In Wales there's a famous race called the Man Versus Horse Marathon.[/U]
A cross country course is laid out, and human competitors pit their stamina against that of a posse of chosen horses. The course is 22 miles long with many natural obstacles to overcome. The steep slopes are a great test of the endurance of both man and beast, and the tricky forestry, which a man may dart through but which a horse can only travel around, is equally difficult terrain.
The ultimate aim is to run the course and beat the first horse. This was recently done for the first time by a marine who had been training especially for the event. He won a large cash prize - a prize that's been getting bigger every year.
Wife Carrying
As well as throwing gum boots like the Australians (what weird, weird people there are in this world), the Finns have the great honour of holding the annual Wife Carrying World Championships. What you do is simply grab a hold of your significant other, and carry her (or him) to the finish line faster than the other competitors. Cool.
The games are hosted in the small town of Sonkajärvi in upper Savo, in the eastern part of Finland. The rules say nothing at all about the weight of the wife, only that she can be yours as well as somebody else's. Also, the winning record time for 1999 was apparently included in the Guinness Book of Records.
Cheese Chasing
Cheese chasing is an event whereby members of an English village called Brockworth in Gloucestershire, send a good-sized cheese down a steep hill whereupon all the cheese-chasing contestants chase after it. The local council has at times banned the event due to too many people getting injured. They usually get really drunk, build up a good head of steam and then tear down the hill after the tumbling cheese. The cheese always seems to win.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/a403147