Yes there is a reason. It is because so many of the participants in collecting old bicycles are that desperate to own one because it means prestige for their ego and money in their wallet, which means that many of those into collecting things are in it because of prestige and money, which is sort of sad. It is the same way for collectors of any material objects, cameras, motorcycles, automobiles, pocket-knives....
The other reason would be ignorance. For instance in the thread I started about my circa-1900 Pierce I wondered out-loud if it was a racing bicycle because it was a "fixie", because I was not educated enough to know that it was normal for bicycles in 1900 to be fixed-gear and that a coaster rear-hub was a luxury or extra-cost option.
So take your pick.....
I think that owning a Track Racer is about the purest form of a racing bike you can get. They're simple and look incredibly fast just sitting there if they are presented properly for display.
I remember when I started to collect the track racers about 40 yrs ago. I did it because I was time trialling and over in the U.K is where lots of time trialling was going on. Guys like Martyn Pyn and many others were racing on Track bikes to do time trialling. Even the hill climbers were using the fixed gear because they were light and fixed gear has a tendency to pull you up hill faster.
I started to collect different bikes like Bob Jackson, Falcon, Butler, Carlton, Flying Scot and had about 35 or so in about a few years. I sold almost all of them to come down here to Los Angeles from Canada and the feeling was still there to own more track bikes. It's all I ever rode and I enjoyed displaying them at shows. The track bike is always a head turner at any bike show. Track racing is the most exciting venue to be in and it's a lot more fun than being at the Tour De France. Ive been to the Tour and also the 6-Day races in Europe and I can tell you that track racing is by far the most exciting.
I think this might be why people all want to own a track machine because it's the purest form of speed. I've owned about 140 track machines because I love the simplicity of some of these bikes. Some get kind of weird like the Flying Gate for instance but they are all beautiful. Why wouldn't you want to own one because for me there's no better bike to own.
So, I understand why people want to say they own a "Racer" and categorize their bike as a racer because they are the best .... hands down!!! But many of these bikes aren't really Factory Racers but sort of resemble one. Anyone can make the common mistake by calling their bike a racer when it's really a roadster. Just like Mongese said that the longer you're in this game that you learn from mistakes. The longer you do this the more you realize what you didn't know back then. I've made mistakes and after 40 yrs I'm still learning. What I did learn was that when you call something a Factory Racer ( like I do ) then you should have something to back it up to confirm it really is. Model numbers on bikes are what will always tell you what you've got.
It can be fun having a small museum of bicycles like many of the guys here have. I had a museum at my house but mine was to really show the evolution of 100 yrs of racing. Mine went back to the 1870's with the Boneshakers, the Highwheel era and from there up to the 1970s to show how we evolved. It wasn't really ego or prestige as said earlier but for me it was about the history of racing. All these bicycle manufacturers had their own idea how to make their racer faster. If Torchy Peden raced a CCM Flyer then I had to have one. If Eddie Bald rode a Columbia Model 44 then I had to have one. If Earl Kiser raced on a Stearns then I had to have one and on and on. I've always liked the best racers.
Nothing wrong with calling your bike a racer to find out what it is, if it's a fixie for instance. I think that's perfeclly fine like gben did by calling his Pierce a racer because it was fixed and everyone will jump in and help determine exactly what it is. But some people love to call everything they find a racer and try to present it or, sell it that way with no documentation to back it up. You don't want to sell something you're calling a racer to someone when you don't know yourself that it's really a racer. That's not fair to the buyer who he gets it and it turns out not to be a real racer. He has trust in you and your knowledge.
Well, I need to stop babbling here and get to work..
As always ... your friend in cycling
Cheers
corbettclassics