That Denali is precisely the bike I had in mind. It's got drop bars with twist shifters, which require a non-standard handlebar. The rear derailleur uses a claw mount. The brake mounting system is dated at best. The rear dropout spacing doesn't follow the road standard.

None of these things is insurmountable, but the things you "learn" with a bike like this aren't necessarily the things you'd need to know with another bike.