Some special kids will benefit from an event that saw police ride bikes across the Southern Interior.

The Cops for Kid ride wrapped up Sunday and $210,000 was raised for children with mental, physical and emotional issues.

“It was an awesome ride,” said Insp. Reg Burgess, with the Vernon RCMP and part of the support team for the 25 riders.

The 10-day ride began in Kelowna Sept. 11 and it included stops in 18 communities, including Penticton, Osoyoos, Grand Forks, Castlegar, Nelson, Cranbrook, Salmon Arm, Kamloops and Vernon.

Among the riders and support crew, there were five individuals from the Vernon detachment involved.

Each rider was challenged to raise $2,000, while some participants went beyond that. Additional money was also collected from the public and businesses along the route.

“It was an excellent year despite the economic times,” said Burgess.

“The RCMP thank the community for its support and sponsors.”

One highlight of the trip was meeting with the children and families who have been helped by the Cops for Kids Foundation.

“They provided excellent motivation for all of the riders and the support crew,” said Burgess.

“It makes it easy to climb the mountains when you get that kind of result.”

This year, Cops for Kids presented cheques to three children and their families to assist them as they work through a medical crisis.

These presentations took place in Nelson, Castlegar and Kamloops.

Garth Letcher, retired RCMP constable and rider, believes community awareness about the Cops for Kids ride is critical to its success.

“We saw an increase in individual donations because communities along the ride route are now more aware of the charity,” he said in a release.

“We also had an opportunity to spread the word to more towns we want to help.”

To find out how you can make a difference year-round for a child in your community, go to www.copsforkids.org.