Florida Powerboat Club Cancels Spring Key West Poker Run

Though Florida Powerboat Club president Stu Jones was hoping for a strong comeback for his outfit’s Spring Key West Poker Run—gone from the FPC schedule for 10 years—he is canceling this weekend’s event. As of early this morning, the run was still set for a Thursday departure from Miami. That changed later today with a press conference by Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, where he announced statewide, 30-day closures of bars, as well as placing strict limits on restaurant hours and terms of operation and prohibiting beach gatherings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Florida Powerboat Club’s Spring Key West Poker Run revival will have to wait. Photos courtesy/copyright Pete Boden/Shoot 2 Thrill Pix.

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“Unfortunately, we are pulling the plug,” said Jones, who had 20 poker-run teams signed up for this weekend’s run. “The City of Key West also extended the Governor’s closure to all restaurants including hotel restaurants.”

Jones said he hopes to reschedule the event this year, though its name likely would change, as he is particularly excited with its intimate format.

“I am not rescheduling yet but I’m calling this a postponement because I want to follow through, even if it’s in late spring or early summer,” he said. “There are a lot of cool things you can do on a small event, that you cannot do on a big event with 200 boats. So I really want to see this one happen eventually.

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