TAMPA, Fla. — More than 8,000 racers lined up across the starting line early Sunday morning for the Sunshine Skyway 10K. But before taking off, participants, volunteers and organizers honored a Florida Highway Patrol trooper credited with saving thousands of people in their very shoes last year.

What You Need To Know

  • Trooper Toni Schuck with Florida Highway Patrol returned to the Sunshine Skyway 10K on Sunday.

  • Schuck, a 26-year veteran with FHP, used her patrol car to block a drunk driver from smashing through the race route last year.

  •  Participants, volunteers and organizers honored Schuck's heroism before the race started this year.

Trooper Toni Schuck – a 26-year veteran of FHP – used her patrol car to block a drunk driver from smashing through the race route after driving through several traffic cones and barricades at last year's race, according to highway patrol. 

Authorities arrested 52-year-old Kristen Kay Watts of Sarasota and charged her with multiple offenses, including DWI with serious bodily injury and reckless driving with property damage. The arrest report shows the Watts' blood alcohol level was more than three times Florida's legal limit.

James Judge was just starting the race when he noticed the flock of police cars and sirens heading his way. He said if not for Trooper Schuck, the drunk driver could have hit him and countless others.

“What Trooper Schuck did is absolutely heroic," Judge, a spokesperson for the Skyway 10K, said. "It’s the least that we could do to just honor her and thank her for what she did. We’re so grateful and a lot of prayers were answered, the fact that she’s with us today.”

Schuck led off the first wave of racers in her patrol car on Sunday morning. Sgt. Steve Gaskins, a colleague and friend of Schuck's, said all of the attention she's been receiving since last year's incident is overwhelming and she just wanted to spend time with runners this year.

"Her key focus today was she wanted to be out here on the side of the road with me as the runners came by to meet and greet them," Gaskins said. "A lot of these people typically run on an annual basis. These people sent cards, they sent her messages through social media thanking her. So, now they’re actually getting to meet the person that was actually there last year."

Gaskins said he's proud to call Schuck a coworker and wasn't at all surprised she put her life on the line for others. It took Schuck months to recover after the drunk driver crashed nearly head-on into her patrol car. She's now hailed a hero and was named FHP's Trooper of the Year in 2022, among other honors.

On Sunday, Schuck was warmly embraced by racegoers as she returned to the race.

“We did a selfie in front of the crowd before the race, I know she’s down there right now high-fiving the runners as they come across the start line and she led the race off," Judge said. "It was awesome to see her out here. That was certainly a much better outcome than what could have been.”

Race organizers said they added additional security measures this year to help prevent an incident like last year from happening again.