Originally Posted by
rpenmanparker
Except when there are no hills. Yes Virginia, there is a Flatland.
Yes, that's sad. Fortunately for the OP, he doesn't live there.
A rather simple change for the OP's gearing would be to use a 26T granny ring. That, combined with a 27T large cog might be a good setup for the OP. Lower gearing/higher cadence makes some people faster because higher cadence can result in higher power. That's more common among the more talented/experienced riders. Be that as it may, a higher climbing cadence imparts increased endurance. That's the main effect. It may not be noticeable on one 15 minute hill, but it certainly is on long or multiple climbs. For me, a 78 cadence is the lower limit for climbing strong all day.