It has now officially been 2 weeks without a cast. I'M BACK!! And it's good to be back.5 weeks off the bike was BRUTAL. I've already hit 5 Cyclocross races since I've been back. Cross is just a ton of fun. However, even though I was still running on my little break, jumping right back into riding
was a little frustrating. My first two races back I was a little bit behind the guys I was with before. Even though I knew that's just what happens with time off the bike, it was still maddening as hell! But that 3rd race, day 2 of the Sacramento Cyclocross double weekend, was much better. A true Cross race in the mud, I finally felt better and came in 7th in the B men. I was so stoked to finally be feeling better.Of course, then last Wednesday I went and put my pride in a sling at Rodeo Cross. I came into a set of barriers with
the intention of riding them. First one was beautiful, but the second, something happened, and I was up, up, up,....... FACE PLANT! Compound fracture to the pride and the ego, right in front of friends!!The rest of me was fine, and my pride miraculously healed Friday with some downhill shuttling with my buddies. I had missed DH so much on my time off. I was feeling great, boosting high, riding smooth, and trying some new tips from my super good downhill friends. This was where my title for this blog came from. One of my friends who was driving missed a stop sign on the hill, swore, and then said, "S'ok guys, stop signs are optional up here" It got me thinking about how awesome it was to just come back from my injury right into racing and riding. I've seen people take it super slow after injury. I understand being careful after an injury and riding smart, but it was so great to not wait to jump into the swing, and it paid off on Saturday.
Saturday night, I raced my first Bay Area Super Prestige C
yclocross race of the season, the second one in the 2011 series. It was at night, at Sierra Point, in Brisbane (Just outside of San Francisco). These races are MASSIVE! The cap for the Open B Men was 100 guys, and it was full on Tuesday, shortly after I signed up. This was my biggest mass start of the year. I got out of the car and hopped on the trainer. After some good, zoned out iPod time warming up on the trainer, they opened the course to pre-ride. I got one practice lap in, and then I was behind in the pack on the start line. They call up the top 24 riders from the week before, so I ended up starting about mid pack. Off the line, across the pavement, hopping a curb 
and the race was in full swing. I was instantly passing and fighting through the rest of the adults, fighting for positions. We hit the power section across the back, and I came into my own. The were three straight aways with hairpin turns in between. I hit this section, and put the power down. I motored around packs of guys, going at breakneck speeds at the corners, then slamming the brakes and whipping around the corners (without the amateur-ish burning of rubber, of course). While doing this I would drop gears, then shift like a drag racer as soon as I had space to go. I repeated this each lap, powering around groups, and then further putting distance on them in the twisty grass, filled with more turns, a ton of short, sharp rises, and barriers. There was even a stair run up with a wooden ramp on the other side. I just kept hammer do
wn for the entire race, passing a couple of people each lap, until I finished in 12th place out of 100 B men. I was super happy with this result, and hope that the call up will equate to an even higher finish next race. My sister, Avery, also did well after me in the B women.Then it was up the next morning for a 60 mile base road ride, and then gym training Monday. Stop Signs are Optional. It's good to be back. I'll keep you posted!