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Bymans named Canadian snowmobiling family of the year

Talking to Greg Byman, he makes it seem like it was luck more than anything that helped him and his family win the Canadian Snowmobiling Family of the Year award.
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Greg and Barb Byman show of their B.C. Snowmobiling Family of the Year award

Talking to Greg Byman, he makes it seem like it was luck more than anything that helped him and his family win the Canadian Snowmobiling Family of the Year award.

“We’re pretty casual about it,” he said. “The opportunity was there to build the cabin. Lots of sledding opportunities don’t have that opportunity.”

Greg, his wife Barb and son Bryce won the award from the Canadian Council of Snowmobiling Organizations earlier this month. He will be presented with the honour in front of about 400 people at the International Snowmobile Congress in Calgary on Saturday, June 4.

The Bymans were nominated for their efforts in getting the Revelstoke Snowmobile Club’s new Boulder Mountain cabin built last year. Barb, who is a member of the club as a non-rider, took the lead in writing out the grant applications in order to obtain the necessary funding and Greg led the construction effort.

“We did it because we enjoy the spirit that came out of it,” said Greg when asked why they got so heavily involved.

Ron La Roy and Cathy Burke of the club nominated the Bymans for the award. First, they won the B.C. Family of the Year award from the B.C. Snowmobiling Federation in April and then they won the national award following a vote by the national committee.

“They were instrumental in getting the funding for the new cabin and seeing through the construction,” said La Roy. “Just following it up and getting it finished was a lot of work and they basically headed the whole project.”

Dennis Burns, the executive director of the CCSO, said that the products and services offered at the Bymans’ store Rough Country Marine also played a role in their nomination.

“Greg is very heavily involved in the club,” said Burns. “Its just incredible the amount of work he’s done, not only related to the cabin but also building bridges and doing all kinds of work.

“And he’s a big rider too.”

Greg has been a snowmobiler since the 1970s and a member of the RSC since 1980, he said. He was president of the club in the mid-80s and just recently took over the role again. Barb, while not a sledder, is still an active member of the club.

The Bymans are the second family from Revelstoke to win the honours in the past three years – the La Roy family won the award in 2009.

“It speaks a lot for the efforts the members put forth in maintaining the club and making sure it keeps going,” said La Roy.