“Remoted” Day 308 (Monday)

Ice lantern at Heikinpäivä.

Back in January, 2015, there was a Heikinpäivä Winter Family Fun Day at The Finnish Center at Saima Park in Fitchburg. Saint Henrik (Heikki), the patron saint of Finland, presided over the mid-winter celebration which included cross country skiing, and the boot toss contest, where contestants flung a cross country ski boot to see who could send it the furthest. There was a bonfire, Finnish folk dancing, and the classic Finnish entertainment, The Wife Carry Race. 

For the Saima race, the rules did not require the team to actually be married, but included the amusing note that “If you are really hung up about the marriage thing, see Heikki. Perhaps he’ll perform a quickie ceremony.” In Finland, the winners are often awarded the equivalent weight of the wife in beer. For the Saima event, the prizes were listed as “Just some things we slapped together we thought you would like. You’ll just have to wait and see.”

Wife carry race!

The carrying takes many forms like piggyback, fireman carry and whatever method works for the contestants as they raced to the various challenges and then the finish line. The first challenge was to set up a wood pile like would be done for a sauna, then dismantle it, and race to the next station. The second challenge required wrapping in a towel and laying on a bench as if in a sauna, and the partner would flog the person with birch branches. Positions were switched, then the towels had to be folded and everything neatly returned to the bench. The carry resumed to the third station where a four strand pulla bread was braided by one partner, while the other followed a specific table setting pattern with a cloth and dishes. Then the team raced to the finish line. 

While heading over to the race course with Mom, my sister, my nieces, and a couple friends, my plan was to take photos of the spectacle, especially after our friend Jane entered the race with a friend. The next thing I knew, an organizer was flagging me over to be in the race with someone who needed a partner. That is where I met Maximillian, my temporary, pretend husband for the next few minutes, a German exchange student who was studying at Fitchburg State.

My pretend, temporary husband
and I took 2nd place.

My pretend husband and I decided on a piggyback carry, as did most of the other teams. We blasted through the course. At the third station, Maximillian handled the four-strand braid while I tackled the table setting, which is where we lost precious seconds when I got the place setting wrong. In the end, we came in second, just one second behind the first-place winning team. One second. Had I not screwed up the tableware placement, we would have nailed first place. 

My boot tossing skill was not at all impressive, but with pretend husband Maximillian, I felt redeemed. As I recall it, the prize bags included a pulla (Finnish coffee bread) and an admission ticket to a future Finnish breakfast, usually held monthly. I'm sure I still have my plastic medal somewhere. It was so much fun being a pretend wife and participating in winter “sports.”  Being in the winner's circle didn't suck, either.