University of Florida cycling club

The University of Florida Cycling Club is a cycling club and student organization of the University of Florida. The club was established in 1985. The organization has won numerous Southeastern Collegiate Cycling Conference and National Collegiate Cycling Association championships.

History

The first known Cycling Club at the University of Florida was started in the late 1970s by a group of students who began meeting informally for recreational rides. By 1981, they were still meeting, but since almost all had graduated, they changed the group's name to the Gainesville Cycling Club.
In Fall 1985, students of Richard Beck's Cycling Class and other racers organized a separate, university sanctioned bicycle racing sports club, Team Florida. From 1986-1988, with significant funding from student government, and sponsor support from various local and national brands and organizations, the team's top riders competed in pro-am United States Cycling Federation races throughout the United States, but primarily within the Southeast. Team Florida joined the Southeastern Collegiate Cycling Conference of the National Collegiate Cycling Association in 1989 and began racing in both USCF and NCCA races.
Team Florida's first participation in an organized race was a Primo Bike Works' 10 mile time trial starting and finishing at the Hopewell Baptist Church on Wacahoota Road Southwest of Gainesville in late 1985 or early 1986. The first Team Florida win was achieved by Paul Chludzinski in a Citizen's Class criterium in Cocoa Beach in spring 1986. The team's first USCF licensed win was secured by Michael Franovich in a Category IV road race on the Sawgrass Expressway, prior to its July 3, 1986 opening. The first collegiate race win was accomplished by Geoff Rogers in a “B” Category Race at the University of Georgia in 1989.
Although bike races had been held on campus as early as the 1950s, the first race hosted by Team Florida was held in Fall 1986. The six turn USCF sanctioned criterium ran clockwise. It featured a start/finish in front of the Florida Gym on Stadium Road, turned right onto North South Drive pass the stadium, turned right onto East West Drive, from East West Drive right onto Fletcher Drive, left on what was a road between Pugh and Dauer Halls, right onto Buckman Drive which becomes Stadium Road, and past the Hub before returning to the start/finish. Andy Woodruff, who would eventually ride for Team Florida in the early 1990s, won the Men's Pro, 1,2,3 race. Team sponsored circuit races around Lake Alice were held in 1987 and 1988. The first Stage Race was held in 1989 and featured a downtown twilight criterium and a road race on Dungarvin Road.
In 1992, a Team Florida cyclist, Tom Hayes, was killed in an accident while cycling through Paynes Prairie. Team uniforms the following year included a memorial black armband in the cyclist's honor.
Team Florida was recognized as the University of Florida's Sports Club of the Year for 2015-2016. In 2017, with student interest in racing declining, Team Florida leadership chose to have the club focus on noncompetitive recreational riding, the team lost its standing as a sports club, and stopped participating in SECCC events. As of October 2019 however, the team had regained its status as a UF Sports Club. Following a lengthy delay associated with the pandemic, Team Florida began competing in SECCC collegiate races again in Fall 2021. In 2022 Team Florida returned to the top of the SECCC Standings with a conference win for Tyler Austhof in Cyclocross.

Southeastern Collegiate Cycling Conference Championships

Road

1989 Team Time Trial
1990 Women's A
1994 Men's A
1994 Men's C
1996 Team
1996 Women's A
1996 Men's B
1996 Men's C
1997 Team
1997 Women's A
1997 Men's A
1997 Men's C
1998 Team
1998 Women's A
1998 Men's B
1998 Men's C
2000 Team
2000 Men's C
2001 Team
2002 Team
2003 Team
2004 Team
2005 Men's B
2006 Women's B
2007 Team D1 Non-varsity Champs
2012 Men's A
2013 Team
2014 Team

Mountain Bike

1999 Team
1999 Women's A
1999 Men's B
1999 Men's C
2000 Team
2000 Women's A
2000 Men's A
2001 Team
2001 Women's A
2001 Men's A
2001 Men's C
2004 Men's A
2004 Women's A
2004 Men's C
2005 Team
2005 Men's A
2005 Women's A
2005 Women's B
2005 Men's C
2006 Team D1 Non-varsity Champs
2006 Women's A
2006 Women's B
2006 Men's C
2007 Team D1 Non-varsity Champs
2007 Men's A
2007 Men's B
2007 Men's C
2008 Team D1 Non-varsity Champs
2009 Team D1 Non-varsity Champs
2012 Men's A

Cyclocross

2012 Men's A
2013 Men's A
2013 Men's B
2022 Men's A
2023 Women's A
2023 Team

National Collegiate Cycling Championships

Road

1998 Women's A Criterium
2005 Women's A Overall
2005 Women's A Criterium
2006 Women's A Overall
2007 Women's A Road Race
2009 Men's A Overall

Track

1997 Women's A Points Race
1998 Men's A Point's Race
2003 Women's A Sprints
2003 Women's A 2K Pursuit
2003 Women's A Overall
2003 Women's A Italian Pursuit
2003 Men's A Italian Pursuit

Notable alumni

Club Presidents

1985-1986 Thom Cerny
1986-1987 J.C. Conte
1987-1988 Tony McKnight
1988-1989 Kevin Claney
1989-1990 Chris Furlow
1990-1991 Sean Gregoryck
1991-1992 Chris Putman
1992-1993 Mike Gann
1993 Basil Moutsopolous
1994 Phil Weber
1994-1995 Jamie Kreminski
1995-1996 Matt Mercer
1996-1997 Doug Zerbarini
1997-1998 Jared Zimlin
1998 Dan Larson
1998-1999 Eric Gerolstein
1999 Chad Mallory
2000 Angelo Matthews
2000 2001 Erik DeKold
2001-2002 Alex Rodriguez
2002-2003 Steve Heal
2003-2004 J.D. Herlihy
2004-2005 Brad Davis
2005-2006 Elizabeth Heal
2006-2007 Phil Bailey
2007-2008 Eric Shields
2008-2009 David Reich
2009-2010 Thomas Tran
2010-2011 Kristin Donahue
2011-2012 Derek Schanze
2012-2013 Dustin White
2013-2014 Chistian Trucco
2014-2015 Tony Cofrancesco
2015-2016 Maria Hyde
2016-2017 Benjamin Matalon
2017-2018 Blake Norman
2018-2019 Andrew Marques
2019-2020 Akram Weheba
2020-2021 Akram Weheba
2021-2022 Sofia Rodriguez
2022-2023 Manuel J Hernandez
2023-2024 Tyler Austhof
2024-2025 Noah Adelson