An annual event involving dirt, beer and cash once again drew dozens of competitors to a ski resort in Maine on October 12. More than 30 couples competed in the North American Wife Carrying Championship, a 254-meter race during which competitors splash through water, jump over logs and trudge through mud — all while carrying their partner on their backs or shoulders. The event began in Finland, with the first official event taking place in 1992. It has grown in popularity since then — the World Championship is held annually in the region of Sonkajärvi, and the North American Championship has taken place in Maine every year since 1999. Traditionally, the Finnish event involved male competitors carrying a woman. At the competition in Maine, couples didn't have to be married to compete, nor did they have to be a man and a woman. One participant — the carrier — was dressed as Mr Incredible, while his "wife" was dressed in pink. They and others were cheered on by crowds on both sides of the course at Sunday River ski resort. Most of the participants use a technique in which the "wife" is carried like a backpack — upside down — to keep their arms free as they run. Wearing smiles and grimaces, competitors end up wet and muddy. The champion leaves with the weight of the "wife" in beer and five times their weight in cash. To estimate the amount they win, the winning partner is put on one side of a see-saw-like scale that organizers balance out on the other side with cases of beer. "We come each year for the fun," said Wade Porterfield of Cuba, New York, who competed with his wife, Sara Porterfield. "There is really a low chance of us winning. Pretty much everybody cheers everybody on and it's a blast."