The health benefits of regular cycling include increased cardiovascular fitness, increased muscle strength and flexibility, improved joint mobility and decreased stress levels.

Research has shown that exercising outdoors has extra benefits. Besides enjoying Florida’s famous sunshine, cycling is an activity that can be enjoyed by the whole family. We picked some of the best Florida State Parks for riding bicycles.

Biking the 5-mile, double-loop Lake Overstreet trail at Alfred B. Maclay Gardens State Park in Tallahassee is a scenic delight. Additionally, 3 more miles of trails provide for more strenuous exercise. The park offers a limited number of rental bikes. Ask at the ranger station.

Fort George Island Cultural State Park in Jacksonville offers a loop bicycle ride through history. Pick up a copy of the Fairway Loop Trail guide at the Little Talbot Island Ranger Station or in the brochure rack in front of the Ribault Club on Fort George Island. The loop is 4.4 miles and consists of paved road and hard-packed gravel. For off-road bicyclists, there is a 3-mile biking/hiking trail that traverses the interior of the former Fort George Island golf course. The trail is suitable for large-tire bikes.

In the springtime, the azaleas are blooming at Ravine Gardens State Park in Palatka. A 1.8-mile paved road winds around the ravine, offering motorists and bicyclists a view of the gardens. The Ravine Loop is closed to vehicle traffic one hour before sunset but remains open for pedestrians, bicycles and wheelchairs.

At Myakka River State Park just east of Sarasota, bicyclists enjoy 7 miles of paved roads winding through shady hammocks and along grassy marshes and the shoreline of the Upper Myakka Lake. Maps are available at the ranger station. Rentals are available at the park’s concession.

The 1.9-mile park drive at Hugh Taylor Birch State Park in Fort Lauderdale is popular with bikers (and skaters too). The one-way loop keeps everyone moving in the same direction. Equipment rentals are available at the park’s concession, Park & Ocean.

Mountain and Off-Road Biking

Mountain biking trails and off-road biking trails are popular in Florida. You’ll get the same strenuous workout without driving all the way to higher elevations.

We selected a few of the best state parks with mountain biking and off-road trails. Pack your gear and prepare for an adventure.

Three Rivers State Park in Sneads offers 9.7 miles of multiuse trails and paved roads.

With nearly 20 miles of off-road trails at San Felasco Hammock Preserve State Park in Alachua, bikers of all skill levels can enjoy a ride. Download a PDF map before you go.

The Santos Trailhead & Campground outside Ocala is a mecca for mountain biking. This park offers 80-plus miles of single-track bike trails for beginners and experts.

Radical elevations changes at Alafia River State Park just east of Tampa entice bikers to explore the steep grades and challenging trails at this park. Rentals available.

Jonathan Dickinson State Park in Hobe Sound offers the Camp Murphy Off-Road Bicycle Trail System with more than 9 miles of networked trails and loops rated for beginners all the way to black diamond, experts only. Rentals available.

Whether enjoying the 15 miles of off-road bicycling trails or paddling along lush mangrove forests, visitors are surprised that Oleta River State Park exists 30 minutes from downtown Miami. Equipment rentals are available at the park’s concession, BG Oleta River Outdoors.

State Designated Trails

Are you looking for long, straight paved trails? These provide great opportunities for riding your bicycle while avoiding traffic. These are shared trails so watch for walkers, runners and equestrians.

Statewide Network of Trails

The Office of Greenways and Trails maintains an Online Trail Guide, which highlights recreational trails statewide (paved and unpaved) for hiking, biking, equestrian, multiple use, paddling, or motorized use (all- terrain vehicles, off-highway motorized vehicles, recreational off-highway vehicles). All trails are open to the public. This does not include on-road bike lanes or sidewalks.

Two children preparing for a bike ride. They are wearing bicycle helmets.

This article was published in the Real Florida ? Connection, the Florida State Parks e-newsletter. Sign up to get updates and stories from your state parks the first week of every month.

Earlier this week, Sotheby’s issued a breathless press release that announced the sale of a large and extremely rare black diamond described as “a treasure from interstellar space.”

Dubbed “The Enigma,” the 555.55-carat diamond is the star of a single-lot sale at Sotheby’s Dubai this week. Also known as a carbonado, it is the largest cut diamond in the world, according to Guinness World Records, which certified it as such in 2006. It is also the largest Fancy Black Natural Color diamond in the world, according to Gubelin and the Gemological Institute of America in 2004.

The diamond has been cut into 55 facets, in a nod to the Middle Eastern Hamsa symbol, a palm-shaped amulet associated with the number 5 and a sign of protection and strength.

It’s not particularly sparkly—but it is really old, and it’s generating a lot of Internet chatter.

The name “The Enigma” is especially fitting, because as the press release says, “its origins are shrouded in mystery.” Experts are at odds in their assessment of where this or any other carbonado came from. Such diamonds, which are about 3.8 billion years old, are extremely rare and found only in Brazil and Central Africa.

The auction house speculates on the sale’s website that it could either be the result of “meteoric impacts producing natural chemical vapor deposition” or—a literally more far-out theory—have emerged “from supernovae explosions that formed diamond-bearing asteroids which ultimately collided with the Earth.”

Tim McCoy, the chair and curator of the meteorite collection at the Smithsonian National Museum of Natural History told Artnet News that it’s just as viable that the diamond came from inside the Earth as outside of it. McCoy also notes that we know a lot more about space than we used to—and “we don’t see anything like it from outer space.”

On the other hand, Stephen Haggerty, a professor of earth and environment at Florida International University, is pretty confident that the diamond is indeed from outside the earthly realm.

In a document shared with Artnet News, Heggerty wrote that “there has not been a single, scientifically sound alternative to the ET origin of carbonado,” pointing to a range of physical and chemical properties that he says “clearly demonstrate a non-Earth genesis.” Those were the subject of a study published in the 2006 Astrophysical Journal, which was based on infrared spectroscopy and made the case for the diamond’s interstellar origins.

The diamond is being sold with an estimate of $4 million to $7 million, and the auction house is accepting cryptocurrency. It is being sold without a reserve.

Follow Artnet News on Facebook:

Want to stay ahead of the art world? Subscribe to our newsletter to get the breaking news, eye-opening interviews, and incisive critical takes that drive the conversation forward.

-->

Sorry, we're having issues playing this video.In the meantime, try watching one of the videos below.

LECANTO, Fla. — A dream team of 11 professional golfers got together on the course Tuesday to raise money for the “Els For Autism” foundation.

“The players on the Champions Tour, for the most part, are all legends,” caddy and event organizer Martin Courtois said.

They don’t get any more legendary than Fred Couples, John Daly, Rocco Mediate, Jim Furyk, Nancy Lopez, and Els.

“He’s one of the game's greatest players ever, 19 wins, 4 majors,” Courtois said. “His resume is certainly up there in the top 10.”

When Els is not on the course, his focus in on “Els For Autism,” his charitable foundation that spans worldwide. It was created in 2009 with his son Ben being impacted by an autism disorder.

“Our son has autism so we decided to build a center for kids that have autism,” Els told ABC Action News sports anchor Kyle Burger. “It’s an ongoing process, but we have the capacity for 300 kids and they range from ages 3 to 64.”

The center is located in Jupiter.

“He and his wife do a phenomenal job,” Couples said. “My wife-to-be is playing with Nancy Lopez.”

Black Diamond Ranch is hosting the charity golf event for a second straight year.

“It’s really exciting. It was really exciting last year to see all these names we known for years,” club member Sandy Hanson said. “You know, famous people coming to play on our course, warm-up on our range, and talk about the game.”

These 11 legends have combined for 151 tour wins, and 15 majors. Lopez has 48 of those wins on her own. But, they’re all on this one course with some breathtaking views.

“They put us out overlooking that quarry,” Couples said. “So spectacular. I played it for the first time last year. Came out early, played nine holes yesterday. It’s beautiful.”

This dream team of pros helped to raise over $300,000.

“They are very giving of their time and the public doesn’t really know it, which is true philanthropy, when you don’t let people know,” Courtois added.

Diamonds are treasured around the world for their beauty and sparkle. Although the gemstone and jewelry industries market them to symbolize enduring love, they’re also a scientific wonder.

Natural diamonds are composed of pure carbon, shaped by eons of high pressure underground. Each diamond emerges as a stone unique in weight, purity and color. Diamonds can also be manufactured in a lab. Whether natural or artificial, there are no strict rules on how to price them.

Whether it’s a natural or lab-created stone, it’s important to put yourself in the hands of an experienced and trusted seller when shopping for a diamond. That shop will clearly explain the four important variables in a diamond’s quality that play the leading roles in how much a diamond is worth. Here’s what you need to know on how to find the value of a diamond.

Carats: What a Diamond Weighs

The weight of a diamond is one of these variables that determines a diamond’s worth and is what the general public is most familiar with. The unit of measurement, called the carat, equals 200 milligrams. Each carat is further divided into 100 points. For example, a 50-point diamond is a half carat, while a diamond weighing a whole gram would tip the scales at five carats.

The weight of a diamond is measured in carats, but heavier stones are more expensive, carat for carat than lighter ones.

Colored and Colorless Diamonds

The color of a diamond also plays a role in its value, with colorless diamonds given the greatest value.

There are pink, yellow, blue and even black diamonds. Although these are less common than clear diamonds, they are also less valuable. Without color, a stone allows light to pass and refract freely, giving the diamond more shine and sparkle.

Bonus Offer: Find a Checking Account that Fits Your Lifestyle. $100 Bonus Offer for New Checking Account Customers.

The grading scale of clear diamonds ranges from D to Z. D means there is no color at all, while Z means there is significant and noticeable color. For colored diamonds, a different scale exists. Generally, the stronger the color of these stones, the more valuable they are.

Clarity: Measuring Flawlessness

The clarity of a diamond depends on interior flaws that bend or block light as it passes through the stone. These are called inclusions and they lower the clarity and the value of a diamond. They also mark the diamond’s rarity, as stones without inclusions are more difficult to find.

To gauge the degree of clarity in a diamond, it’s important to work with a jeweler that you know and trust. The highest clarity grade is FL, meaning flawless.

The scale then runs to:

The heavier the stone, the more important the clarity grade is.

Cut and Quality of Light

The final characteristic to consider in valuing diamonds is the cut. There are many different ways a diamond can be shaped and its facets cut, with the goal being to reflect and diffract as much light as possible through the stone.

Cut: The shape of a diamond — whether round, square, princess, rectangular or another shape — can be a personal choice for buyers.

Quality of Light: The sparkle a diamond gives off, however, depends largely on the quality of the cut.

The scale of cut quality ranges from excellent to poor. At the highest end of the scale, a diamond’s proportions allow it to capture and reflect light to a viewer’s eye. When the cut is poor, meaning the proportions are too shallow or deep, the light passes through the stone with less direct reflection, contributing to a duller, less sparkly stone.

Once you have a handle on the four measurements of diamond quality, you’ll be better prepared to compare “apples to apples” and understand how much a diamond is worth. This means visiting several retailers, finding a stone that pleases your eye, and asking for the grades applied to that stone. You’ll be prepared to set your diamond budget, browse the competition and ask their price on a diamond with the same or very similar scores.

This article was republished on April 26, 2022. Information is accurate as of April 20, 2022.

About the Author

ORLANDO, Fla.— Nobody’s path is ever the same. For UCF Basketball star, Diamond Battles, hers has had its ups and downs.

“My journey has definitely been a rollercoaster. Its been fun, its been scary, its been all of the above but this journey has very much shaped me into the person I am today,” said Diamond Battles, a senior captain for UCF Women’s Basketball.

Battles is a strong leader who sets the bar for everyone around her.

“I am very empowered and I can empower other people and I believe I can change the game of women’s basketball. Coming in with a mentality of working hard and knowing that I want to be the best player on the floor every night and I kind of achieved that this year,” said Battles.

That wasn’t always the case. The 5’8” guard entered her Senior season overlooked with no preseason accolades.

“I knew I had to step up so I put a chip on my shoulder for personal reasons and I just told myself, I told my mom that I am going to make a name for myself and I feel like I did that this year. I want everyone to know who diamond battles is and that’s what I did,” said Battles.

Battles did just that. She earned the American Athletic Conference player of the year, defensive player of the year and was a unanimous first-team all conference selection.

All goals she had before the season even started.

“I wrote down player of the year, I wrote down defensive player of the year, first-team, and I wrote down MVP when we won the conference championship. I literally crossed off everything on my goal board,” said Battles.

An achievement that didn’t come overnight.

“Doing what other athletes won’t do which is everybody wants to stay out in the summer, go out, party, go home, take trips but I knew I wanted to make a name for myself and that required staying in the gym and working on things I wasn’t great at and I became great at it this year,” said Battles.

As Battles continues to put in the work and reach new heights she always remembers the most important part of success.

“Defend your thrown and defend your hard work and anything is possible. That’s what I did this year. I defended my thrown, I defended my goals. I told myself I could do it and I did it,” said Battles.?