How can I race cat 3/4?

[cyclhist]

@PusherMan

The Barrier into a bike race is too big.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again. Every single person on that start line has paid money to punch you in the face. Some of them will punch you more than once. Whilst I’ve never been in a race where people actually want a competitor to suffer injury, no one is there to be your friend.

I think this is true at the start line. But I have always felt like the collective risk that you get into with total strangers often makes for an incredibly friendly atmosphere after races. You can arrive at a crit in a new town a complete stranger, and things can get vicious during the race, but after the race? It’s the closest I’ll ever come to going to church—as someone pointed out to me recently not entirely without condescension.