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Frozen Dead Guy Days The Coffin Races, top of the page
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Frozen Dead Guy Days The Coffin Races 2027

Six pallbearers. One corpse. One clock.

Saturday, April 10, 2027 · Estes Park Events Complex

Race day countdown

2027 team registration isn't open yet.

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Thanks to our 2026 sponsors

Welcome to the Coffin Races

Seven-person teams race handmade coffins through a timed obstacle course in Estes Park, Colorado.

  1. Pallbearers in pirate and colonial costumes charge down the course with a coffin marked "RIP".

    Build a Coffin

    Six side handles, four solid sides, your team name on the back.

  2. The Smooth Criminals, six pallbearers in black-and-white convict stripes, stand behind their orange coffin with their helmeted corpse lying inside.

    Load Seven Racers

    Six pallbearers carry. One corpse rides, jumps out for the mid-race challenge and dives back in.

  3. A team in giraffe, bunny and bear onesies leaps a row of hay bales with its coffin.

    Race the Clock

    Two teams per heat, timed start to finish. The fastest times advance.

2026 format: every team races round one. The 12 fastest reach the quarter-finals, 6 the semi-finals, 2 the final.

Race day (2026): check-in 10–11:30 AM · gates 12 PM · opening heats 1:15 PM · finals from 3:15 PM

Get the Team Registration Alert

Race Day in Estes Park

Two lanes, one clock, hay bales, crashes and a grandstand full of costumes. Tap a photo to see it bigger.

  • Two coffin teams race side by side under a huge Colorado sky: a ship-captain team carrying a Titanic coffin and a team in red shirts.
  • A team in black racing suits and helmets runs its coffin past the Frozen Dead Guy Days stage and its giant green inflatable hands.
  • Racers dressed as penguins carry a crowned coffin down the course past cheering spectators.
  • The Cryo Crypt Deadites, in black jumpsuits and pale corpse makeup, carry their coffin in front of the stage's giant green hands.
  • Racers dressed as a pink pig, a cow and a rooster sprint with their painted coffin across the course.
  • Racers in white wedding dresses and helmets carry a coffin across the dirt course beneath dark clouds.
  • Racers pile up in the dust as a coffin tips over mid-race, a racer in a checkered suit sprawled on the ground.
  • A team in yellow-and-black bee stripes and rainbow wigs races a coffin past a star-painted barrel.
  • A team in blue hockey jerseys carries a coffin over a snowbank as a skeleton prop waves in front.
    2024
  • Racers in overalls and helmets wait inside the Tuff Shed at the start, one throwing horns in yellow work gloves.
  • Coffin racers in horror-movie costumes, one in a red mohawk helmet, charge across the course under a huge sky.
  • A tie-dye-costumed team walks under the Frozen Dead Guy Days arch on a snowy day.
    2024
  • A racer in purple tumbles headfirst as a coffin crashes beside the Monster Energy barrels, costumed characters looking on.

Sponsors on the Course

Spotted on the 2026 course. Tap a photo to see it bigger.

Meet the Champions

Four races in Estes Park. Four champions.

  • The Irish Goodbye team, in green leprechaun coats and hats, charges toward the camera carrying their IRISH GOODBYE coffin.

    2026 Irish Goodbye

    Runner-up: Denim Boys · Third place: FreeDumb · Best Theme: The Assless Chaps · Best Crash & Burn: FarmHouse · Best Coffin: My Heart Will Go On

  • Border Burger Bar, dressed as Mario, Luigi, Wario, Waluigi, Toad and Yoshi, cheer at the start with Princess Peach riding in their kart-style coffin, the festival skull sign behind.

    2025 Border Burger Bar

    Runner-up: Irish Goodbye · Third place: Zombie Tigers · Best Theme: Night Mares · Best Crash & Burn: Tomb Shrooms

  • Tomb Shrooms, in red-and-white mushroom hats and white suits, charge across the straw-covered course with their coffin, snowbanks and peaks behind.

    2024 Tomb Shrooms

    Runner-up: Whale Oil Beef Hooked · Best Theme: Tomb Shrooms · Best Crash & Burn: Whale Oil Beef Hooked

  • The Rainbros! team, in orange, gold, purple, green, yellow, lime and red bodysuits and helmets, stand arm in arm at the 2023 Coffin Races.

    2023 Rainbros!

    Runner-up: Dead Disney Dreams · Best Theme: Bride or Die · Best Crash & Burn: Best in Snow

Six Awards (2026)

  • Champion Fastest time
  • Runner-up Second-fastest time
  • Third Place Third-fastest time
  • Best Theme Judged: best theme team
  • Best Crash & Burn Judged: most notable wipeout
  • Best Coffin Judged: decorations and theme

Four Courses in 3D

Every Estes Park course since 2023, rebuilt in 3D. Pick a year and watch a heat.

2026 The Spring Course

Saturday, March 28, 2026 · Spring sun and big clouds · 99 m race line · 7 obstacles

The course, in order
  1. Start at the chalk line
  2. Hay bale chute
  3. Silver casket on hay bales
  4. Turn at the south end
  5. Hay bale wall, two high
  6. Blue inflatable
  7. Finish at the chalk line

Rebuilt from the festival's own photos, race video and drone stills. Team names are real; the runs and times are simulated. Data: USGS; © OpenStreetMap contributors .

Your Race Loadout

What every team needed in 2026. The 2027 rules arrive when team registration opens.

  • Seven Racers

    Six pallbearers and one corpse, all 18 or older. Amateurs only.

  • One Coffin

    Six side handles, none on the ends. Four solid sides at least 8 inches high. 10 feet wide at most.

  • Seven Helmets

    A strapped ski or bike helmet for every racer, checked before each heat. No hard hats.

  • Safe Shoes

    No cleats, crampons, golf shoes or other metal-soled shoes.

  • Signed Release

    Every racer signs a Hold Harmless Agreement.

  • Early Check-in

    Full team and coffin at the Coffin Club, Barn W, by 11:30 AM.

Read the full 2026 rules

The Coffin

  • Typically 5–8 feet long and 2–4 feet wide, and no more than 10 feet wide with handles, so two teams fit the course side by side.
  • Sturdy handles for six carriers, three on each side. No handles on the ends.
  • Four solid sides at least 8 inches high; tape or paper doesn't count. Sides may differ in height, and the coffin doesn't have to be rectangular.
  • Team name clearly written on the back.
  • Race officials inspect every coffin at registration and at lineup. A coffin that fails doesn't race.

Racers & Safety

  • Six pallbearers and one corpse, all 18 or older. IDs may be checked at registration.
  • Amateurs only; no professional athletes.
  • Every racer wears a strapped ski or bike helmet the entire time they race. No hard hats. Helmets are checked before each heat, and a team missing one can't race.
  • No shoes with metal on the bottom: no cleats, crampons or golf shoes.
  • Every racer signs a Hold Harmless Agreement. The captain receives a digital form to share; anyone without one on file signs at check-in.

Race Day

  • All seven racers check in with the coffin at the Coffin Club in Barn W by 11:30 AM, before gates open at noon. Late teams are no-shows, with no exceptions.
  • Coffins can be stored at the Coffin Club before, during and after the races.
  • Team captains walk the course before the first heat.
  • Teams line up in race order, in pairs. A team that isn't complete or ready at its start forfeits that race and prize eligibility.
  • Each run is timed start to finish, and finish times decide who advances. If both teams in a heat post top times, both advance.
  • Until eliminated, racers stay with their coffin by the course for instructions.

Judging

  • Judges score theme and spirit at lineup, during the races and around the grounds, and vote after the competition.
  • Crash and Burn goes to the greatest mishap while racing.
  • Best Coffin is judged on design and function.

Our 2026 Sponsors

Thanks to the sponsors who helped bring Frozen Dead Guy Days 2026 to life.

Meet Our Sponsors

Enter a Team for 2027

Team registration isn't open yet. Get one email the moment it opens. The 2026 field sold out.

Racing questions? Email the Coffin Race Coordinator at coffinraces@frozendeadguydays.com.

In 2026, team entry covered the seven racers; crews and fans needed a festival ticket.

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SAT APR 10 · ESTES PARK

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