We exhibit a class of "relatively curved" γ(t):=(γ1(t),…,γn(t)), so that the pertaining multi-linear maximal function satisfies the sharp range of H\"{o}lder exponents, r>0supr1∫0ri=1∏n∣fi(x−γi(t))∣dtLp(R)≤C⋅i=1∏n∥fj∥Lpj(R) whenever p1=∑j=1npj1, where pj>1 and p≥pγ, where 1≥pγ>1/n for certain curves. For instance, pγ=1/n+ for the case of fractional monomials, γ(t)=(tα1,…,tαn),α1<⋯<αn. Two sample applications of our method are as follows: For any measurable u1,…,un:Rn→R, with ui independent of the ith coordinate vector, and any relatively curved γ, r→0limr1∫0rF(x1−u1(x)⋅γ1(t),…,xn−un(x)⋅γn(t))dt=F(x1,…,xn),a.e. for every F∈Lp(Rn),p>1. Every appropriately normalized set A⊂[0,1] of sufficiently large Hausdorff dimension contains the progression, {x,x−γ1(t),…,x−γn(t)}⊂A, for some t≥cγ>0 strictly bounded away from zero, depending on γ.