Originally Posted by
radroad
You can ride with pretty much anything. My first 'serious' road bike had a 53/42 crankset and a 7 speed 13-23 cassette. Fine for flats and downhills, but I lived in a very hilly area so my lowest gear was 42/23. Except for downhills, I never used the 53 ring. Now my lowest gear is 34/30. But that's not low enough for some riders, so 11 speed 34/32 it is.
The point is, it really won't matter. You'll just ride. Frame geometry and fit are far more important.
totally agree.
usually i ride 6 speed but on occasion and nice weather i will ride my 9 speed. fit, frame geometry, bicycle tuneup, tires, weather, comfy seat are just a few items that are way more important than gears. normally i don't use much more than 3 or 4 gears depending on the wind. i am not opposed to 11 speeds or more, but most of us have no use for such excess.
exception i suppose would be for hilly country or athletes. in the flat lands, excess gears do nothing at all. a good comfy touring seat for me is to be preferred over any 10 or 11 gears. most days 6 gears does fine and quite the over kill at that.