First, let me say I'm new to the world of cycling beyond $100 mountain bikes. This is my second 'real bike' -- moving from a Specialized Sirrus I got in the spring.
Ordering from bikesdirect was totally smooth. I had my paypal setup incorrectly when my order went through, but they responded promptly enough to fix the issue with no delay. Ordered on Monday, it arrived on Friday. Took it to the LBS to have it set up properly, and bought some alloy ATB pedals to go on it. The saddle had to go as well -- switched it for the one from my Sirrus.
VERY impressed with this bike! The carbon fork gives a noticeably smoother ride than my aluminum fork Sirrus. Zooming around some rough and hard frozen dirt trails was surprisingly unjarring. The disc brakes were what really 'sold' me on this bike, and they delivered. The shop set the pads too close, as the rotors were rubbing slightly, but I managed to adjust them without much hassle. Stopping power seemed more than enough, and surprisingly good modulation - not too grabby, but easy to lock up the rear when desired. After riding in some freezing rain for an hour or so, I was still stopping on a dime.
In the future I may add wider handlebars for better control in rough terrain. What is typical for wider-barred cyclocross bikes? Also, can both sets of wires run under the wrap while using in-line levers? Would I have to buy new shifters for that? It would be nice to get it 'cleaner' up front.