Originally Posted by DrPete
Because really--if it were all about training "at the highest level possible," wouldn't you want to practice sprinting to cover breaks, reacting to obstacles, etc.?
Because in a paceline, all you should be practicing is the paceline. It is it's own thing. You don't want to sprint. Should you be able to cover gaps? Of course. But that's not the point of a paceline.
Obviously anything can happen in a race. So that's why you do intervals and sprint training, hill repeats, and long hammerfest rides that are or include paceline drills. That's why there are different types of training rides that cover different things.
As someone who is very new to riding in a paceline, I have been yelled at more than once. I appreciate it, and I know it isn't personal. I also get, "good job" or "that's it" when I correct my mistake and do it right. The compliments aren't personal either. They're reinforcement. The point is to learn. The best reinforcement is when I feel and know that I'm doing it right and I don't get talked to at all.
And if a huge rotating group passed me at 30mph, the last thing I would do (even if I could) is jump on and jump in the line. Who the heck thinks that's a good idea?