EVERETT — The last time Marcus Clark had a clean shave was in 1998. The last time he trimmed his beard at all was in May 2001.
On Friday, he was one of 40 people to gather at Pacific Rim Plaza on Everett’s waterfront to participate in an attempt to break an oddly specific world record. Their objective: Make the world’s longest “beard chain,” created by clipping together the long strands of hair that fell from their faces.
The record-breaking attempt was a part of the National Beard and Moustache Championships, a weekend-long event taking place in Everett.
“It’s like trying to put a sweater on a monkey,” Jeff Raye said of the process to make the “beard chain.”
Jeff Raye, from Austin, Texas, has his photo taken with a measuring stick for proof of beard length for the Guinness World Record Beard Chain Attempt on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Raye, a retired truck driver from Austin, Texas, has been “bearding” since 2012. It’s a form of competition where beards and mustaches of different styles are judged based on “overall fit to the competitor, health of hair and level of awesomeness,” the National Beard and Moustache Championship’s website reads.
The annual event draws facial hair enthusiasts from across the country. Saturday’s championship event, starting at 9 a.m. at the Historic Everett Theatre at 2911 Colby Ave., will mark the first time the national competition has been held in Washington. The event was first held in 2010 in Bend, Oregon.
Last November, 86 participants at the National Beard and Moustache Championships set the Guinness World Record for “longest beard chain” in Daytona Beach, Florida, with a length of 195 feet. Friday’s attempt didn’t reach that length — a relatively meager 87 feet and 8 inches — but it didn’t dampen the fun for the “bearders.”
People wait to have their beards measured in a Guinness World Record Beard Chain Attempt at Pacific Rim Plaza on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
“One guy said it best when he said, ‘The beard competition really gets in the way of hanging out,’” said Jared MacDonald, who traveled from Arizona for the event. “You come for the beard stuff, but you learn that everyone here is super cool. I don’t know about anybody else, but I don’t even really care about the competition. I’m just here to hang out and meet more people.”
Friday’s attempt drew a small crowd of onlookers who photographed and recorded the spectacle. That type of attention is nothing new for this group of guys, Raye said.
One time, about 20 of them were walking together in South Carolina “and we were stopping traffic,” Raye said. “People would just drive slow and look at us like, ‘What the hell happened here?’”
Jeff Raye smokes a cigar while he holds a tape measure to his nose during the Guinness World Record Beard Chain Attempt on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
The event isn’t limited to men, either. Women can compete in Saturday’s championships through categories of creative or realistic beard-making. Creative competitors make mustaches and beards with rope and felt.
Lizard Jimenez, who has taken part in the event for years, has previously dressed up as famous historical figures like Charlie Chaplin. For this year’s competition, she will dress up as Doc Holliday, known for his participation in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral in October 1881.
“I still haven’t put it together, so I don’t know what it actually looks on me,” Jimenez said. “I wait until the last minute to put it all together, because I get nervous.”
The Snohomish County Sports Commission worked for nearly five years to bring the event to Everett, said Tammy Dunn, the organization’s executive director.
Particpants in the Guinness World Record Beard Chain Attempt have their beards clipped together on Friday, Nov. 1, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Competitor tickets for Saturday’s event cost $35, and spectators can watch for a suggested $10 donation. Proceeds support the Dawson Place Child Advocacy Center in Everett. More info can be found at nationalbeardchampionships.com.
Will Geschke: 425-339-3443; william.geschke@heraldnet.com; X: @willgeschke.
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