I'm going to tread carefully here. =)
Similarly-interested in a small segment of likes. I think it's fair to say that in most careers, their exists a culture, and if you aren't apart of that culture, you miss out. I see this in all sorts of industries, and the type of people involved generally follow a well established stereotype. Their are exceptions, and stereotyping is bad, but I think it's safe to say we all see this and know it exists. It's not on purpose. Us white male programmers just happen to have a lot of similar interests.
> but it still leaves me pretty far behind?
Do you find this a fault with the industry? With those white guys? With you? Or no ones fault and it is what it is?
My own experience is that people who have the same dedicated drive for programming but aren't interested in the same extra-curricular activities as most programmers usually have a lot to offer. Have you found that to be the case personally? Do you feel other people see that in you?