Wife Carrying

Carrying my wife

No swimming this weekend. Instead I'm travelling down to Dorking to take part in the UK Wife Carrying Championship. Yes, us Brits have all manner of wacky races and competitions from cheese rolling to bog snorkeling, and this one caught my attention when someone mentioned it to me last year.

This will be the second time I've done it. My wife Elaine enjoyed it so much she wanted to do it again. I did point out that all she had to do was sit on my back and enjoy the ride.

We're doing piggy-back. Those who take the race seriously (and believe me, there are people who really do take the race seriously), use the Estonian hold and expect to win and represent the UK in the World Championships in Finland. In the Estonian hold the wife hangs upside down on the runner's back, and clings on by gripping her legs round the runner's neck. (Elaine will only let me do piggy-back!)

The Estonian hold

It's a more inclusive competition these days. You no longer have to be married to the wife, wife can carry husband, and husband and wife can be same sex. So the race is quite a spectacle and usually hits national TV and newspapers.

It might only be a 380m course, but it's uphill for half of that distance, there's a straw bale obstacle to climb over, and a water obstacle at the end. That's probably why it's classed as an ultra-marathon on the Runners World web site.

Wish me luck. I'm looking forward to getting back to freezing swims on Monday.