On August 16, the 50th Estonian Local Governments’ Summer Games took place, organized by the Estonian Sports Association Jõud and Kambja Municipality, bringing together over 2,100 athletes. But this year, the Summer Games weren’t limited to stadiums and sports halls – the Estonian Agricultural Museum was also proud to host exciting and fun competitions for participants.
Our role was to organize special competitions for municipal leaders and sports coordinators. These weren’t about decathlons or tug-of-war, but rather fun and themed activities that reflected real rural life and everyday municipal management tasks – offering both laughter and a competitive spirit.
Participants competed in four disciplines:
Budget Strategy
A finger-exercise in strategic thinking. Peabags had to be thrown into targets marked with different point values. Each participant had 7 throws. The one who earned the most points won. The highest score meant first place!
Municipal Milking
Who hasn’t milked... well, a cow? Participants had to milk as much as possible into a container within a set time limit. The winner was the one who collected the most “milk.” (Don't worry – it was a safe and inflatable cow brought in specially for the game!)
Work Hard, Sweat Proudly
Roll up your sleeves and feel the effort! Using a hand pump, participants had to inflate a tire to exactly 2.000 bar within the time limit (men: 60 sec, women: 90 sec). The closest to the target pressure won.
Let the Dogs Bark, the Cart Keeps Rolling
Time to roll the (cart)wheel! This challenge tested how far one could roll an old wagon wheel. The winner was the one whose wheel went the farthest.
There were plenty of laughs – but also plenty of serious competition.
The most popular game turned out to be Budget Strategy, where participants tried to "fill budget holes" – not with money, but with small peabags. Each hole represented a different budget category and had its own point value: the smaller the hole, the more points you could earn. For example, the tiniest hole worth 10 points was labeled "Team Summer Event," followed by others like "Salaries," "Youth," "Education," "Culture," and "Social Services." Interestingly, women aimed more often at areas like Youth and Education, while men preferred to go all-in on the highest value targets. The game was such a hit that several guests asked if it could be rented for their own events!
Another crowd favorite – and possibly a tempting headline for investigative journalists – was Municipal Milking. But no, no one was milking the municipality itself. They were milking Valla (Municiapl in Estonian), a full-size inflatable cow brought in just for this event. In 1 minute, participants tried to milk as much as they could – and the atmosphere was electric.
In the Tire Pumping Challenge, six participants managed to hit exactly 2.000 bar – proving that calm focus, observation, and a bit of strategy paid off.
As for the Cartwheel Rolling, it took true skill and calculation. Competitors had to consider the terrain, wind, the weight of the wheel, and its center of gravity. The record? One impressive roll reached 46.7 meters – and it could have gone farther if not for the fence!
A big thank you to Kambja Municipality, Kambja Culture and Sports NGO, and the Estonian Sports Association Jõud for making it possible for us to organize such a joyful and memorable competition day.