100 Things To Do You’ve Never Heard Of #055 Win your wife’s weight in beer

Wife Carrying Championship in Singleton

Australian men, throw your mothers, daughters, sisters, aunties, wives and even mothers-in-law over your shoulders and run as fast as your little legs will carry you.

Wife Carrying has finally made its way to Australia, and the Finnair Australian Wife Carrying Titles are held each year in the NSW town of Singleton.

The event looks set to have a bright future, especially since this year’s winners scored a trip to the World Titles in Finland. And if you win there, the prize is your wife’s weight in beer! So it seems worth a little bit of effort at least. Simply be the fastest over at least 200m with a minimum of four obstacles, including log jumps, limbo bars, water and a mystery hazard, without dropping your “luggage” and you’re home.

The “wife” doesn’t even have to be your legal spouse; just take any woman that’s available, persistent and not too heavy. (If you drop her, you gain extra seconds as a penalty.) This bizarre event is in its third year and is now a regular part of Singleton’s annual Integra Countryfest, featuring alongside a Ute muster, rodeo, dog high jumps (which are surprisingly watchable) and loads more fun of a distinctly Aussie nature.

WHERE // At Singleton’s Integra Countryfest, 182km northwest of Sydney.

DID YOU KNOW? // Wife Carrying originated in Finland more than a decade ago and is now surprisingly big around the world. The 2006 World Champs were taken out by Margo Uusorg and Sandra Kullas of Estonia in a world record time of 56.9secs over the 253.5m course.