Alex Regen is the founder of the Berkshire Pond Hockey Classic. While he lives in Brooklyn, his lifelong love of hockey stems from the Berkshires.
“My family used to have a little cabin near Lake Buel in Monterey, and that's where I learned how to skate," Regen told WAMC. "My dad took me and my brother down to the frozen lake when I was about six years old and shoveled off some snow to make a little rink and take us through some drills. Hockey stuck with me. I ended up playing through high school in New Jersey, I played at Syracuse- They have a D1 program there, a club.”
A few winters back, Regen found himself gazing out at the frozen surface of Lake Buel and dreaming of a hockey tournament on the ice he learned to skate on.
“So, I basically sent an email to the town of Monterey to kind of find out what that would look like," Regen said. "Never heard back. Followed up with them again, and this guy responded named Tom Mensi who used to be the team dentist for the Hartford Whalers NHL team. And so, he said, meet me at [Great] Barrington Bagel Company and let's chat. So, I met him there, he had his Whalers jersey on. We started talking about pond hockey, and Bob Climo, the owner of GB Bagel Company, overheard our conversation and said, I played hockey, I'd be down to be a sponsor. So, all of a sudden it just kind of started to snowball and kind of unearthed that this region specifically is just hockey mad. I mean, there's just so many people interested in the sport here, and I feel like it really tapped into a vein, and it's grown quite a bit in three years.”
One of the factors Regen hadn’t expected to negotiate while launching the tournament was climate change.
“With warming winters, the first year we tried this, two years ago, it came down to the last week," he sighed. "We had to move it indoors to Berkshire School. And then we tried again last year, and the conditions were just right. There was a cold snap, and we got the minimum five inches of ice thickness, and we had this great day that we envisioned on Benedict Pond.”
This year’s classic will see 96 skaters competing in two divisions.
“This is the most amount of teams we've had- 16 teams, local teams," Regen said. "Berkshire County Law Enforcement is playing- They just played the Boston Bruins alumni last week, so they're probably the team to beat. But we have Berkshire Bank, who's the presenting sponsor of this, has a team. Canna Provisions is a business that's a sponsor, and they're bringing a team. The owner of the Locker Room pub is playing, and they have a team. I mean, we have a warming hut from Classical Tents. Berkshire Magazine is a sponsor, Extra Special Teas is donating tea.”
A previous version of the gathering is captured in a short documentary.
Admission is free.
“This is a fiscally sponsored tournament, so, the Nonprofit Center for the Berkshires, this is falling under their 501, c3, so if anyone- All these businesses that I mentioned, and there are others," Regen continued. "No. Six Depot is giving some coffee away, the town of Monterey and the [Massachusetts Department of Conservation & Recreation] are our partners, but everyone coming together here, these partners make for it to be a very local event. Yeah, just, just come enjoy, see some great competition.”
Regen advises attendees and participants to carpool to Benedict Pond, the 35-acre man-made body of water in Beartown State Forest in Great Barrington.
With the teams set, sponsorships locked in, and weather tentatively behaving, the classic is scheduled for February 15th.
“The NHL is donating game-used pucks," Regen told WAMC. "We've got sponsors and tent setups, there will be bonfires on the ice. There's going to be a whole rink set up for anyone who wants to safely skate. We're checking out temperatures, and the ice is already thick, so it's safe. We have the go ahead and yeah, please come out and enjoy the game of hockey where it started outdoors.”
In the event weather conditions change, the Berkshire Pond Hockey Classic has a backup date set for the 22nd.