I have both a triple (52-42-30 x 12-28) and a compact (50-34 x 11-32). There are lots of hills around here, and several are 10% or more, so steep gearing helps me (50 years old, 195 lbs.) I like them both. They have similar ranges but different personalities. On the triple, it's often nice to make one shift from the big to middle ring at a stop light and then back to the big once moving. For the compact, of course, I have to do several shifts of the RD, but usually not the FD. I don't really notice a big difference climbing, even with the slightly tighter spacing on the triple. I do notice the 23 mph hole in the compact. No once really notices whether either bike is a triple, compact, whatever, so that's a non-issue for me. I think both are decent options.