LITH Pond Hockey Tournament Postponed To Feb. 4

Indian Trail Beach this past Saturday looked more like an early spring day in March than the last day of December.

Woods Creek Lake – normally covered with ice fishermen and their huts this time of year - didn’t even have small patches of ice forming, yet. Where ice skaters and cross-country skiers typically enjoy the lake’s recreation resources, warm water lapped the shore and an occasional lone duck swam through the fog.

Only the Christmas wreath hung on the Indian Trail Beach sign gave any notion it was mid-winter.

Because of the unusually mild temperatures and lack of ice this winter, the Second Annual Lake in the Hills Pond Hockey Tournament has been postponed for one month.

Originally planned for Saturday, Jan. 14, the LITH Parks and Recreation Department already has re-scheduled the tournament for Saturday, Feb. 4, Parks and Recreation Director Trudy Wakeman said.

“We need at least 10 to 15 days of freezing temperature for the lake to freeze,” Wakeman said. “Even when we’re making ice rinks on land, we need at least 10 days for the ice to be solid.”

The weather outlook for Lake in the Hills, according to accuweather.com, calls for temperatures in the mid-20s for Monday and Tuesday, and then creeping back up to the mid-40-degree mark by the weekend.

Next week, accuweather.com forecasts predict temperatures to hover in the mid-30s.

Hopefully – for the tournament’s sake – winter will make its appearance by month's end so Woods Creek Lake freezes.

The 4-on-4 tournament already is filled to capacity with 16 teams registered to play, Wakeman said.

The 2012 participating teams hale from LITH, Crystal Lake, Fox River Grove, Barrington, Elgin, West Chicago and Genoa City, Wis., she said.

Last year’s inaugural LITH Pond Hockey Tournament was a huge success, drawing hockey players of all ages and skill level from throughout the region. Mother Nature delivered plenty of cold and snow for the event.

Tournament organizers had cleared a 75-foot-by-150-foot area of Woods Creek Lake to create the playing zones. The competitive event was perfectly timed for the players who also attended the U.S. Pond Hockey Championship tournament in Minnesota last January.

Weather permitting, this year’s tournament will start at 8 a.m. at Indian Trail Beach, 228 Indian Trail. The tournament is free and open to the public.