Originally Posted by
Jeff Wills
I have a 24/34 low gear on my recumbent, and I used it for a (thankfully short) climb away from a river ferry while loaded touring. It was barely faster than walking.
I can definitely see the need for gears like that with loaded touring. I've had a couple of touring bikes with those gears myself, in fact. But what Hillrider is saying is that there are people who have come just to climb this thing and some of them are needing the absolute granny gear with a mountain bike drivetrain just to deal with the length, the grade, and the wind. That's BRUTAL!