Every year in Maine, the North American Wife Carrying Championship brings together racers and cheering fans at Sunday River Resort. It's a lighthearted competition where couples (or any team of two) race through a tough obstacle course - 278 yards long. One partner gets carried by the other, making teamwork key.

@Robert F Bukaty/news.sky.com

While the event started with a wilder story from Finland in the 1800s, today it's all about fun and athleticism. Anyone can join, regardless of marital status or gender. This year, the crowd got behind a diverse group of teams tackling challenges like water pits, log jumps, and mud patches.

A winning strategy seems to be the "backpack carry," where the carried person goes upside down to free up the carrier's arms for better balance. Smiles and grit were everywhere, with a few teams even taking a tumble in the mud. But the true spirit of the event shone through as they helped each other up and kept going.

The prize for winning is unique - the carried person's weight in beer, plus cash worth five times their weight. A fun, seesaw-like scale is used to measure the beer reward. The winning team member sits on one side, while cases of beer are piled on the other until it balances out.