In the morning we had a hasty breakfast and then headed to shore. Nathaniel went off to the card shop for one last day of tournament play and the rest of us walked to the edge of the marina property (about 100 yards) to watch and cheer on the runners in the Miami marathon. We were at about mile 19 and the impact on the runners was clear. We were too late to see the race leaders but the perseverance of all of the runners was impressive. The first groups we saw looked like they had just stepped out of the shower but they kept running at a strong, steady pace. Then the runners started to stretch out. We saw women in tutus, an Elvis impersonator, a bride and groom in tux and wedding dress, and even a guy that was dribbling two basket balls the entire route. A young, apparently gay, man with a red Mohawk even called to Merissa to complement her red hair as he ran by. Every cheer and clap we produced was met with a small response from the runners. Even though we did not know anyone in the race it was a fun morning cheering the diehards on. After lunch at the gourmet food store, we headed back to the boat. The wind had made the mooring field quite rough and we decided to go back to the anchorage in front of the yacht club. On the way back, we stopped at the marina to pump out, top off our water tanks and dump the waste transmission oil. Our day at the marina had been very fruitful.
Once anchored in our old spot, Ralph and Sandy headed out on the bikes to get some boat parts (it seems there is always some little item you need) and to explore some of Coconut Grove. Nathaniel returned late in the evening with his appetite for Magic Tournaments sated for the time being. On his foray with the public transit system he had met a friendly hobo that told him more than he wanted to know, ridden the better part of one bus route and still managed to get to the shop on time.
Copes Afloat 