Wow, that's one fancy moustache...

Because Alaska may have the largest concentration of bearded and moustached men in the country, I didn't think twice when I saw a number of guys on Thursday walking around downtown with big twisty-ended moustaches. So, they take pride in their over-abundance of facial hair, no big deal. Later that night, I found out what a big deal it was... 

This weekend, Anchorage hosted the 2009 World Beard and Moustache Championship (yes, there is such a thing), where nearly 300 competitors from around the world showed up to display their fantastic facial hair creations.  

Participants competed in about 20 different beard and moustache style categories, including the Freestyle Beard, Alaskan Whaler, the Fu Manchu and the Musketeer. You can find a description of each category and a list of winners here.

David Traver of Anchorage became a hometown hero by taking first place as the World Beard Overall Champion. His snowshoe-like beard style (photo here) won first place in the Freestyle Beard Category and gave him the overall victory.

Sometimes I think it's crazy that I live in a place where the World Beard and Moustache Competition makes the front page news. Only in Alaska...