Originally Posted by
Campag4life
Exactly, I believe Merlin who is an active member here is a CAT3 and rides a compact. The rest of us don't need taller gearing. Some in fact need wider gearing if living in the mountains...a triple is a pretty good thing....granny to get up and larger ring to descend.
Thanks to Colorado for his excellent post. Great perspective.
Let's not say that no one needs a 53-39 or that it's too tall for anyone slower than a Cat3 racer. Personally I can get by with just a single 44 gear in front, but I like having a 53 better.
Standard road double 53-39 is fine for average riders, and people do complain about drawbacks of compact gearing. Mainly the extra shifting between rings they find themselves doing.