Yeah, I noticed that secure boot was going to be an issue with CachyOS on first go, as I am used to this workflow of installing a new distro...I had already done so. Still, the installer is a boss battle and that is not the normal experience for most first time users. It often is a much smoother process with something like openSUSE, Debian, Ubuntu, Mint, or even Fedora. Windows doesn't like playing with other OS because it expects to be the only one there. Hates house guests so much that it can interfere unexpectedly with Linux distros.

Starting with CachyOS if you are new to Linux is a gut punch to be sure. However, it gives you initiative to get up to speed ASAP because Arch is peculiar to deal with (even in a tamed form like CachyOS as it still has bite). As Arch-based distros expect more from you than a standard Debian, Mint, or even Ubuntu. It's good that you are attempting to get up to speed with at least the basics of dealing with a Linux system, as that knowledge can get you pretty far with a bit of application. Even though I used Linux for years, I haven't gone too profoundly deep within the reeds.