The thing that I've learned about trackstands is that it should not be work. The harder you try, the harder it becomes. I've managed to find the sweet spot, and I can trackstand indefinitely (okay maybe not, but at least the length of a long red light).

But zoning out motor vehicles at an intersection is still eluding me. I get paranoid about the car in front of me (afraid I'll touch the bumper), about the car behind me (the driver might not realize I may need to roll backwards to maintain the trackstand), and about the cars to my side(s) (no escape route in case I have to pedal to avoid falling over).

Unclipping before stopping has been my fallback, but it sort of defeats the purpose of the trackstand. If you unclip and trackstand, then you're really just showing off, not doing it for any practical purpose. I'm not an exhibitionist, so it goes against my nature to do something purely for show.

Anyway, I just got back from an LBS that does conversions, and brought home my high school bike (80s vintage Bianchi road bike) converted to fixed. For liability reasons, they would not remove the handbrakes. I just now removed the handbrakes and stripped the handlebars of its tape and brakehoods, took it for a spin around the block. Oh so sweet.