if you can live with lousy shifting, corsaire, go with it.
me? i have never met a road that i couldn't ride up in 39x25, and i'm not a strong climber. i'm not saying it was as easy as watching tv and eating cheetos, but it was do-able. on my cyclo-cross bike, if i come to a hill that i'd need lower than 38x26 for, i'm better off running.
i would run a triple on a loaded touring bike. i would accept the fact that i would be moving at a crawl.