Quote Originally Posted by WindingRoad View Post
You know I'm curious. I did the Hilly this year and I did it on my Bianchi for the first time. It has a triple so I'm thinking no problem I had already done it on the Lemond that is a compact double. So I'm creeping up Mount Tabor and thinking dang this seems just as hard as the freaking Lemond what gives? I made it up (woo hoo!) Tabor and I am waiting for my boyfriend (give him a break he took a nasty spill mountain biking and now has a dislocated finger and is riding nearly one handed). I'm looking at my rear cogs while I'm waiting and I notice its a 9 not a 10. Would that make climbing harder?
The fact that it's a 9-speed cog, rather than a 10-speed cog, in itself won't make climbing harder. By the same token, a triple, rather than a compact, doesn't in itself make climbing easier. The size of the cogs and the chainrings, taken together, is ultimately the determining factor. Keep in mind, too, that Mt. Tabor is just a tough climb. Short of mountain gearing, it's not going to be "easy."

If you want to compare the gearing on both bikes, find out the size of your cogs and chainrings and enter them on Sheldon Brown's gear calculator.