Originally Posted by qmsdc15

Interestingly, oldpedalpusher with his "corn cob" freewheel doesn't have the top end that you have despite your big cogset and extremely wide range of gears. His compact triple still allows a wide range of gears. He has given up a little top end and doesn't have a super low granny, but he has lots of gears in the range he needs and the very closely spaced gears he likes.

Both well reasoned gearing choices, but quite different, which illustrates how gearing can be tailored to meet a rider's needs and preferences.