Surely you know of the long-held belief that a man should carry his new bride over the threshold of the house the first time they enter as husband and wife.  The origins off this custom vary from repelling demons possibly following the new bride into the home, to purporting the idea of the bride being too "ladylike" to go willingly into a man's bedchamber (even her husband's).  For 18 years, the North American Wife Carrying Championship has celebrated this honored tradition by hosting a race to find the most dynamic duo this tradition has created!

The official website claims that it all started in Finland, and more specifically - the 19th century legend of Herkko Rosvo-Ronkainen.  Ol' Herkko and his buddies were a robbin' and pilligin' fools!  They took food, treasure, and women from every nearby village they could find!  The food and the treasure came willingly, but the women did not.  Since these guys were usually on foot, they had to carry their loot on their back - this included the ladies.  At some point, the guys started racing and bam!  A new sport is born!

The North American Wife Carrying Championship we know has no ties to such wife-thievery, and has been holding the annual race since 1992.  The premise is simple: Carry your wife over an obstacle course, without dropping her, faster than the other married couples and you win!

This year, the champions are Jake and Kirsten Barney!  The power couple hail from Virginia, and they smashed the course in just 58.26 seconds using empathy, communication, and good old fashioned athletic awesomeness!  They will take home the grand prize of 12 cases of beer and five times Kirsten's weight in cash!  FYI that's $630 - not that it's any of your business!  The couple have also won a trip to Finland for the World Wife Carrying Championship next year.

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