Physical fitness is a lifelong endeavour that most people struggle with when they become adults, however, a local Swan River Constable has been using physical activity as a motivator to not only achieve her own personal goals but to do some good as well.
Briana Blencowe has participated in many events, particularly triathlons, over the years and for the first time, she competed at the World Police and Fire Games this past August hosted in Winnipeg.
“I competed this year in the World Police and Fire Games,” said Briana Blencowe. “This was my first time competing and I did the triathlon.
At this event, it was an Olympic distance triathlon, which is a 1.5 km swim, a 40 km bike ride and a 10 km run.
I started training at the beginning of April, specifically for that race, after I was cleared by the doctor to return to work and full activity.
“It was a different kind of experience for me. I have completed many triathlons since 2014, along with a few in Manitoba this year.
This one was smaller than I am used to as there are normally more triathletes participating in them.
However, the main difference in this small Triathlon was that it hosted many international athletes that are First Responders. There were 60 individual racers and nine teams from all over the world competing at St. Malo Provincial Park.
“This one was a challenge as it was only the second time I’ve raced the Olympic distance,” said Blencowe. “I was going into it with personal goals, rather than thinking of representing Canada on the podium. Just coming off an injury, I had goals I wanted to achieve for each discipline. My top two goals were to have fun and to finish.
My race-specific goals were to finish in under four hours, so the hope was to complete the swim in under 45 minutes; transition one in under five minutes; bike in under 90 minutes; transition two in under five minutes and run under 90 minutes.
“I completed all my goals with an official time of 3 hours and 27 minutes. I completed the swim with a time of 33:56 minutes; transition one was 2:54; the bike with a time of 89:26; transition two was 3:39 and the run with a time of 82:20.
“It was a challenge as you are swimming with all the other racers at the same time, then on the bike course the riding got tough as it was extremely windy,” said Blencowe. “It was a lot of fun and nice too. There were people there cheering us on along the course and through the park, which is where we got to see the different racers during the 2 loop run course. The cheering of ‘Go Canada’ or ‘Go Brazil’ or ‘Go Sweden’ was neat as I was running with people from all over the world. The triathlon community is always very supportive of their athletes and I was so happy to see that same support at this event as well.
Blencowe participated in other triathlons this summer including the Riding Mountain Triathlon which proved to be a course personal best.
“I completed my 15th triathlon and third race of the season, post-injury,” said Blencowe. “I raced the sprint distance at Riding Mountain National Park (RMNP) for the second time since 2019. The wind gusts on the water meant white caps, so for safety reasons, the swim course was cut short from 750 meters to 300 meters.
“Overall, I finished in fifth place in my age group, out of 13 women. My time was 1 hour, 33 minutes and 42 seconds. I was able to cut three minutes off both my bike and run time during this race, which led to me achieving my personal best on this course.”
Recently Blencowe did another event, but this time to create awareness and raise funds. It was held again at RMNP, but was strictly a bike ride.
“I did the MS Bike Tour in RMNP last month,” said Blencowe. “Normally it’s done over two days, but this year it was held in one. It started and finished at Elkhorn Resort and riders had two options. The first was to turn around at the 35 km mark to do a 70 km bike or at at North Gate (54km mark), and come back for a 108 km ride, which was what my husband and I chose.
“Our goal for this was more a relaxed ride and to take breaks at each stop provided. Our ride time alone was about five hours and 14 minutes but came in just over six hours with breaks.
‘The fun part was going down that really big hill at the North end of Riding Mountain, at one point my speed got to 61.9 km an hour,” said Blencowe. “It’s unfortunate that they started the event going down the hill as it made the climb uphill feel that much tougher.”
This is a cause very near and dear to Blencowe’s heart, for she has seen first-hand how MS impacts people who are diagnosed with the disease and their families as well.
“Before I became a police officer, I was a personal support worker,” said Blencowe. “I worked in home care and in nursing home care. Over the years I was the caregiver to people who had been diagnosed with MS and who were at different stages of the disease.
Just seeing their lives change as it progresses, is something no one should have to experience. I’m fortunate that myself and none of my family members have been specifically impacted by it, but I have seen how it does affect people and families. This is one of the reasons why I’ve chosen to participate in this fundraiser over the years.
“I have until the end of the month to continue to raise funds, but I am at $1,345 raised so far,” she continued. “I always try to support my friends and family who are doing their own fundraisers, but it’s nice to see that others support me as well.
“It’s not always easy to ask people for money, because there are always so many organizations in need, but at the same time I’m putting myself out there and doing something that is challenging. It’s nice to have that support and people recognize the effort.”
Blencowe has raised funds for a variety of charities over the years through physical activity. What she has achieved is remarkable and goes to show how one person can make a difference.
“I’ve kept track of my fundraising efforts since 2019 and totalled all the amounts I’ve raised for charities, which is over $7,000,” said Blencowe. “It’s been great to not only challenge myself physically but to help do some good through raising awareness and funds to help others too.”

The Mental Wellness and Suicide Prevention Committee held a chili cookoff at the Veterans Community Hall on Friday (Oct. 6), allowing groups to promote their organizations as well as promote Mental Health Awareness Week. Patrons arrived to sample five different recipes of chili, with the opportunity to select the best tasting chili as well as the group with the best team spirit...

There’s a new business in town geared to provide outdoor equipment and rentals, without one having to travel out of town to look for them.

MDB Outdoors is offering a range of outdoor supplies ranging from lawn, garden, chainsaw, hunting supplies, as well as rental and repair services.

Read the rest of the story in this week’s issue.

The recipient of the firefighter of the year award, who was chosen by his fellow members of the Roblin Fire & Rescue department, is Lance Wohlgemuth.

Lance joined the Roblin Fire & Rescue Department in 2020 and proudly wears #20, which is the number his late father, Darrel Wohlgemuth wore from 2001 to 2019. Lance lives in Roblin with his wife, Nicole.

Check out this week’s feature.

About three in morning of Sept. 27, Roblin RCMP received a report that someone had opened the door to their truck but they were able to scare the person away. The incident happened TWO HOURS PRIOR to the call.

Members patrolled the area, but no one was located.

See what’s kept police busy in this week’s RCMP report.

The tri-community has no shortage of incredibly talented beaders, however gaining access to beading supplies is another thing. A new home-based shop, Beading Culture, has opened up and is selling beads and supplies. The business was based on Beading Culture Owner Ashley Robertson’s own experience in beading and looking for supplies.
“I was around 15 years old when I was introduced into beading from my sister,” said Robertson. “My sister had learned how to bead from our grandmother. Our grandmother had passed away when I was two years old, so my sister was able to pass that knowledge on to me.

The lack of personal care home (PCH) bed resources for northern Manitoba has caught the attention of one northern and she plans to do something about it. The provincial government announced funding for new PCH beds for four of the regional health authorities (RHA), however the Northern Regional Health Authority was not one of them.
“I saw a media release concerning the July 7, 2023, announcement by Scott Johnston, Minister of Seniors and Long-term Care,” said Katy Anderson. “The presentation was made in Niverville, but I think that the media release came from Steinbach. I saw both a video and a press release.
“The issue is not only the number of future PCH beds but, also, future beds in Supportive Living pilot projects, which will help seniors live independently longer with supports, as needed. The announcement touted that all these new beds would be built in care homes similar to those built in recent years in Steinbach, Carmen and Niverville, which are recognized for their design and innovation. Some of the homes in northern Manitoba are far from innovative.”
According to data that Anderson has compiled from the announcement and on RHA websites, she has broken down the population that each RHA services and what has been promised by the provincial government as part of the announcement.

The Elbert Chartrand Friendship Centre held the annual Truth Walk for National Day for Truth and Reconciliation this past Saturday (Sept. 30), to recognize all the children that endured or didn’t come home from the residential schools...

The Dauphin Clippers boys golf team won a bronze medal at provincials, Sept. 29, at the Pleasant Valley Golf Club south of Belmont.

Jackson Delaurier shot a 75 to finish one shot back of Neepawa’s Hayden Delaloye.

Boston Karlson shot an 82, while Cash McCallum finished with an 87 and Mitchell Rauliuk shot a 94.

St. Paul’s Crusaders won the provincial title on a tie-breaker over the Steinbach Sabres after both teams finished with a 236.

In the girls’ tournament, the College Jeanne Sauve Olympiens won the gold, with a 278, two shots better than the Carman Cougars.

Swan Valley won the bronze with a 289, led by Crystal Zamzow, who had the low girls’ score with a 70.

Only the top three scores go towards to the team’s overall total.

Cross-country zones

Dauphin hosted the Zone 8 cross-country regionals, Sept. 26, at the Northgate Trail System, with three runners finishing first in their categories.

Cecilie Larson in the varsity girls, Roman Polovinka in the JV boys and Liam Sobering in the varsity boys all won their races, while Ava Paziuk was second in the varsity girls race.

Also competing in the varsity girls race were Kara Paziuk, who was third; Calla Tabin who finished fourth; Rachel Desseaux who was fifth; and Ellie Czarnecki, who was sixth.

Other competitors in the JV girls race were Jessica White, who finished 11th and Emma Windsor, who finished 12th.

All athletes have qualified for provincials, Oct. 11, at the Asessippi Ski Hill.

Clippers sail to first win

The Dauphin Clippers football team hit the win column, Friday in Dauphin, scoring a 40-6 win over the ParkWest Outlaws.

Will Miner led the offence with 109 yards rushing on 11 carries, while Sully Fox ran the ball 11 times for 60 yards, including two touchdowns.

Cody Zurba was seven for 14 in passing for 60 yards.

The defence was led by Josiah Seale with four tackles, two assists, half a sack, one knockdown and an interception he returned for a touchdown. Lars Gudbjartson had six tackles, one assist and one interception. Jackson Cheater had five tackles, one assist, half a sack and one knock down, while

Declan Waggoner chipped in with three tackles, two assists, an interception returned for a touchdown and a knockdown.

Dauphin will now take its 1-3 record into Neepawa, Saturday, to face the 0-4 Tigers at 3 p.m.

The Dauphin Kings suffered their first loss of the season, Sunday, when they dropped a 2-1 decision to the previously winless Selkirk Steelers at Credit Union Place.

The loss came on the heels of a 4-3 overtime win over the Portage Terriers, Friday in Portage. That win improved Dauphin’s record to 3-0-0-0, until Sunday’s loss.

Naaman Hofer scored the overtime winner against Portage, just 56 seconds into the extra frame.

Myles Yearwood, Gabriel Bugeaud and Nolan Wickham had the Dauphin goals in regulation, while Nolan Nenow, Grant Dardis and former King Slade Stanick replied for Portage.

Cole Sheffield stopped 20 shots in the victory and Portage’s Gavin Renwick made 35 saves in the loss.

Special teams proved to be the difference against Selkirk.

In front of a crowd of 727 spectators, Deshon Frieson and Owen Wiehs each scored on a power play for Selkirk, while Jack Hodgins had a busy night, being called upon to make 37 stops in goal.

Ethan Williment was the only King to find the back of the net. Austin Seibel made his Kings debut in goal and made 19 saves.

Selkirk finished two-for-six on the power play, including four man advantages in the third period. Dauphin was scoreless in four chances.

Kings head coach and general manager Doug Hedley said the Kings played well after the second period, with good puck control.

“They weren’t really getting any opportunities and we had some good chances,” he said. “You can’t kill eight minutes in penalties in the third period and not be on your heels a little bit. We had some good opportunities at the end, but couldn’t get it through. That’s what happens when you set yourselves back.”

Hedley felt the Kings rebounded well in the second period after falling behind in the first period.

“We didn’t come off the hop real good. Not being on the ice for a couple of days doesn’t help. We couldn’t get in the building (Saturday),” he said. “It is what it is. No excuses. They worked hard and found a way to win.”

Although the Kings had 38 shots, they didn’t really generate much in the way of quality scoring chances, something Hedley feels needs to improve.

“I think we’ve got to get better in the offensive zone. We do it all the time. We talk about creating offence. We didn’t drive the middle enough to get pucks to the net. And then we missed short side, high side instead of going far pad,” he said. “We’ve got to start doing some simple smart things. Intangibles win hockey games and it’s the little things that make the difference. We didn’t have any net front presence in the first period at all. And until we get that mentality and it becomes habit, then we’re going to let goaltenders see pucks. We’re not going to create offence for scoring if we’re not going to be willing to go to the hard areas.”

On the flip side, the Kings limited Selkirk’s chances.

“I thought we controlled the puck after the first period. And when we stayed five-on-five I thought we were pretty good,” Hedley said, adding the league has a lot of parity this season, much like it had the last few years. “It doesn’t matter who you play this year. The parity is unbelievable and the speed is there. There’s some good speed in the league and if we’re playing with speed and play fast, we’re a very tough team to play against. And in the second and third period we were that. We just couldn’t get the win.”

The Kings will get a stiff test tonight when they host the Virden Oil Capitals at 7:30 p.m.

With a veteran-laden lineup, the 2-2-1-0 Oil Capitals are among the favourites to win the MGEU West Division.

Following Tuesday’s game, the Kings will face the Neepawa Titans, who are off to a 3-2-0-0 start to the season and will not be an easy opponent.

Dauphin’s lineup was bolstered by the addition of veteran Alex Senf from the North American Hockey League.

Senf had 19 goals and 39 points with the Kings last season and was in the lineup against Selkirk.

“We know he can score, so we’re hoping that touch is contagious,” Hedley said.