I am glad to hear that others have had to walk up hills cause I always feel like a loser when I do. Now I feel better about it and will proudly walk up my next hill with pride Living here is San Diego, I can not go 1 block without climbing a hill. I have always had triple chain rings, but found that in my lowest gear I was working hard to pedal fast, but going nowhere . My new bike has a compact double and I am still learning the shifting method. I just hope I do not have to climb a big steep hill to find that I need more gears. Practice makes perfect.