I've been riding bikes non-stop since I was 5 y.o., so 37 years. Not a current BD owner, but I've been on the edge of pulling the trigger on the Corvus Steel (Tiagra 9sp shifters, olde 105 RD, Reynolds 520 frame, carbon fiber fork for $749) all summer. While I like the parts mix a little better on the AL and considering I won't roll either the steel or the AL frame for all that long, I'm tending towards the AL now, but I'm still curious to compare a really cheap Reynolds bike against my aged Pinarello. There's even a good chance I'd take everything but the wheels, crank, bb, hs, bar, stem and fork and slap it all on the Pinarello at some point.

If I got the Corvus Steel, I'd likely ride that frame longer, compare and contrast against the Pinarello. If I got the AL, I'd either put all the bits on the Pinarello right away, or seriously scour CL from Sacto to Bellingham for a nice Italian frame to put most of the bits on. (edit: or who knows? maybe fall in love with the Corvus AL frame... I doubt it, though the only Al frame I've fallen in love with was a way-out-of-my-price-range Cannondale, can't remember what it was CAAD something or other, a couple years ago. Way back when I got my first serious road bike I tested a Cannondale and a Trek 1000, both of those sucked! The Cannondale a little less, though, cuz both were harsh as hell on chipseal, but the Trek 1000 was harsh on the chipseal AND a little flexy in the BB department. That was in the late 80s.)

As to the pros riding BD bikes, if BD sponsored a race team or spent more on more conventional advertising, then they'd cost as much as Treks, bro!

EDIT: Now I'm jealous of ijen for living near a BD B&M location. I wasn't aware that those even existed.