Kona Ute

[BleeckerSt_Girl]

Good heavens, LisaSH....that Kona has a 26:32 low gear (~22 gear inches). What on earth is YOUR low gear on your Ramboullet that makes it easier to get up your hill vs. this (or are you just remarking on the weight of the bike)???

Well, I'll try to explain.
The reason I am not currently able to use this Kona to haul 30 pounds of groceries up my hill and home:
My rambouillet has a 24:34 low gear (19 gear inches) which I need to climb my home hill (and some other big hills around here) with. It is quite hilly where we live, and we were able to outfit my Ramb with the gears that enable me to ride through this beautiful countryside alongside my husband. We love to ride together. I regularly attempt to get up this particular hill in my next-to-lowest gear (which would be a gear fairly similar to the lowest Kona gear), and I have not been able to as yet.
I'm 53 and until 2 years ago never exercised a day in my life. I have ridden 3300 miles so far this year, and I see myself slowly getting stronger each month. I am confident that within another year or two of steady riding and hills I will be able to get up that hill and others just like it without resorting to my lowest gear...but I'm not there just yet. I use my lowest gear on a daily basis, -but never when I don't feel I really need it to make a climb. There are some big hills that I do indeed climb using a higher gear than I did a few months ago...but not that hill yet.
If you threw 30 pounds of cargo on my Rambouillet I doubt I could make it up my hill at all at this point in time, and that's in a lower gear than the Kona has. I'd go from a 2.5 mph climb to going backwards. I'm working as hard as I can, Regina!