This Maine Ski Resort Hosts a Competition Straight Out of a Rom-Com

Last weekend, an almost literal metaphor for the test of marriage happened at Sunday River, Maine, during the 26th Annual North American Wife Carrying Competition.

The competition’s name, meanwhile, is actually literal.

To win, husbands must carry their wives through a course that includes a sand trap, a log hurdle, and the “widow maker” water feature faster than the other competitors (entrants don’t actually need to be married and can be of the same sex, but same sex couples can’t qualify for the World Championship based on that event’s rules—yes, there’s a Wife Carrying World Championship). 

This year, team A Over T, consisting of William and Antoinette, claimed first place. They were followed by Revenge of the Doughnuts and Guac & Roll. 

The prizes were almost as absurd and fun as the competition itself, with the winning team taking home five times Antoinette’s weight in cash and six cases of beer.

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How, exactly, did this wife-carrying business start?

According to Sunday River, it’s based on the 19th-century Finnish story of Herkko Ronkainen, also known as “Ronkainen the Robber.” 

Accounts vary, but one legend says that wife-carrying stemmed from the practice of men trying to impress Ronkainen by kidnapping and carrying wives away from neighboring villages. The modern alternative—carrying your wife for fun and glory—sounds far better for the parties involved, particularly the wives. 

In 1991, wife carrying became a modern competitive discipline in Finland, followed by the creation of the North American Wife Carrying Championship in 1999 by Sunday River. 

While wife-carrying techniques differ, Sunday River noted that most competitors choose the “Estonian Carry,” where the wife’s thighs rest on the husband’s shoulders in an upside-down piggyback position. The event, while not technically related to skiing, does seem to be a solid—and punishing—way to prepare for the winter season (or stress test your ACLs), which, at Sunday River, should be right around the corner.

The resort typically begins skiing and snowboarding operations in late October or early November. Last season, Sunday River got the fun started early with a one-off ski day on Halloween.

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