This year’s Skyway 10K run/walk will be virtual

Add another casualty to the hurricane list: The Skyway 10K, the annual charity run/walk over the Sunshine Skyway Bridge.

The April 6 event will be virtual in 2025.

Organizers say it’s because the parking lots of Tropicana Field, traditionally the staging area for the buses that ferry 8,000 participants to the bridge, and the site of a post-race celebration, will be off-limits because of repair and reconstruction efforts on the stadium’s domed roof, which was destroyed by Hurricane Milton in October.

On the race website, they said that because of the effects of both Hurricanes Helene and Milton and “the subsequent challenges of identifying a suitable venue to host the event, we were unable to timely secure a location to safely accommodate the thousands of race participants, volunteers, vendors, and other supporters for an in-person event this year.”

The annual event, which began in 2018, is a benefit for the Armed Forces Families Foundation, which provides the support military families need to endure the difficulties surrounding months or years of deployment.

On March 6, 2022,  Florida Highway Patrol trooper Toni Schuck used her patrol car to stop an inebriated driver from crashing into runners, after the woman had maneuvered her car through barriers and traffic cones.

For information on participating in the virtual race, visit the website.