Originally Posted by
Hermes
Gearing does not change power production capability unless the gearing is ridiculously hard i.e. too big. With lower gearing, you will probably still get your handle bars handed to you but your feet will be moving faster.
Lots of respect, and you've been helpfull to me in the past, but I gotta dissagree. You're not a clyde. For someone big like me on some of the major hills we have out here on the left coast, with out lower gearing I can't help but totally mash my way up some of them. My first, and still current, road bike is a Masi Partenza, 16 speed Aluminum. These come stock compact crank and 11-25 cassette. I got mine from a LBS where it had been traded in with a 52/39 crank. After a couple hundred miles, I took it in and had a megarange 11-34 MTB cassette and deraileir installed. It made a world of difference.
I have lost forty pounds since I got it, almost 6000 miles ago, and have been testing Carbon Bikes. I was looking to get into a 105 groupset with 11-28 cassette, but rode a couple with 11-25 and feel that may work. Decisions, decisions.