The Estonian Carry
October 10, 2012 8:01 AM   Subscribe

 
That second photo looks like a double decker.
The National Wife Carrying Husband and Wife-Carrying Championships.
posted by weapons-grade pandemonium at 8:06 AM on October 10, 2012 [3 favorites]


Is the "wife's weight in beer" prize Estonian beer? And if so, is that a good thing?
posted by Egg Shen at 8:10 AM on October 10, 2012


Dave, compact and slim, has the bulging calves of a UPS driver. Which is because he is a UPS driver.

I enjoyed that. And as a perennial second-placer, I enjoyed the article.

MetaFilter: I want to be wife-carrying specific

if so, is that a good thing?

on preview: most definitely.
posted by mrgrimm at 8:11 AM on October 10, 2012


. . .please.
posted by Danf at 8:15 AM on October 10, 2012 [2 favorites]


This sounds like a lot more jolly fun than the short story The Things They Carried, even if the competitors take it fairly seriously.
posted by Wolfdog at 8:20 AM on October 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


Upon reflection, I move that we get rid of war and replace it with this.
posted by Wolfdog at 8:23 AM on October 10, 2012 [4 favorites]


This is my favorite thing to watch on ESPN8 at four in the morning.
posted by Blazecock Pileon at 8:25 AM on October 10, 2012 [2 favorites]


And now I'm approaching the “Widow-Maker,” a devilish, three-foot deep moat that guards the finish line. ... As I approach, I hear spectators shouting about my wife, “She's thirsty, she's thirsty.”

Love the heckling.
posted by Kabanos at 8:25 AM on October 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


Sexist? I honestly don't know.
Entertaining? No one's twisting their arm to get them to play.
Rewarding? Cash and Beer... need I say more?
Awesome? Absolutely, especially the doubles category.
On my to-do list? Most certainly not.
posted by RolandOfEld at 8:30 AM on October 10, 2012


I am sure being upside down with your face in some sweaty dude's ass is a common and perfectly valid kink, but it is not one of mine.
posted by elizardbits at 8:32 AM on October 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


I am sure being upside down with your face in some sweaty dude's ass is a common and perfectly valid kink, but it is not one of mine.

Yeah. I've dated some big strong guys who were reasonably athletic for the over-30 cohort, but I would not want to be bobbing head-down over rocky terrain and water (!!) while they struggled to run and keep steady footing.
posted by availablelight at 8:36 AM on October 10, 2012


Before I clicked through I thought it would be something like the men carrying the women in their arms over a series of threshholds. Or something like that.
posted by scratch at 8:37 AM on October 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


For those who wanted to know the results (because HELLO, IT WAS LAST SATURDAY): one of the couples mentioned in this article did, in fact, win. (Spoiler in the URL.)
posted by Madamina at 8:39 AM on October 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


I'm not sure, but I think calling the toughest stretch of the course the "Widow Maker" might be a little ironic.
posted by daisystomper at 9:36 AM on October 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


“Some people say, 'Oh, Wife-Carrying is such a sexist sport,'" Lacey Castro says. "But I feel like I've been training just as long as my husband has. The women are forcing the husbands to do it just as much as the other way.”

This does not make it not-sexist.
posted by desuetude at 9:36 AM on October 10, 2012


I'm not sure if I think this is sexist or not, but the idea this exists is annoying my face off. I do like the use of the sportsesoterica tag though.
posted by sweetkid at 10:30 AM on October 10, 2012


I'm not sure, but I think calling the toughest stretch of the course the "Widow Maker" might be a little ironic.

Clearly, it should be the Widower Makerer.
posted by Zed at 10:42 AM on October 10, 2012


I think it's called widow maker because if you screw it up your wife kills you afterwards.
posted by small_ruminant at 11:11 AM on October 10, 2012 [3 favorites]


This is one of those don't knock it until you try it things. It is unbelievably fun.
posted by empatterson at 11:29 AM on October 10, 2012


According to Wikipedia, Margo Uusorg of Estonia is the all-time champion of this sport, having won 5 titles with 3 different "spouses". That does seem a little bit sexist.

However, rest assured that in the Northern Savonia region of Finland where the sport originates, the women are generally tough as nails and maintain a strict policy against taking shit from no-one, definitely including their men. They are using them for transportation.
posted by ikalliom at 12:27 PM on October 10, 2012


I'm commenting in this thread before the people who hate fun get here.
posted by Evernix at 12:28 PM on October 10, 2012 [2 favorites]


Is there a standardized wife that one uses?
posted by sebastienbailard at 12:58 PM on October 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


This sport is only acceptable if a man is allowed to carry another man and a woman is allowed to carry a man or another woman.
posted by mrgrimm at 1:03 PM on October 10, 2012


It's a damn shame I am, ahem, several pounds over the weight minimum, because this looks like a blast. (My BF might not agree.)
posted by computech_apolloniajames at 3:07 PM on October 10, 2012


several pounds over the weight minimum
That shouldn't be prohibitive.
posted by Wolfdog at 4:07 PM on October 10, 2012


My guess is "several" is a euphemism. My wife is not huge but she's tall. There's no way I could carry her that far that fast or in a fashion that would be enjoyable to either of us.
posted by mrgrimm at 4:21 PM on October 10, 2012


not euphemism, what's the opposite of exaggeration
posted by mrgrimm at 4:22 PM on October 10, 2012


understatement, mrgrimm
posted by desuetude at 6:26 PM on October 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


It's not inherently sexist to carry one's wife, or to decide to exercise in this fashion as a couple. It's sexist as a category of sport.

If it were the sport of "couples person-carrying" (like couples figure-skating) then okay, marital connections are irrelevant -- pick a like-minded partner, and even go ahead and set some weight criteria if that seems necessary.

"Wife-carrying" as sport implies that it's athletically meaningful to be able to hoist one's own spouse specifically -- if you're going to make that argument, her size and any other physical attributes should be of no matter.
posted by desuetude at 6:38 PM on October 10, 2012


I'm commenting in this thread before the people who hate fun get here.
You just squeaked in!
posted by amorphatist at 8:49 PM on October 10, 2012 [1 favorite]


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