110 KG rider Triple or Double chainset

Have sent you a message also Simon

Interesting discussion as getting towards making a similar decision. Thanks for posting the outcome.

Not surprised at all about the service at Dave Mellors, my LBS too

I am also 110kg and I live in hilly snowdonia apart from my marin mtb my other bike is a cannondale caad 8 alu bike with a 9 speed ultegra triple chainset and a 12-27 cassette and I have been thankfull for the granny gear on several occasions when the road ramps up - as with everything the more you do the better and stronger you get - and I have found that I can handle most hills without resorting to the inner ring but it is reassuring to know its there and get a bike fit so that you are comfortable and diallied in and very soon you'll be 100kg ??

The compact vs triple debate doesn't have a definitive answer. Have a look at a previous discussion - http://road.cc/content/forum/59546-compact-or-triple

I like the triple on my road bike, I find the 39t middle ring means on rolling terrain I don't have to swap chainrings or cross-chaining like those with compacts have to.

Good luck with your shopping, you're truly spoilt for choice at this price point. I suggest you also look at the bike reviews here on road.cc and http://road.cc/buyers-guide

I keep hearing good things about the SRAM Apex groupset as an alternative to a triple, and I'm toying with getting it on my next bike. Anyone got any experience of it?

As Shades suggests above, where you live could well be important in whether the lower gearing of a triple would be worthwhile, but I suspect a compact, particularly with a 12-30 cassette, will see you right in most parts of this country.

As something of a compromise, if you're not in a massive hurry to buy then bikes will soon start to appear with Shimano's new 11-speed 105 groupset (105 is the prevalent groupset at the thousand pound price point). I believe these will have an 11-32 cassette, so a lower gear still. Might be worth thinking about.

I investigated the whole compact/triple 'business' when I bought a road bike and boy were there some megabytes of data on it. Opted for a compact in the end but where I live is pretty hilly so I'm occasionally out of the saddle. I was recently in the Vosges and Swiss Alps and triples were EVERYWHERE! Granted it's a bit more 'hilly' but they were being ridden by 'wiry' locals who looked like they spent most of their spare time riding bikes. I remember a Dutch couple burning past me on a Cat 1 climb; I was in my lowest gear and they still had a few more to play with. I went into a local bike shop and was admiring a row of Orbea bikes (incl carbon); all fitted with triples and not a compact in sight. A friend of mine who has done the Etape and Marmotte said that he'd wished he'd had a triple on the final climbs. Not sure it matters what you're riding but nothing beats overtaking someone on a hill riding a more expensive bike than yours.

It's all down to you in the end. I did the Cingles at 103kg, with 34-28 as my lowest gear, which was OK. I never felt that I needed a smaller gear.
OTOH, when I'm touring with panniers and tents...that triple is a godsend.
Good luck and ride lots, whatever you go with.

I started on a scott speedster bought second hand with a tripple I still use it today for commuting but it really is uncomfortable even on short rides it honestly beats the crap out of you.
I started riding when i was about 90kg and am now down to 84kg (i'm 35). The front end is pretty low and the saddle that came with it was terrible I've just bought a new saddle (same as on my other bike) to see if this will improve it. The scott made me decide what i didn't want in a bike. I then bought a Felt Z series (many other manufacturers have similar geometry of varying price) over the more racy F series straight away i could spend far more time in the saddle and be much faster i've done 2500 miles on it in less than a year my average speed over my local test route has improved by 2mph. So to conclude try before you buy!

To answer you question about gears personally i don't see any advantages of a triple. My felt came with a compact and 11-30 rear cassette you can get up anything with that. Today I run a 11-25 but it's pretty flat where i live I only change it when i have a really hilly sportive takes less than 5 minutes to do.

Mathematically, the gear ratio makes a bigger difference than the weight.

Total weight goes from 125kg to 120kg, or 4% lighter.
Low gear goes from 28/28 to 34/30, or 13% harder.

So, if you regularly use that 28/28 gear, yes you will sweat a little on 34/30. But if you keep riding you should both lose weight and get stronger legs...