Just out of curiosity after reading this entire thread, I went by the nearby WalMart supercenter to see if they had one in stock that I could look at. Most of the bikes on the rack in the store were MTBs. No sign of a Denali, and I didn't want to ask since I probably wasn't going to buy.

But this is proof that there are decent bikes out there for the rest of us. I've only had one LBS bike. It's my Schwinn that I've had for 18 years. It's great, but getting something like that now would break the $700 mark. Even if I had that kind of money, I'm a cheap bas***d and wouldn't part with it unless someone could convince me that the value was there. The LBS could make sure the bike was fitted, but I've been around them long enough that I feel like I can do that too. I know how to adjust the brakes and shifters as well. Some people would rather not be bothered with that, but I see it as a chance to learn a bit about what it takes to keep the bike on the road by myself.

They're available on amazon, but limited to 57cm in blue and 48cm in gold. I'd rather have the blue one in the next size up.

All this talk about thrift store bikes has me jealous. I might finish out the afternoon with some thrift store shopping, but don't ever recall seeing anything like that in the local stores. Out craigslist is pretty slim pickings as well.

-Bill