Originally Posted by
MrBearSir
Bike I don't care about? Are crashes really that common?
Crashes happen at every level of bike racing, but most of the time they're not too serious (of course, sometimes they are serious...and that's unfortunate). Look, the best thing you can do is work on your bike handling skills, protect your front wheel, and stay away from sketchy riders.
I don't know what your cycling experience is, but you should be more concerned about pack riding skills and bike handling then fitness--nobody will care if you go off the back because you're not fast enough, but they'll be p1ssed if you make them crash.