I'm not sure I am, or ever will be fast enough to truly care about how predictably a bike handles. And it's not like we have hills around here, so descents aren't an issue. 10 years ago...I might have contemplated the idea of racing crits...but if I'm being honest, the prospect of cracking my head open in a pileup is too much of a deterrence now that I've got a 3 yr old.

I still really don't know what I want

I think I'm leaning towards race geometry...but even that I'm not settled on. Room for 28mm tires on wide-ish rims is a must. I'm leaning towards an aero frame...but I really need to spend more time on bikes to see if a comfort difference is going to bother me. Rim brake vs disc is not really a concern. And I will probably agonize over aluminum vs carbon up to, and years after, I buy the bike lol.