Originally Posted by invisiblehand

Yep ... I'd call it a MTB cassette. An 11-28 ... raising the bottom end by about 10% ... should take care of the problem if you don't need such a low bottom. (this is a NWT ... right?) 30t chainring to a 28 rear will be something very close to 20 gear inches.

If you're using it for touring and aren't looking for say a narrower crank -- lower q-factor -- my take is that you get very little from going to a double. There is still lots of 9-speed stuff around. It's cheap and durable.

Good luck!