Ran Into a Guy I Know...

...at a graduation party. I've ridden with this guy on a few TCBC rides a few years ago, and have seen him at a few races, although he looked more like a spectator. I mentioned that I saw him at Opus a few weeks ago. He said he was there, but wasn't racing. He had been mostly riding the "Gears, Tears, & Fears" TCBC rides- said Opus was too sketchy, too many crashes. I've ridden plenty of GTF rides. Enough to know what testosterone-laden hammerfests they can be. The goal apparently is to drop as many riders as possible, to never regroup, and to ride as dangerously as possible, blowing red lights, etc. to catch up. They wouldn't lose one once of conditioning if they waited a few seconds after each hill, but that just wouldn't quite fit the agenda. The ride is ironically scheduled opposite the Tuesday night crits, so you can't ride both. I had talked to another riding friend earlier who still rides GTF. I encouraged him to show up at Opus. He said he might, but he was worried about crashing. The light bulb went on: it is the "race" of the week... for those who don't race. No wonder I never fit in.