Team Florida

Dan and Rebecca Larson left Gainesville Wednesday, May 23rd to pursue PhDs at University of Georgia in Athens (after their regular 2 summer months in Pennsylvania).

Over the last decade the Larsons have wholly contributed to Gainesville’s magnetism and cultivation of bicycle racers with their excellent coaching, avid participation, thoughtful organization and undeniable expertise of the sport. Undoubtedly, without the Larsons, our cycling community would be no where near where it is today.

While nearly every city’s group rides deteriorate and degrade into futile hammer fests, Team Florida rides under Dan and Rebecca’s guidance have provided structure and backbone to the training of students as well as willing residents of our little town. This framework has led to a cycling community that is a cut above those of cities many times Gainesville’s size. Undeniably, Team Florida achieved new levels in the SEC with almost uninterrupted conference titles and numerous national championships under Dan and Rebecca’s counsel.

Dan’s legendary Cemetery Time Trial hosted literally hundreds of participants ranging from entry level riders on mountain bikes to national level roadies. Many of us learned how to suffer thanks to Dan’s seasonal race of truth. Similarly, Dan and Rebecca’s popular Bring it On! practice races have been countless people’s initiation to the world of bicycle racing. Who would have guessed that summer sausage primes and Swiss cake roll prizes would draw a surprising number of national champions, more than one world champion as well as a good handful professional racers over the years?

Semi-annual pilgrimages to the velodromes in Atlanta and Ft. Lauderdale organized by Dan served up a new flavor of our great sport to scores of people brave enough to expand their cycling horizons. Dan’s extensive knowledge of track racing, unwavering patience and instruction and genuine passion and excitement for this discipline led to many nights of track racing where Gainesville riders (who endured 5 hours of driving) outnumbered the local racers of these large metropolitan cities who are lucky enough to have the banked ovals in their back yards.

Dan single-handedly kept alive the fading annual spring time Battle of Olustee ride. Attracting riders from all over the state to ride our roads and inviting them to try and best our best, this notorious 115 mile ride took riders from the University Holiday Inn out of town nearly up to the Georgia state line and back—usually with numbers of riders that rival many organized centuries. Dan would naturally provide maps of the route to the lionhearted bicycle wielding soldiers before leading them into battle.

New opportunities and bright futures of our cycling savants have taken them to a new chapter in their lives. The Gainesville cycling community has suffered a significant loss with their departure and we will miss them dearly.

Best of luck, Dan and Rebecca. We hope to see you back in a few years.

–Ryan Saylor