Wesley Bell cools himself off running alongside Tim Murray at the 2017 Warsaw Optimist Triathlon. (File photo by Mike Deak)

WINONA LAKE – For now 25 years, changes for the better have been made to the Warsaw Optimist Triathlon. For half of that time, Ron Donkers has overseen those improvements. As the triathlon reaches a milestone this year, Donkers has chosen to make one marked improvement.

Donkers, having served as race coordinator for 13 years for the triathlon, is stepping away in 2018. While he still will be on site for this year’s event, set to take place Saturday, June 30, Donkers is choosing to retire from the role.

“I’ve done what I can to keep this going from when I took this over 13 years ago,” Donkers said. “Twenty five years of this has been a challenge to keep it up, but I feel like this is still a very viable and healthy triathlon. We’ve been able to do so many things with the event to help the community, and that’s really what it’s all about.”

Donkers took over for the late Phil Eherenman in 2005, helping keep alive one of the more popular local events of the summer. Donkers attributed much of the growth and success of the Warsaw Optimist Triathlon’s early years to the work Eherenman did, and tried to continue the work in his own right. Donkers pointed to the rise in attendance of the triathlon as a product that spawned multiple other triathlons in the area, noting events in Fort Wayne, South Bend and Syracuse likely were able to sustain success due to the roots of Warsaw. While the triathlon numbers at Warsaw have slipped a little in recent years, Donkers attributes that to the taking off of the area tris that give competitors more options.

“Phil deserves all the recognition for putting the race together,” Donkers said. “The community needed a healthy activity and combined with a way to generate money for those less fortunate. I like to think that we’ve been able to build strong kids in our community through the scholarships, kids that become leaders in the classrooms and soon in their communities. Good kids need to be recognized. That’s what Phil wanted to do with this, help strengthen our community and its future.”

What has evolved into the current model of the Warsaw Optimist Triathlon is a quarter-mile swim out and back from Winona Lake Park, or, a similar jaunt in a kayak that spans 1.5 total miles out and back. Once out of the water, competitors shift to the bike, which runs out to Pierceton and back for 14.4 total miles. The third leg of the triathlon has runners head onto the Winona Lake Greenway Trail system, which was a touch the Warsaw Breakfast Optimist Club and the race committee wanted to incorporate when the trail system was completed a few years ago. The rave reviews from runners sold the 3.6-mile route as part of the course, which comprises what will be the 25th running.

Taking over as race coordinator for the triathlon is Paula Deming, who is shifting over from triathlon competitor. Deming has run about a half-dozen Warsaw Optimist Triathlons before, giving her the advantage of being very familiar with the structure of the event and what all goes into making a successful annual staple.

“It’s a God-send for us to have Paula taking over,” Donkers said. “She wanted to branch out, and I told her, ‘I think I know where you can get your start.’ She’s not just a former competitor, she will bring new ideas, and she is a local business woman.”

Added Deming, who runs Green Earth Multisport in Winona Lake, “They’ve given me the reigns. I look forward to seeing the triathlon from a different perspective. We’ll see how it goes this year, I’m trying to learn as much as I can. I really want to put an emphasis on getting more kids involved. We have reached out to the YMCA to get more kids interested.”

The 2017 Warsaw Optimist Triathlon saw local triathlon star Scott Erba win the race at 1:01:30, with Tim Murray second at 1:03:21. On the women’s side, Shanna Bonnell took the title at 1:09:55, beating another triathlon legend, Diana Schowe, and her 1:17:59.

For more information on the 25th Warsaw Optimist Triathlon, visit the event web site.