12 Hours of Santos
More to racing than just riding; friends, family, and the forest
February 19, 2022
Jessica 1st place solo women
Joël within top 10 open men
Race by: Gone Riding Productions
Ocala, Florida
This blog report is not going to be much about the
race. Look back at previous Nankman
Adventures in Cycling Blog reports for the details about the racing at 12 Hours
of Santos. The race organization, the trails, the course remains much unchanged.
And yes, it still has a gigantic trophy awarded to first place. It’s a great early season race for us to
travel to; a fun event with good riding and way better weather than in
Pennsylvania in February.
But this year’s visit to 12 Hours of Santos had way
more exciting and noteworthy items than the racing. It was filled with friends,
food, family, and forest time.
Friends. Joël and I had the honor of one of our
friends from Pennsylvania come to watch us race and cheer for us. She has
family in the area and coordinated her family visit with some race spectating. She
is not a cyclist, so this was really special to have her come watch, she even
brought her family along. Endurance
cycling is not much of a spectator sport, and it is far and few between that Joël
and I have people come to watch events, especially people who are not into
cycling themselves. Knowing a friend is
there watching helped keep me pedaling strong and gave me something to look
forward to. In addition to the racing, Joël and I met-up with this same friend and
her family for food, beer, and hanging out after the race at The World of Beer.
Once again, just such a good time to share stories about the race and relax
afterwards with food and friends.
Family. An Aunt
and Uncle recently moved from Pennsylvania to The Villages in Ocala so while
down there Joël and I planned a visit with them. We spent time catching up with family and
learning all about their new life in Florida.
We toured The Villages seeing all the community centers and activities
they had to offer, had dinner and ice cream in one of the town squares, listened
to a band and danced, played shuffleboard, and walked around the area. Great
time visiting with family and wonderful of them to share their new life with
us. And as par for the course in The Villages, Joël and I drove a golf cart
around on the roads and paths throughout the community.
Forest. After
friends and family the Nankmans headed to Ocala National Forest for some
camping and riding. We stayed in a primitive dispersed site which meant it
was really back to nature. No facilities, no electric or water, literally just a
clearing in the forest; just the way we like it.
We rode gravel bikes throughout the forest and did some hiking with our
dog Clifford along the river at Davenport Landing where we learned about the
Native American culture that previously lived there and the early settlers
along the river. And yup, we saw a huge
alligator along the road, but luckily it was while driving out of the forest on
our way heading home.
So yes, the race was our reason to travel to Florida.
But spending time with friends, visiting with family, and enjoying the forest
were really what made the trip memorable.
Words by Jessica; photos by Joël
