It all depends really. At 18 years of age and winning races against some of the biggest names in the area, with only a few years racing experience at that, is quite an achievement. The collegiate cycling scene is a good way to push himself to that next level if he wants it bad enough.
When I was racing as a junior I raced against several guys who are now pro's or where pro's at one time....Kristian House, Patrick McCarty, Brian Fagan, Brice Jones, Ian Dille, Ken Dilie. No household names by any means but hey they still made it. In the world of professional racing its a whole differnt deal than the local and regional stuff we are use to .
There are different levels of "professional" too. the teams are broken down by division. Division 1, 2, & 3. Then you have teams who race soley on a national level. The European circuit is generally regarded as being much more diffiicult that the American. Most Americans who want to race with the Big Dogs move to Europe and take a couple years to acclimate to their style of racing.
Basically, Thacker still has alot to work to do if he wants to be on that type of stage. He is only 18 so he still has alot of time to develop and find out his potential. As long as girls or alcohol don't mess himup too much LOL.
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