Warm summer weather brings all sorts of festivals around the world, from great barbecue feasts to outdoor music festivals and county fairs. But aside from the typical festival fare, summer also brings some of the world’s quirkiest events. From wife-carrying competitions to mashed potato wrestling, here are some of the strangest festivals coming up this summer.
Roswell UFO Festival, July 5-7, Roswell, NM
Roswell became a household name after a mysterious object crashed there in 1947. Today, the town and UFO enthusiasts celebrate Roswell’s alien-entwined past with an “Alien Chase” race, costume contest and alien parade. All weekend long, speakers will touch on everything from crop circles to alien encounters. While in town, you can also check out the quirky UFO-themed shops, museums and restaurants on Main Street.
Wife Carrying World Championships, July 5-6, Finland
Yes, you read that right. Every summer, Finland hosts the world championships for wife carrying, which is exactly what it sounds like. Men carry their wives on their backs through two dry obstacle courses, as well as a wet one. According to the rules, you can carry your own wife or your neighbor’s wife, so long as she’s at least 17 years old and weighs at least 49 kilos (about 108 pounds).
Boryeong Mud Festival, July 19-28, South Korea
Every July, thousands of locals and expats head to the shores of Boryeong in South Korea to get dirty during the annual Boryeong Mud Festival. The mud from this region is said to be chock-full of minerals good for the skin, but many come for the mud-themed activities like wrestling, slides, body painting and skiing. There’s even a mud prison where you’ll get sprayed with various mud baths.
Potato Days Festival, Aug. 23-24, Barnesville, Minn.
Barnesville, Minnesota takes it spuds seriously. The Potato Days Festival pays homage to this starchy side with mashed potato wrestling, a mashed potato eating contest, a potato peeling contest and a potato sack fashion show. If you have the tots in tow, they can hunt for potatoes during the Potato Scramble, compete in the Miss Tater Tot Pageant or put their potato cars to the test during the derby races.
Wisconsin State Cow Chip Throw and Festival, Aug. 30-31, Prairie du Sac, Wis.
Cow chips, if you aren’t familiar, are better known as cow dung. And yes, this two-day event centers around seeing who can throw a cow chip the farthest. There’s entertainment, a run/walk, arts and crafts and a food court, too, if you still have an appetite.
(Main image: Jim Trottier used under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike license)
