Hi Josh: I am not even close to being an expert but I would think that if you are very close to the deraileur cage reaching the top ring you might want to adjust the chain line from the rear hub by spacing the back of the freewheel slightly. Making sure of course that your rear deraileur then does not land up with the same problem. Campy does a pretty good job in their catalogs suggesting the span that is available in case you happen to have a Campy rear derailler. Plus my experience has been that if you have a campy rear Nuovo Record that they are very forgiving in that reach to the point where you can just about adjust anything into them. If you already checked that out I would have to give the problem more thought. The best idea of course is like you said....ride more. I crank my ass up a steep hill with an original crankset on my ole Frejus that is 54/49 (I think I gave up counting) every day in the summer...49 teeth is not exactly a granny gear. I am not trying to brag I am just saying that it works...riding more. You having one of the sweetest bikes ever built would make riding more even more fun...seeya. Good luck
Jim Abt
Wausau, Wi. USA