Warm weather melts pond hockey tournament plans

(KMSP) - The warmer weather had very bad timing for those counting on some solid ice. The North American Pond Hockey Championships at Lake Minnetonka had to move their tournament from the lake to the parking lot.

No one obviously wanted it to come to this, the black-topped back up. But once the surface of Lake Minnetonka turned into about an inch and a half of water, the call came.

The 16 rinks so carefully created over the last couple weeks in Excelsior Bay were unplayable and organizers began being dismantling them.

“It's a bummer because you have so many people pour their heart into it and donate their time and the ice held up kind of well until the rain last night,” said J. Lindsey, the tournament organizer. “The rain kind of killed us.”

The North American Pond Hockey Championships had bad luck with Mother Nature last year too and improvised with a bean bag tournament, which they did again on Friday. They also held a street hockey tournament and about half the teams decided to stay in, rolling with the climate curve ball.

The tournament still has their concert series and their 5K and still will generate money for charity - this year for ALS.