I'm in SD and want to go but is that all there is; where is the beer sponsor?

I ran into this confusion when I decided to buy a new mountain bike last month. It really is a lot to sort through and even when you have got a grip on things the choices are endless. I ended up with a Nomad and I'll say that Santa Cruz's V10 wins did play a factor in my choice. I do like to know the details though so I can better understand my bike. I feel like understanding the shocks on your own personal bike is a riding requirement like air in the tires. I want to be able to fix everything on my bike myself at some point too and I can't do that if I'm relying on my LBS for all bike fixes.