Fantastic Photos From the 2022 Beard and Moustache Championships
The 2022 Honest Amish National Beard and Moustache Championships took place last weekend, with hairy chins from across the country descending upon Casper, Wyoming.
Fabulous photos taken by Greg Anderson have been shared with PetaPixel of some of the 200 competitors.
“This is the only national championship like this so it draws people from all over,” Beard Team USA creative director Bryan Nelson tells Oil City News.
“It was really big and gaining momentum, and then it took a hit when COVID struck, but we’re getting back to where we were. This turnout is a lot better than last year’s. This is a good sign that things are picking back up.”
Claims of a New World Record
Aside from the beard and mustache pageantry, the convention claims to have set a new world record for the longest beard chain.
To take part, people needed a beard that was at least eight inches long, according to the Casper Star Tribune.
Participants gathered at the Gaslight Social bar in Casper, standing side by side and clipping their beards together to create a hairy chain that was measured 150 feet long,
The current Guinness World Record for a beard chain is 62 feet, six inches, set in Germany in 2007. If the new record is confirmed, the bushy group would have more than doubled it.
Best in Show
The beard chain record attempt was a side event preceding the big day on Saturday, where competitors were split into one of more than a dozen categories depending on their facial hair style.
“Depending on what they’re competing in, it’s totally different,” Nelson tells Oil City News.
“In some categories, you have to style it, in others you’re not allowed to — it all varies.”
Jono Gross has been crowned the 2022 Honest Amish National Beard and Moustache best show champion for his curly mustache.
Photographer Greg Anderson captured a beaming Gross with a giant rosette declaring that he was the winner. Anderson’s make-shift studio captured a host of fascinating characters such as Al “Wonderstache” Underwood, Sommer Hibbler, and Jeff Raye.
