You are not the first with these observations and you will not be the last. However, the reality is you are not expected to push the 48/11 except on downhills. The 48/13 with a tailwind ... ... still have plenty more combinations to spin out. 1:1 (28/28) is your defacto low gear. Anything lower is bonus. 28/32 or 34 serves me well for a commuting granny. Get stronger? Seriously though, I usually fit a 24T granny to 52/42/30 road triples. 48/38/28 commuter triples I usually leave alone. First, they may be riveted, second, its not worth the trouble. More and more cassettes are turning up with 36 and even 40 big cogs. That's something innit?