Troyce Beglaw is usually a busy man, but lately that word - busy - would be an understatement.
The Keremeos resident has spent a good part of the summer involved in local and national athletic events, starting with the Peach Classic in Penticton in July where he was the Head Referee for the Olympic distance triathlon.
Beglaw returned from Quebec on August 19, where he spent the previous week volunteering as the Canada Games Chief Race Official.
He got back just in time to participate in the run up of meetings surrounding this weekend’s initial Penticton Challenge race, where he will act as the Technical Delegate, responsible for the technical operations of the race.
“I hand other technical people their assignments, make sure the i’s are dotted and the t’s are crossed to ensure that the race is run the way Challenge wants it run,” Beglaw said. “Part of my role is to ensure safety and fairness.”
The demanding tasks of officiating for these popular athletic events is compounded by the additional distance Beglaw travels - for instance, the past few weeks have involved almost nightly meetings in preparation for Challenge - including a nightly drive to Penticton.
Beglaw has been involved in triathlon officiating since 2000. He got involved after his kids took up the sport.
“I keep saying yes instead of no,” he laughs about his continuing involvement, which he feels helped him to win a Queen’s Jubilee medal.
A potential issue in this inaugural Challenge event concerns lake temperatures on race day, August 25.
“The lake is at 24 degrees right now,” Beglaw said, “which is the cut off for wetsuits for the amateur category. We’ll be watching temperatures closely through the week.”
Beglaw said that the Challenge organization is encouraged by response to the new race. With more opportunities for local involvement there will be more opportunities for return support to the communities that play host to the race.