Originally Posted by bccycleguy
The issue is cadence when you are climbing. Spin at 80 - 90 rpm on the climbs and you move more of the exercise load to your cardiovascular system rather than just your leg muscles. If you're fit, it is much easier on your legs and you'll make big gains on everybody when you crest the hill.
When I'm on a big climb using my 30T granny and 28T cog I'm still climbing at ~10 km/hr (6.2 mph). I'd like to see you push your bike up a 1 mile 10 % hill that fast.
I'm with this guy. I have a triple, although I've gotten to the point where I never use the small ring.
Until this past Saturday, when I was doing a climb of about 2400 feet in 7 miles, with the last 1400 feet in about 3.5 miles. I was pushing it in my 42-26, when I realized how stupid and pointless that was. Because I had that third ring on there, I was able to shift down to the 30-26, keep a cadence of 70 rpm, and spin up the hill at a pleasant 6.5 miles per hour.
I'm sure I could have stayed in the 42, but then I would be pushing at about 50 rpm, and the ride would have been far less enjoyable.
So IMHO, this is the bottom line: The third ring increases your chances of having an enjoyable ride while having essentially no drawbacks (other than image).