Virginia couple wins wife-carrying contest

Casey Mayanrd and Alex Gauvin of Westbrook compete in the 18th annual North American Wife Carrying Championship at Sunday River resort. The couple got engaged at last year’s event.

Kirsten Barney is weighed using cases of beer after she and her husband, Jake Barney, of Lexington, Virginia, won the 18th annual North American Wife Carrying Championship at Sunday River resort Saturday. The team won 12 cases of Goose Island’s Oktoberfest beer and also won five times her weight in cash ($630).

NEWRY — A crowd of more than 500 spectators cheered on competitors in the 18th annual North American Wife Carrying Championship at Sunday River resort Saturday.

The husband-and-wife teams raced through an obstacle course featuring log hurdles, sand traps and the always popular “widow maker” water hazard.

The winners were Team Blue Ridge, consisting of Kirsten and Jake Barney of Lexington, Virginia, with a time of 58.26 seconds. They received the wife’s weight in beer (12 cases of Goose Island Oktoberfest) and five times her weight in cash ($630).

The second-place finishers were Team Storey — Giana and Elliot Storey of Westbrook — with a time of 59.07. The Storeys were last year’s North American champions. They went on to place fourth in the world championships in Finland, where wife carrying originated.

Jessica and Michael Keefe of Madbury, New Hampshire, compete Saturday in the 18th annual North American Wife Carrying Championship at Sunday River resort in Newry.