I'm also in Southern California (San Diego) and I don't recall ever seeing one. Seems like most of the roadies are on Specialized and Santa Cruz is really popular on the trails.


Even the mainstream direct-to-consumer bikes are rare. I've only seen a handful of Canyons even though their North American headquarters is down here.

I have been on open mold frames exclusively for about 6 yrs now.  My fat bike, MTB, road and gravel all are open mold.  I have only come across a few other riders on them.  they are more popular in the fat bike world but still not common.  I do agree that it is crazy how much people spend on bikes just to have that name brand.  I run exclusively shimano drivetrains just because when I started, sense didn't exist and I had to pick one for continuity of repair parts and processes.  the ability to have a top spec drivetrain on an open mold frame gives me a riding experience on par or above most riders at a fraction of the cost.  I would rather have multiple bikes tailored for a specific riding type then one uber expensive bike that I have to use for everything.  I probably spend the same amount of $$ on bikes but I have a whole fleet.

Any budget threshold that you don't want to cross? It's a hard thing to do (at least I couldn't do lol) but I'll be curious if you have set a limit.

HA!  My main riding buddy has the top of the line $7k Look 765RS gravel bike.   He's an automotive mechanic by trade but can't figure out how to properly take care of his chain, despite my offers to do it/show him how.  We will be on a ride and I'll say something to the affect of "Do you wear your ear bud in the right ear because because your chain sounds like a couple of Transformers trying to screw or is it just a coincidence?"

The right chain length and a B-screw well set, are to me what generally makes a smooth shifting, even on an MTB.