That's the first time I've come across this perspective towards competing however its totally understandable. For some the camaraderie that comes from a competing environment provides the same sense of satisfaction that others can find within themselves thru overcoming personal obstacles, beating own expectations and just lifting heavy shit. Maybe its the extrovert introvert thing?
For me, I have thought more about competing since my last post in this thread however I still feel that it's not a make or break deal or the means to an end. I'll be training regardless and any external results I get from that is just icing on top of the cake.