Lingering nasty weather dampens Super Bowl festivities on South Beach and beyond

Lingering high gusts and light showers dampened Saturday’s Super Bowl festivities on South Beach and elsewhere in Miami-Dade, though some determined partygoers tried to make the best of it before the big game Sunday.

Saturday’s crowds mostly stayed indoors after severe weather Friday night. Some were no doubt part of the frustrated crowds who waded through calf-deep muddy waters to hail rides home after Harry Styles’ show on Watson Island was called off at the last minute. Lady Gaga’s performance tonight at the same venue is still a go if the nasty weather, as predicted, moves through to the Atlantic by the time Gaga takes the stage after 8:30 p.m.

Perhaps some were tuckered out by all the glamorous events in town and celebrity spotting, from Shaquille O’Neal’s DJ set in Wynwood and Jeff Bezos taking the turntables at LIV to Cardi B and Offset’s kerfuffle at Booby Trap on the River.

Corporate-sponsored Super Bowl events throughout Miami-Dade went on as planned Saturday but had scarce audiences as the forecast worsened over the afternoon.

In between bouts of light rain, former New England Patriots star Rob Gronkowski commanded a crowd of admirers at the North Beach Bandshell on Collins Avenue Saturday as he mixed cocktails for visitors to his Gronk Beach concert and jogged through his party right off the beach. Even Patriots coach Bill Belichick showed up for his former tight end.

Fans of the Kansas City Chiefs and San Francisco 49ers mixed with fans of the Patriots — and Gronk — at the pricey electronic dance festival that featured renowned artists in the genre and hometown hip-hop acts Rick Ross and Flo Rida. Gronk danced on stage to Kaskade’s upbeat set.

Gus Hanger, 26, flew into Miami from Kansas City, Missouri, to support the Chiefs and party at Miami’s famous night clubs.

Wearing a Patrick Mahomes jersey, the cannabis entrepreneur spun a “Wheel of Fortune”-style prop and won a free delivery of pastries from The Salty Donut.

He doesn’t need the discount.

Hanger, who said he has the rights to the exclusive @gus Instagram handle, paid $5,600 to attend the Super Bowl and another $5,000 at Story nightclub on Friday. His Airbnb in Hollywood was another $3,000.

“I’ve just been extending [my trip],” he said. “It depends if we win or lose. Or it depends on how hungover I am on Monday.”

In total, he’s spent about $14,000 so far, he said. After those expenses, a $600 ticket to Gronk Beach seems modest.

“I got a one-way ticket out here,” Hanger said. “It’s been fire, truly.”

Among the fans and well-to-do attendees, others entered social media contests to win a $1,000 Swarovski crystal-encrusted vibrator from erotica store Pure Romance. Some enjoyed free massages with CBD-infused lotion.

The loud music bounced off the walls of the Unidad Senior Center, which luckily was closed on Saturday.

Residents of a nearby apartment complex looked out onto the Bandshell and the adjacent Sand Bowl, where electronic dance music blared from a stage bearing Gronkowski’s smiling face.

Marc Kotkin, 39, of Fort Lauderdale, wore a shirt that read “Cocaine and Caviar” as he posed for a photo by a large Gronk Beach logo sign.

He said he got into the event only because his friend, Kelly McConnachie, of Dania Beach, won an contest on the @lifestyle_miami Instagram page.

He said the on-again, off-again rain didn’t bother him.

“It’s Miami, man,” he said. “We party in rain. It don’t matter.”

But it mattered to many on Ocean Drive, where raincoats and umbrellas started coming out just after 1 p.m.

Rain soaked all who tried braving the elements. Some sought cover under awnings while others beelined to the nearest restaurant.

“We’re just going to wait it out,” said Steve McKee, 38, who sat across from his sister Michelle under an umbrella at Caffe Milano.

Steve had never been to Miami Beach before. While the conditions weren’t ideal, a little bit of rain didn’t dampen the fun for the Tulsa, Oklahoma, siblings, who enjoyed oversized margaritas and burgers as they waited for the showers to lighten up.

“We’re just excited to be here,” said Michelle, 39.

Chiefs and Niners fans braving the weather flocked to Eighth Street and Ocean Drive for the Fox Sports Super Bowl Experience.

“It’ll be over by 4 p.m., no big deal,” said Steve Carroll, 49, of Oklahoma City. He and his wife, Marla, came ready in Kansas City Chiefs apparel.

“We wish it wasn’t like this but it’s a lot colder at home,” said Marla Carroll, 51.

Even with a gloomy backdrop, some beachgoers got their Instagram on.

Charles Miller strolled the shore taking photos with random people. He said enjoying the water is part of the Miami experience.

“Right now, everybody else is on the strip when they should be on this beach,” said Miller of Memphis, Tennessee. “If it’s your first time here, you should be on South Beach.”

Just when the rain let up and foot traffic started picking up around 5:30 p.m., the skies opened up and unleashed the worst downpour of the day. Still, people weren’t deterred.

“We’re just going to wander around and see where the night takes us,” said Edwin Pagan, 27, of Daytona. Pagan, along with his girlfriend Katie Ayotte, were without umbrellas but appeared unfazed.

“We got a blanket,” quipped Ayotte, 18.

In southwest Miami-Dade, the Florida International University cheerleaders performed to a mashup of pop songs including “Livin’ on a Prayer” and “We Will Rock You” to a mostly empty Riccardo Silva Stadium. NFL players and other professional athletes and celebrities with South Florida ties were there to play in the 20th annual Super Bowl Celebrity Flag Football Challenge to benefit law enforcement and the military.

Fans who showed up to the game in the drippy weather gathered in the end zones, dotting about a hundred seats in yellow and black ponchos. But most of the crowd was made up of media and the families of sports stars playing in the charity event, including Hall of Famer Tracy McGrady and former Miami Heat player Carlos Arroyo.

The two teams were led by former NFL star quarterbacks Donovan McNabb and Doug Flutie. Team McNabb was stacked with players Arroyo, McGrady, the Miami Dolphins’ Jerome Baker and former University of Miami Hurricanes players Braxton Berrios and Michael Irvin. Team Flutie had the Dolphins’ Walt Aikens, former FIU player T.Y. Hilton and musicians Roscoe Dash and Jake Miller.

Team Flutie bested Team McNabb 58-47.

But before the teams took the field, some of the veterans who the event benefited took part in a heated flag football game.

Layla Collins tossed a football to her two boys Gabe, 7, and Colt, 4, as they watched their dad, Jay, play in the military scrimmage. The boys played catch and took photos with some of the players, marveling at their football idols.

Jay Collins played football in college, and he still plays now after losing his left leg in Afghanistan. Layla Collins said the family was given tickets to the game by Operation Warrior Wishes, a nonprofit that honors veterans at sporting events.

The event is important to her family, she said, because it emphasizes “overcoming and adapting to challenges.”

Those who took public transportation may have noticed law enforcement’s increased presence this weekend. The Department of Homeland Security are making extra appearances at the Miami Metromover, Miami International Airport and Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport.

TSA has developed a program to provide extra security for local police departments, and other security partners, called Visible Intermodal Prevention & Response (VIPR). The response team is made up of federal air marshals.

“Highly trained federal air marshals ... will deploy to add additional resources and security capabilities to address the larger volume of traffic-goers in the transit system,” said Thomas Kelly, a TSA spokesman.

The ramped-up presence of officers and agents will last until Tuesday or Wednesday, well after Super Bowl events are over.

Miami-Dade Transportation and Public Works has worked with the TSA response team about 500 times in the last 10 years, said Alice Bravo, the director of transportation and public works.

“With VIPR we want people to know we have safety as a top priority,” Bravo said. “With all the traffic this weekend we want to invite everyone to use our transit system.”

In the days leading up to the Super Bowl, arrests throughout the county have stayed about average, according to Miami-Dade police. This weekend, Miami-Dade police spokesman Argemis Colome said there may be a small increase in arrests.

“We want everyone who is coming to enjoy the Super Bowl, our citizens as well as visitors, to feel safe,” Colome said. ”The more officers you see, the less likelihood of someone breaking the law.”