Yeah, I see racism all the time. At the races when blacks would show up they couldn't keep up like ANY beginner and even though everyone was trying to be helpful and supportive they would leave believing that they were somehow inferior.

That was racism pure and simple.

There's an Oakland, CA, club called the Yellowjackets that has a large proportion of black riders that are REALLY good. Some are Cat 2 or even 1 grade riders with natural talents out of proportion to the others in the group. But they avoided racing because it was a white sport. They didn't want to be beaten by whites because their egos were too fragile.

I'm sure that there has been white racism against blacks here and there. After all, people are human. But the vast majority of cases I've seen have been a whole lot more imagined than real. The fact is that I've seen whites a great deal more supportive of blacks than otherwise and that being mistaken for a superior attitude.

And I've heard racers saying that they missed those same blacks on the training rides or in the races. Maybe that's a form of racism as well, but the only way to integrate and gain another's trust is to force yourself sometimes.