What started out as a couple of guys from Jim Thorpe joining a bicycle ride from Philadelphia to Atlantic City, New Jersey, has grown.

This year 63 people from the area are signed up to ride in the annual Irish Pub Tour de Shore.The Irish Pub Tour de Shore started in 1988 when the pub's owners, Cathy Burke and Mark O'Connor, wanted to do something to give back to the community by raising money for children in need and for the families of fallen police officers.Five years ago two friends, Mike Dugan and Ammon Hontz, joined Dugan's sister Dede Kelly's team to complete the ride.The following year two more locals rode, and it has grown every year since.The third year Doug Rontz Signs volunteered to design custom jerseys for the team, which neared 20 people, and Molly Maguires Pub and Steakhouse sponsored much of the cost to produce the jerseys.The "Jim Thorpers" were officially a team.The Jim Thorpers' green and gold jerseys feature a portrait of the town's namesake, Jim Thorpe, in his football uniform. A panel on the side is dedicated to fallen trooper Joshua Miller, a Pennsylvania state police officer with the Swiftwater Barracks who was shot and killed on June 7, 2009, in Monroe County.This year the team is adding another panel to its jersey, in honor of Cpl. Bryon K. Dickson II, 38, who was killed in an ambush on the Blooming Grove Barracks in Pike County in September 2014.After Dickson's death, Dugan, a corporal with the Pennsylvania State Police, received an email from tour founder Mark O'Connor to express his sympathies. O'Connor reached out to the board members of the tour."Our footprint has always been the greater Philadelphia area to the Jersey shore, but I asked the board if we could extend our reach in this case," O'Connor said. "I didn't even need to get 10 words out and the board unanimously approved a $5,000 donation to the family."Another organization that the Irish pub works closely with, the Marine Corps Law Enforcement Foundation, reached out to O'Connor to see if they could also help Dickson's family. The foundation presented a check for $60,000 for Dickson's two children.O'Connor explained that with the size of the event he doesn't get to know every team, but he remembered the Jim Thorpers partly because of an article that was in Times News a few years ago on the team. The article is framed and hanging in the Irish Pub's Philadelphia location."Guys like Mike and all of the riders' enthusiasm is what drives us to keep the event going," O'Connor said.Raising moneyThere is a $25 registration fee for each rider and they are each also responsible to raise an additional $175 through sponsorships. The Tour de Shore's website makes it easy for the riders to solicit donations through email or social media sites.To help raise funds for the Jim Thorpe team some of the riders have organized a basket raffle which will be held on the deck from 5 to 8 p.m. Thursday at Molly Maguires Pub.Lisa Chapman, who will be riding for the third time this year with her husband Bill, said that there will be over 50 baskets, gift cards to local businesses and some "blockbuster" prizes available. One of the blockbuster prizes is a spa get-away package to Bear Creek Mountain Ski Resort. The resort also donated lift tickets with rentals."A few years ago I mentioned that I wanted to do the ride, and the next year when registration opened up Dugan came up to me and reminded me," Chapman said.The community support for the riders is strong. Two years ago a rider was talking to Dugan about the ride but said that she wouldn't be able to participate that year because she didn't have time to get the sponsors, and couldn't afford to foot the $200 out of her pocket. Former Jim Thorpe Mayor Dennis Gallagher overheard the conversation and the next day gave Dugan a check for her full obligation.The rideWhile people often say that the ride from Philly to Atlantic City is downhill, Dugan points out that the ride is not easy."There are many hills on the course, as well as road hazards and traffic hazards." Dugan said.There are four rest areas along the route. Some veteran riders urge the newer riders to take advantage of them, suggesting that they just concentrate on getting to the next rest area.The team used social media to schedule training rides. On the team's Facebook page riders will post that they are planning to ride at a certain day and time, and other riders will normally join them. Some opt for road rides while many take advantage of the bike trail through Lehigh Gorge State Park."Many members of the JT community who do not actively participate in the ride are a tremendous help to our team," Dugan said. "We have people who volunteer to photograph our team, people who stop at the rest stops to provide food, water, Gatorade etc."There is also a very large growing population of local people who wait for us at the finish line and spend a night or two in AC with us to celebrate the accomplishment and the money we raised."Dugan expects more than 100 people from this area to be there in Atlantic City.Anyone interested in joining the ride can get info on the Irish Pub Tour de Shore's website. Information about the Jim Thorpers will be available at the basket raffle, or at Molly Maguires Pub and Steakhouse in Jim Thorpe.