Randy Matz: Body Zone Sports Superstar

Anyone who knows 68-year-old Randy Matz knows about his passion for hockey. From dek/street hockey at a rink in Sinking Spring to inline hockey at Body Zone, he’s played some form of hockey since 1970.

When he isn’t playing hockey, he’s watching it. He’s a devoted Flyers fan and when the Reading Royals started playing in Reading in 2001, he became a season ticket holder.

 

Today you’ll find Randy on our ice as a participant in our 35+ Ice Hockey League. It all started eight years ago when his friends encouraged him to play ice hockey. He took a few ice skating lessons at Body Zone and started playing in a league. As the league became more competitive, so did his interest and desire to become a part of the action. Randy is a regular face in our league. He plays goalie every game, but that wasn’t always his position.

 

Randy used to play defense but says he was always fascinated by goalies and Bernie Parent, in particular. Randy loves watching a goalie’s challenge of facing the shooter. He knows goalies are usually the most needed position when putting together a team, so he decided to become one. His friends told him he has the “typical personality” of a goalie — wanting to be in the goal, becoming a target — and that you have to be “crazy like Randy to want to be a goalie!”

 

“Randy has been with us (the 35+ league) since the very beginning when we only had two teams. The league has grown since then and so have Randy’s goaltending skills. He’s a great guy to have on your team; he loves hockey, always has a smile on his face and is excited to play each game. His youthful spirit allows him to play against guys half his age in our league. Randy is an inspiration to many of us and continues to provide motivation to us each season.” – Derek Holland, League Coordinator

As Randy’s license plate says, he is a “hockey nut.” He loves the competition and camaraderie of Body Zone’s adult league. This past season he played on team Zebras, which he says is a really great group of guys, as are the 35+ players overall. Randy told us he is looking forward to playing again in our spring league that begins in April. Since retiring, Randy says he really wants to stay active, so he’s going to keep playing as long as he is physically able, the game stays fun, and he can still stop a few pucks! Way to go Randy!