Toboggan Championships offer a swift, snowy thrill ride

Thousands of people will descend on Maine for an event organizers say is the only competitive traditional toboggan race in the world.

The U.S. National Toboggan Championships will take place starting Friday at Camden Snow Bowl, a town-owned skiing area in the coastal town of about 5,000. Organizers say 425 teams from all over the U.S. and Canada are set to participate and between 6,000 and 10,000 people are expected to attend.

This year's contest is the 25th annual installment of the contest, which is held on a chute that was originally built in 1936. The contest has competitions for two-, three- and four-person teams. Last year's winners were all from Maine and were called Two Wingnuts, Absolute Zeros and Instigator.