Welcome to our first review !

We have endemic this bike, the GMC Denali 700c, 21 speed road bike, since new 2 months ago.

Information technology's tenure with united states has only added to luster to our initial admiration.

It's a keeper, for sure.

The kind of buy that makes y'all feel guilty, like you paid mode too little, for how much performance & enjoyment it offers.

Yes, information technology has a few flaws.  But nothing that is not easily addressed.

We've done a few central improvements.  Nosotros'll cover them in a infinitesimal.

First, for the uninitiated, this is "the road wheel" that is sold thru Walmart stores.

In fact, the Denali 700c, 54cm / 22″ road wheel, is  the sole road bicycle Walmart stocks.

This GMC Denali is also sold on Amazon.com.

It'south non surprising then, that this bike is a very decent offering that gives more excellence for less dollars.

When ane considers information technology's stocked in over v,000 Walmarts throughout Northward America, backed by their atomic number 26-clad 'no questions asked return policy'.  Amazon.com too sells it with a 'no questions asked render policy'.

If every Walmart sells just 2 per month (information technology's probably that minimally or more), that likely makes it the best selling 'road wheel' in the US.

Due to the it's understated excellence and ubiquity, I'm going to nominate the GMC Denali for the title the 'New Schwinn Varsity' honor.

[Those who are my age (late 40's) may chuckle at this designation; when we were kids the venerable Schwinn Varsity was the 'standard upshot 10 speed' – there were cheaper offerings, but the Schwinn was kinda deluxe, and $ 25 more than the cheaper ones: a total 10 speeds, prissy warranty, built like a tank – must weighed 37 lbs, but was near unbreakable !]

Now, riding feel & functioning wise, the GMC Denali is light years beyond the Schwinn Varsity, which felt ponderous, if reassuringly sturdy. (Non surpising given the manufacturing advances in crafting wheel frames from advanced aluminum alloys & favorable frame geometry, etc)

The Denali features a modern, aerotube Aluminum Blend frame – the ride it gives is responsive & handling is very quick, due to the robust & meaty seat & chain stays.

Yes, the Denali weighs 29 lbs, but to me, it feels lighter than my "Old School" Benotto – circa 1987 – Italian Road Bike (which weighs 25 lbs), proabably due to the Benotto's frame beingness steel & it's more flexible, longer, thinner tube geometry.

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"Sometime School" lite steel framed Benotto Model 850 shows contrast in frame building materials & tube sizing versus the newer aero aluminum tubing which characterizes the Denali frame. Both are valid ways to build a frame but provide a very different ride 'feel'.

The Denali features Vitesse Lite aero rims, which are very stout and precise, if a bit heavy.  Their hubs appear to be heavy duty, a bit like MTB hubs (to be fair, though, no larger than the Shimano 2200 hubs on my Benotto's upgraded wheelset….).

With the very crude pavement & potholes we seem have in abundance here in Due north East Texas, and the resultant punishment they give to the rolling stock, information technology's a expert matter to have accept strength in the wheelset, even at the cost of weight

The gearing is very wide range, with 3 front chainrings & 7 cogs in the rear, making this machine ideal for those who need gearing for both large hills & flat terrain.

One of the Denali'southward almost notables feature is the utilization of a MTB type gear shifter system, the Shimano RevoShift, which although they announced out of place on a route bicycle, operate very precisely & accurately.

A readout window is provided to show which chainring is engaged

(In fact, this organisation provides more shift accurateness than the Shimano Sora type integrated brake / shifter levers on my Benotto).

To me, course follows function, things wait better when they work well, and and so this RevoShift, which seemed out of place at first, is at present a much more welcome feature.

One item of note: to let installation of this shift arrangement, a 2 slice handlebar system was designed.  When installed correctly, it's impossible for the two halves to come autonomously – so condom is not a worry.

Nonetheless, getting the two halves aligned may not have been done by the assembly person, so exercise cheque to make certain they're aligned.  If not, merely loosen the stem attachment, realign the bars & retighten the thru bolt that fixes them in relation to each other.

The seat is pretty much 'standard upshot'.  If yous're 18 years or younger, or riding less than 10 miles at a time, it's perfectly fine.  If yous go further – (nosotros've gone 40 miles at one time, and go 20+ miles twice a week on this bike), y'all'll desire to upgrade to something better.

Now, there is a downside to the RevoShift system, and that is, it takes up the space on the handlebars normally devoted to accessories like a cycling computer & headlight.

Information technology'south the only truthful negative I've constitute, and ane that the bike'southward other strengths make me willing to live with.

(One potential solution; upgrade to the Shimano STI integrated shift / brake lever arrangement, merely that costs about $ 160 – MicroSHIFT sells a like organization for $ 120.  Another, much more budget friendly selection would be to use Shimano's basic, yet functional A050 handlebar / paddle shifters.  Their advantage of this Shimano A050 Paddle Shifters is they tin be moved outwards some distance, assuasive room on the inboard side, next to the stem, for your accessories.  These shifters are sold on Amazon for just $ 15 for the pair, quite the bargain.)

In that location are two or 3 other areas of easy improvment – the Denali isn't lone in these deficient aspects – that is the pedals & the tires.

The standard cage pedals are OK, but wholly unsuitable for serious route rides.

Mandatory, in my view, are standard toe clip pedals, for utilise with street shoes, or obviously, the more avant-garde matched cycling shoe / clip pedal combination.

We opted for the former option, due to it's flexibility.  It allows almost street / athletic shoes to be used, and is just $ 25 – for the pedals, plastic toe clip & strap.  We bought Bontrager Standard Aluminum pedals with clip & strap at the LBS.

[FYI: We may before long effort the very budget friendly deal – on cycling shoes & compatible pedals, $ 70 for the whole shebang, here: http://world wide web.RoadBikeOutlet.com]

The tires on the Denali are much more than of a hybrid tire, and at 32c, simply too wide & heavy for serious road work.

If you'll simply ride the Denali on your street or at the campground, they'll be ok.

We rode the Denali for the first half-dozen weeks with these 32c beasts.  In fact, my 16 year former son beat me like a pulsate riding on them, at the 25 mile "Pineywoods Purgatory", while I rode my lighter, more serious Italian Benotto Racing bike.

(So much for equipment being the determining factor in who finishes outset !)

Anyhow, nosotros upgraded these to the Kenda Kwest in 700x28c, a much lighter tire with generous pelting groves, and a much smoother rolling profile.

This one change cut 1.5 lbs from the weight, alone !

This is probably the single biggest performance increase that can be made for minimal $$ outlay.  We could accept even gone with the adjacent size down, to 25c tires for even more weight savings.

Now, the Denali with these elementary improvements (toe clip pedals & lighter, road type tires) is riding on a par with our Benotto 'Old School' Italian Road bike.

Consider for a moment, that Benotto road bicycle cost $ 700 back in 1987 (adjusted for aggrandizement, maybe equivalent to $ 1800 today)…..wow, and a $ 159 Walmart / Amazon route bike performs nigh besides !

True, it may weigh about 3 lbs more than than the Benotto, but information technology sure doesn't feel like it to my senses.

The but fourth dimension the actress weight has a negative effect is on serious colina climbs, but for now we live with that.

As a friend is fond of saying, you can cut down and loose 5-10 lbs off of yourself a lot easier than you can afford to pay to shave that weight off your bicycle.

Oh, how very truthful !

The simple, final improvement:  remove the cheesy GMC sticker from the frame….which vastly improves the looks of the otherwise attractive paint job.

(Allow GMC go their own advertizement….non using this bike….)

To remove, simply rut with a hair dryer & peel carefully – nosotros had to cutting carefully at one point.

Issue: A much, much cleaner look – in fact, now the bike is easy to mistake for a much more custom make !

And so, to recap & summarize:

The main factors that helped us decide to buy the Denali were:

– Great reviews on Walmart & Amazon – 4.3 / 5 stars, many positive reviews

– Walmart iron-clad 90 solar day return policy, if not fully satisfied.

– Our need for a low investment, sturdy entry level route bike to match my childrens' uncertain, and unpredictable futurity interest in road biking.

– Availability of various sizes – (somewhat unexpected at this price point), Walmart offers small, medium/large & actress large frames.

They even list a child'southward model with 24″ wheels, and a ladies frame roadie !

Merely the standard large size – 54 cm / 22″ is stocked in store, which fits nigh riders 5'7″ to 6′ –  the other sizes are available at Walmart.com

I, myself, bought the Benotto Modelo 850 I've referred to, in about 1987  for $ 700 – (and then considered expensive) – and then was guilty of  letting information technology sit for 23 years, gathering rust & dust, before it's recent restoration.

Having that self-inflicted fail in mind, I decided it was much wiser to invest modestly into a beginner bike – hence this GMC Denali, then upgrade if his interest continues to build.

He's showing great promise, by the fashion, keeping upward on the Denali with guys riding Carbon Fiber $ 3,000 bikes, while powering a bike weighing (possibly) twice what theirs do.

We're wondering what his performance will be like when nosotros finally put him on sub 20 lbs bike !

And, Lord willing, when / if that happens, he has 4 sisters waiting to take over the Denali, to come across if they like route biking, too….

In the meantime, he couldn't have a better, more than reliable, simplier route
bike than this GMC Denali, at a more reasonable investment.

Fix for a long ride....

Connor attempting to prove aluminum plus youthful energy is more than a match for one-time age & carbon fiber !

Please ask any questions relating to this review in the comments section….thanks for reading !