Originally Posted by Yan

Back in the day I had a 46-36-24 triple with a 11-34 cassette. Later I got rid of the triple and changed to a 36-22 double with a 10-42 cassette. On the bike I built this year I went with a 36t 1X with a 11-50 cassette.

If you compare the low end gear inches, my progression went from 19.2 in the triple, to 14.2 in the double, to 19.6 in the 1X. Anything under 20 gear inches is generally considered adequate for touring. Some people prefer a little lower but that 14.2 I have with the double is just ludicrous. The 19.6 gear inches is almost the same as what I had on the old school triple setup. I'm happy with it.

Then on the high end I prefer to look at MPH speed at 100 leg RPM. Here the progression was 33.8 mph with the triple, 29.1 mph with the double, and 26.5 mph with the 1X. On a loaded touring bike, even when I have a strong tailwind, my speed maxes out at about 20 mph. Other people might have stronger legs but this is me. If I am going faster than 20 mph, it means I have a downhill. If I have a downhill, it means I'm coasting. Therefore, on a touring bike I have no use for a 26.5 mph top gear, let alone anything faster. Again, that's me, someone else might have an impatient personality and feel the need to pedal on even steep hills.

In summary: I think there is a place for 1X. I think there is also a place for 2X if you require an extremely low climbing gear. I think there is pretty much no place for 3X in 2022 on touring bikes. Touring bikes don't get ridden at very fast speeds so that large chainring in a triple is excessive. A 36 or 38 chainring on a double is more than fast enough, especially if you use a cassette with a 10t small cog.

You say you use that 44-11 combination a fair amount, so clearly our riding styles are simply different.