I appreciate and welcome all comments, positive or otherwise. From now on though, I'm going to focus mainly on posting reports about the bike, answering questions, and offering encouragement to my fellow Chinese bike of doom riders. I'm not irritated in the least, but I feel as though if I start countering every debate in this thread against the bike then I will likely begin repeating myself, and it will get away from the original point of this thread which is to see how well the bike holds up long term and what my impressions are of it. But here are a few final thoughts I have on the matter.

Some people aren't comfortable with buying used for a variety of reasons. I, personally, was okay with it, but through an interesting circumstance I ended up with a new Denali. Some buy the bike without fully researching the facts, but regardless...a lot of people have ended up with this bike and they are perfectly happy with it. What I'm trying to show with this thread is that it's perfectly okay, and there's no reason why you can't use this bike to the best of your abilities.

And in the same sense, if a used bike with good components is such a great thing (not saying it's not) then why would anyone ever buy a new bike, with the same components for hundreds and hundreds more? The logic can be used in that way as well. There is something appealing about having a shiny new bike.

I know that my upgrades will be construed to mean a variety of things, but they are just that...upgrades. None of my friends who have bought Denalis after mine (yup, plural now) have done any of my modifications and are perfectly satisfied with their bikes. I even had a chance to ride a couple of them myself and find them to be fully functional with no problems, same as mine. Problem with me is I can never leave well enough alone. If I can make it better, I will...but none of what I've done has to be considered as necessary with the possible exception of the brake pads which I would consider to be a good idea for safety. And with that in mind I will continue to make it better when I can...but again, not because it's broken but because I find enjoyment in making things better.

Recently I had the opportunity to ride what would be considered a 'decent' road bike. It was a modern Trek of some sort, with Ultegra components and STI shifters. It was a nice bike, don't get me wrong...but there wasn't some heavenly parting of the clouds or revelation when I pedaled off on it.

As the Denali is, it's an incredibly smooth and pleasant ride for the price. Everything feels fluid and tightly put together when I ride it. My criteria is this: Can the Denali hang on long group rides? Can it hold together for a decent amount of mileage? And, is it a fun ride? The answer to all three of these so far for me is yes.

Remember that I'm not making these observations without basis. I ride alongside the LBS bikes several days each week, and I've ridden on one. Not only that but I'm a novice rider. I ride on the moderate (other categories easy, fast (race pace)) group rides which is applicable to most riders who commute and ride for fun. My bike makes no more noise or has any more problems (well, none of us have problems) than theirs. The Denali and I have no trouble keeping up and lately finishing the ride near the front or, in the case of yesterday, AT the front. Point being, it IS good enough for the average rider who is looking for a budget ride.

If any of these should change, I'll freely admit it. But as of right now, I see absolutely no justifiable reason to dismiss the bike completely as a cheap Chinese paperweight. It's an extremely pleasant ride and just doesn't seem to have problems. With the exception of checking things for reports (like the internal pedal bearings for example) I haven't had to touch anything on the bike in 200 miles.

Which brings me to this week's end of week report, which I think I've been doing on Fridays. I can't give a report on the wheel bearings because the tools haven't arrived yet, but they are supposed to arrive at the bike shop on Monday. But the bike is at 282 miles and some change with yet again, zero problems to report. I should easily have over 300 miles by the end of the weekend.

Tomorrow is another lengthy group ride, but this time I have two spare tubes, although I can only carry along one until my extra bag gets here. But regardless, even if I should manage another flat I should be able to finish.

Other than that everything still feels solid. No rattles, creaks, pops, wobbles, or anything else to report. Only noise the bike makes is the hum of the tires, and of course all my wheezing when I'm really cranking hard.
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