Originally Posted by
cwcaesar
I would really rather not go to a triple, though. But I do appreciate the suggestion.
I'm curious as to why. It's pretty clear that a compact isn't going to solve your cadence issues. At 3.5ish mph (30-40rpm @ 39/27) for 1 mile you're spending around 20 minutes grinding your knees to dust each time you do it. That's just not healthy.
Don't worry about the freds that will think you're less cool for running a triple. In 20 years it won't matter if you need knee replacements. They don't weigh that much more than a double, and you'll get more benefits from losing the weight from yourself first, we are clydes after all. And contrary to popular opinion from people who don't run triples, they're not hard to shift either. Mine has never once had an issue.
It is more than this one hill though. The area that I live in is all hills. I can't think of any stretch of road that is flat within 20 miles of my house, so this would not be solely for one hill. Hills are a way of life for me.
I rest my case.