Who says Florida can't be a training ground for the Tour Divide? Tampa Bay-based Charlie Kemp, who is making his way across Colorado right now, got ready for the Tour Divide by racing the Florida Divide, a relatively new race with a grand depart in Februrary. This is a cool story that explains what to expect on the Florida Divide. http://tampabay.com/projects/2015/features/one-wild-ride/

Florida has a relatively new mountain bike race. It's 800 miles from the Georgia line to the Everglades. It's a great warm up for the Tour Divide or just a fun winter race. This story gives a good outline of what to expect:
http://tampabay.com/projects/2015/features/one-wild-ride/