Florida Keys Seven Mile Bridge Run Attracts 1,500 Competitors

Andy Newman/Florida Keys News Bureau

MARATHON, Florida Keys — A footrace over the Florida Keys Overseas Highway’s longest bridge drew 1,500 participants Saturday, all competing to post the fastest time in the 42nd annual Seven Mile Bridge Run.

Fifteen-year-old Vaclav “Vance” Bursa of Big Pine Key, Florida, finished first overall in 41 minutes, 1 second, also claiming the top spot in the men’s division.  Bursa, who placed third in the 2022 race, is a student at Marathon High School in the Florida Keys.

Joanna Stephens, 28, of Atlanta, Georgia, completed the course in 41:12 to win the women’s division title and place second overall in the race.

Collin Wainwright, 27, of Springfield, Pennsylvania — winner of last year’s race — and 31-year-old Joel Martinez of Cape Coral, Florida, finished in 41:33 and 41:45, respectively, to take second and third place in the men’s division.

Holly Smith, 38, from Key Largo, Florida, posted a women’s division second-place time of 42:10. Key West, Florida, resident Shelby Nowak, 28, placed third with a time of 46:51.

The course record remains at 32:57, set in 1998 by former Florida Keys resident Paul Marmaro.

The annual race, capped at 1,500 runners each year, drew competitors from 41 U.S. states, and other countries including Canada, the U.K. and Switzerland.

Begun in 1982, the footrace over the convergence of the Atlantic Ocean and Gulf of Mexico was part of festivities celebrating the completion of a project to build 37 new Keys bridges to replace converted railroad bridges constructed in the early 1900s.

The run closed the span between the Middle and Lower Keys to vehicular traffic for three hours Saturday morning. Race organizers and Keys officials publicized the event well in advance to minimize traffic problems, according to the Monroe County Sheriff’s Office.

Just getting a chance to compete is challenging. The April contest is one of the most popular running events in the southeastern United States, and the 1,500-runner field filled within minutes after online registration opened in January.

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