The sport of recreational hockey recently took a hit with news reports of heart attacks during and after participation. However, we won't place too much emphasis on the study - heart attacks occur everywhere and for all kinds of life style reasons. The main culprit leading to heart attacks after strenuous exercise is lack of fitness maintained by regular exercise. Any active sport is a great way to stay in shape, but participants should get in shape to play, not play to get in shape. See the related story on this page titled Hockey Heart Health Study.

In past issues we have written about individual Senior Oldtimer Hockey (SOH) tournaments. This month, however, we decided to write about the movement of SOH. The SOH sector continues to grow and is pushing the upper bounds of aging. Tournaments now are expanding their Divisional structure to include 70 plus, 75 and yes 80 years of age divisions. Senior Oldtimer Hockey is going to be around for some time yet.

Although competitive team tournaments remain the most available style of tournament play, individual registration tournaments are becoming much more common and much more desirable. Emphasis is on meeting new players, establishing camaraderie, playing skilfully and using teamwork to battle your temporary opponents. Your teammate of yesterday is your opponent today. Every town and city that has an arena has a SOH organization. This is where the old boys go every Monday, Wednesday and Friday morning to pretend they are eighteen again. They play regularly from the time the ice is in the arena until it is taken out again in the spring. Some even attend Adult Hockey School during the summer so they can surprise their teammates in the fall with their newly found hockey skills.

It is in the fall when the tournament circuit begins. In addition to regular play SOH players set their visiting schedule to complement the tournament schedule. If you want to see family and friends regularly you start in July with hockey school in Summerland; then it's off to Salmon Arm in late August; the Seniors Games and the Masters Games, then the Parksville Panther tournament the week after Labour Day, the Kamloops tournament in September; the Vernon tournament early October, Kelowna in early November and the Penticton Ironman during the third week of November. Then take some time off for R and R, prepare for Christmas and, oh yes - play hockey everyday at the local arena throughout the holidays and get ready for the winter tournaments. Post New Year tournaments start in Kamloops in January, go on to Oliver in March and finish off with the largest and best organized of all - the Capital City of Victoria in the Playmakers Tournament.

All in all it is almost a full time circuit that might even make a professional athlete blush but what a wonderful way to spend an active and fulfilling retirement. What about the summer you ask? Well …… there is the golf circuit you know! Retirement…. Wonderful!

2006-12