Early Bird Crit, Revisited

Last year after my horrible crash, when I was still unable to get out of bed without crying tears of pain, I was faced with the decision of whether I would get a kit (jersey + bike shorts) for the bike race team I had joined.  "Why in the world would I even consider this?"  The final diagnosis had been fractures in my left clavicle, 9 posterior ribs (if I add up all the fractures reported on the Xrays) and L2 transverse process, pleural effusion, severe bruising and road rash.  I have never gone through anything else even remotely as painful, physically, as that experience.  But, I decided that it was not a good time to make the decision to quit.  I would order the kit.As the months passed, I thought a lot about what I would do with bike racing.  I debated, "D...