I gotta ask, but how do some of you ride with a only 44T chainring? I'm barely spinning using my 28T chainring and 32T gear in the rear going uphill on a daily basis. And I'm still pooped the top even though I've been doing this for a year. Even when I switch to the 38T chainring at the top as it flattens out, I find it quite difficult. I am riding a Marin Muirwoods 29er for what it's worth.

Are you just in a really flat area? Most of the time I can ride with my 38T chainring, but it will be using the 5 or 6 larger cogs on the cassette. It's pretty seldom I use the smallest two gears on the cassette and I've only used the 48T chainring maybe a dozen times.