Talkeetna Winterfest, a month-long celebration in the snow, kicks off this weekend.

Tomorrow will be the annual Wilderness Woman Contest, where women 21 and older dress in bunny boots and winter gear to carry water buckets in a 100-yard dash that includes a mock stream crossing. The women also provide a sandwich to a TV-watching guy (no extra points for neatness of the sandwich or a dainty delivery), gather firewood, catch a simulated salmon, shoot a fake ptarmigan and climb a tree to avoid a moose - which is then also shot. No real animals are injured, although the men in the moose costume give Oscar-worthy performances while pretending to die.

The Talkeetna Bachelor Auction and Bachelor Ball follow in the evening. Only single ladies are allowed to bid, and the men often bare a bit of skin to entice bidding. Money raised goes to charity and the ladies who win the bidding are promised a drink and a dance at the Bachelor Ball, which follows.

Find out more at the Talkeetna Chamber of Commerce website.