Two minutes after leaving the start line of the Big Sugar Classic, I was riding towards a line of cars at 25 mph. The riders in front of me were hopping curbs in order to avoid the vehicles, with one rider nearly sliding out on the rain-slick asphalt. We were turning left onto the highway, across four lanes of traffic and towards more oncoming cars. This was supposedly the “neutral zone" of the race, but already we were racing for our lives.
In the confusion, the left side of the peloton had slipped past the pace car, and suddenly, riders were sprinting off the front of the field. In any other race, they’d be disqualified: they’d cut the course, nearly ridden into oncoming traffic, passed the lead vehicle, and launched attacks in the so-called neutral zone.
But no penalties came, so the race went on. Moments later, a race moto drifted off the back of the lead vehicle and into the peloton. Riders hesitated, unsure whether they were overtaking an official race vehicle or just trying to stay upright. By the time the moto lurched forward again, we were already barreling toward a roundabout.
