Cyclists have a joke about “racing in CAT 6” which is not exactly a race or an official category of cyclists. CAT 6 is a term for commuter cyclists who race to work as a sport.
Also sometimes called “the commuter race” and “hipster racing,” CAT-6 racing is the unspoken urban tradition of trying to go faster than, and not get passed by, a stranger on your bike. A CAT 6 race starts when a stranger riding a bike tries to pass another cyclist and the other cyclist speeds up rather than let them pass. This creates an impromptu race. Sometimes the race is started by gender battles (a girl passing a guy for example), competitiveness, and also just for fun.
I’ll admit, I have started a CAT 6 race before (but didn’t know it had a name.) I often will pass someone on my bike and continue to ride faster so that the biker I passed would stay in my dust.
When I spent a summer in the Headlands near Sausalito, CA, I would ride once a week over to San Francisco, and would cross the Golden Gate bridge. While riding across the bridge I had to avoid the tourists who were walking, and also find your spot within the cyclists. It always felt like a race – a sort of pass or be passed feeling.
Did you pass someone today on your bike, or try to pass someone who passed you first lately? If so – you might be a CAT 6 rider.