Watch: Boy’s Last-Place Finish Sweetened by Tampa Cops

TAMPA, FL — Last-place finishers in bike rides involving more than 2,500 participants don’t typically make headlines. They also don’t generally get their very own police escort.

But, then again, most riders who trail behind the pack aren’t 8-year-old boys who’ve only been comfortable on a bike for a few short months. It seems Jacob Mucci’s sheer determination and grit during the 2016 Winter Wonder Ride on Saturday, Dec. 10 managed to capture the attention of two Tampa Police officers. Sgt. Colin McCoy and Officer Luis Vargas decided to make sure Jacob didn’t feel alone while completing the final stretch of the 7-mile ride.

The annual ride sponsored by Onbikes takes cyclists on a course through downtown Tampa and along Bayshore Boulevard. It’s a fundraiser meant to help provide underprivileged kids with their very own bikes, Tampa Police explained in an email to media.

The officers’ decision to jump in and join Jacob tugged at his family’s heart strings.

“He didn’t care that he was the very last rider of over 2,500 (mostly adults) participating,” his mother wrote on Facebook. “He was just thrilled that he had police riding alongside him for the last stretch.”

Photo courtesy of the Tampa Police Department