Congratulations to all the teams who headed out to Sunday River Resort in Maine over the weekend to participate in the North American Wife Carrying Championship for the chance to win decent amount cash and a monumental amount of beer.
The 278-yard obstacle course featured uneven ground, log hurdles, sand traps and intimidating “Widow Maker” water hazard. Its up to the teams how the wife is carried but most opted for the “Estonian Carry” where the female participant holds the male around the waist and wraps her legs around his neck so the males hands are free.
The winning couple took home the wife’s weight in Goose Island Oktoberfest beer and five times her weight in cash. The winners also earn a spot in the World Championship in Sonkajärvi, Finland. Here’s some more videos from the event, glad some of the athletes chose to wear helmets.
North American Wife Carrying Championship®
Not Married? No Problem.
Couples don’t have to be legally married, but teams must consist of one man and one woman, and both must be at least 21 years old on race day, to qualify for the world championship.
How You Carry Is Up to You.
Traditional piggyback or classic Estonian-style (legs over the shoulders, arms around the waist)—it’s your call, as long as your partner stays on board. Need tips? Watch our how-to video.
Fall Fest Fun:
Wife Carrying is just one part of Sunday River’s Fall Fest—a weekend packed with live music, food, scenic chairlift rides, a beer garden, and more. Make it a day trip or a full weekend getaway in the mountains of Maine.
How it works
The course at Sunday River is built to international specifications at 278 yards in length, with two dry obstacles and one water obstacle. The race format varies slightly from the World Championship in that there is no minimum weight limit for the wife, and the winner is determined by a head-to-head final race rather than being determined only by the finishing time in the competitor’s initial round. Additionally, the North American course is run on uneven ground with elevation changes, as compared to the World course, which is predominantly flat. Helmets are not required for the North American Championship.
Wife carrying is based on husband-and-wife teams racing with the husband carrying the wife through a regulation length obstacle course featuring log hurdles, sand traps, and the always popular “widow maker” water hazard. The fastest two teams from the qualifying round then compete head-to-head in a final heat. Competing couples neither have to be married, nor must they must be comprised of a man and a woman, but both must be at least 21 years old to enter. Same sex couples, however, will not qualify for Worlds based on the World rules.
How the wife is carried is the competitors’ choice, though most use the “Estonian carry” where the female participant holds the male around the waist and tightens her legs around his neck, thereby freeing his hands. The winning couple takes home the wife’s weight in Goose Island Oktoberfest beer, five times her weight in cash, and an entry into the World Championship, which takes place in Finland the following summer.
Prizes
1st Place: The wife’s weight in beer, and 5 times her weight in cash.
2nd Place: The wife’s weight in soda and $50 Sunday River Gift Card
3rd Place: $50 Sunday River Gift Card
Best Dressed: $50 Sunday River Gift Card
Most Average (The time closest to the average of ALL times): $50 Sunday River Gift Card
Best Wipeout: $50 Sunday River Gift Card
Wife Carrying History
The legend behind the North American Wife Carrying Championship is based on 19th-century Finnish legend “Ronkainen the Robber” who had high qualifications for the men he accepted into his band. To prove their worth, men had to compete through a difficult course with a heavy sack (or woman grabbed from neighboring villages) on their back. The first modern-day wife-carrying event was held in Finland in 1991 and foreign contestants were admitted in 1995. Qualifying events are also held in Australia, Sweden, and Estonia. The North American Wife Carrying Championship was founded in 1999 by Sunday River, which today is the organization that owns the event and serves as the sanctioning body for the United States and Canada to determine the North American winners of the World Championships.
Related: North American Wife Carrying Championships Returns To Sunday River Resort
