The Miami Marathon team conducted its annual Pop-Up Bridge Training Run on Thursday, Dec. 29, from 6:30 to 8:30 p.m. on Watson Island to help prepare runners participating in the 2017 Miami Marathon and Half Marathon, Jan. 29, for the bridge crossings they will make during the race on the MacArthur Causeway.
Several hundred runners participated and gained helpful techniques for running these challenging inclines. The 2017 Miami Marathon and Half Marathon spinning finisher medal and neck ribbon with a mangrove theme designed by local artist Xavier Cortada was unveiled at the event.
Cortada has developed participatory art projects to engage communities in local action. In Florida, he has worked with scientists, arborists and environmental managers to develop eco-art projects that engage community residents in bioremediation: coastal reforestation initiatives in Miami (Miami Science Museum, 2007), an urban reforestation campaign in St. Petersburg (The Florida Botanical Gardens, 2009), and coral reef preservation efforts in Hawaii (Bishop Museum, 2010).
Participants in the Thursday night Bridge Training Run ran one mile loops that began at Watson Island and crossed over the south side of the MacArthur Bridge toward downtown Miami and then circled around to the north side of the bridge to head back to Watson Island.
It was great! I hope it keeps happening every year.