed really scale with, say, rider weight? (I'm a Hyur Highlander in heavy plate armor). Or bird training?

Time trials, anyone?