BeardCon 2012 – At Their Beardest

(Editor note: after reading Shana’s post-BeardCon article, be sure to read our pre-BeardCon 2012 feature “BeardCon: The Cutting Edge Of A Hairy Subject” by J.T. Ryder on the subject of the beard culture in Ohio and beyond)

Anyone who knows me is painfully aware of my obsession with beards. Through it’s continues rise and fall, the trend of facial hair is something I’ll never cease to adore about men. Those manly enough to grow one that is. So of course, I was ecstatic when approached by Dayton Most Metro to attend BeardCon as their media correspondent to cover this momentous event. At the risk of sounding ridiculous, it may or may not have been one of the best days for me in 2012 and I am grateful to have been given the opportunity to attend.

Both a learning experience and a pleasure to attend, BeardCon Ohio’s Third Charity Beard and Mustache Competition and Festival took place on October 6th in Columbus. Their promise? To see, feel, learn about, and live facial hair at the first ever Beard Convention! Styling demos, facial hair product expos, beard games, an opportunity to meet some of the finest beardsmen (which I did) and beardswomen from all over the globe, all topped off by a grand beard and mustache competition to finish the night.

Over the course of history, men with facial hair have been ascribed various attributes such as wisdom, sexual virility, masculinity, or a higher status; says, Wikipedia. I just happen to find them sexy – from nicely trimmed to gnarly and outrageous. This beard lover does not discriminate. I could go on and on about my love for the bearded ones but I’m sure you’re more interested in the day, background and winners of the competition. I had an opportunity to sit down with Nate Stevens, one of the integral individuals in planning and hosting BeardCon and member of The Gem City Gentlemen of the Gilded Beard to ask a few questions. Nate’s a great guy and again, I’m thankful he took the time to speak with this drooling beard fan. Here’s the Beard deets:

DMM: What is the true inspiration for the conferences?

Nate: “The reason for all of our events are essentially the same, and BeardCon is certainly no exception. When we started this club about 3 years ago, we established a few basic goals: to have fun, to foster unity amongst those who decide to wear facial hair, to promote acceptance of facial hair and derail discrimination, and most importantly, to support our local community and give it some small niche to be proud of. BeardCon is the culmination of a year of very hard work in pursuit of those objectives.”

DMM: How do you pick your themes and any idea what next year’s will be?

Nate: “We don’t necessarily set out to establish a theme each year, we just kind of start planning the event, and so far the ‘theme’ has more or less revealed itself to us. It sounds cliche to say that we let it happen ‘organically’, but that truly has been the case”

DMM: It’s not cliche at all, they’re quite creative geniuses these beards.  How was this year different than the last two? Did it live up to your expectation?

Nate: “It’s difficult to say at this point how successful the event was financially, as those details are still coming together. During the event, the core group of us are so busy making sure everything happens the way it’s supposed to, that the whole thing is a blur, and it’s tough to get a read on it until the aftermath begins to settle. What I can say is that the response from the attendees and the community has been SO positive, and that the new elements we introduced to this year’s event (discussion panels, styling demos, etc.) were a huge hit. The competition was, as always, just spectacular, and we are so grateful to our beloved state of Ohio and the facial hair community for helping us hit another home run this year.”

DMM: The convention left me impressed, sad I didn’t make the last two..but uber excited for 2013.  Why Prostate Cancer? Would you consider supporting other one issue causes in the future or do you have a personal connection to PC?

Nate: “Supporting Central Ohio Men Against Prostate Cancer made sense to us on a number of levels. First, I think it’s fair to say that prostate cancer is a man’s disease, and beards are a man’s gift from nature. Why not use the blessing to fight the curse? The disease has impacted some members of our club and their families, so there are those among us for whom the cause is more personal. Also, we aim for maximum impact with our charitable fundraising, so finding a smaller organization that combats a global affliction on a local scale was a perfect fit for us. We do, however, support other causes and organizations with other events, big and small, and are always open to new endeavors for the good of mankind.”

Bearded Philanthropists. Need I say more?

Among the vendors and wandering gild men there were also bearded ladies and bearded wee ones. Informative panels like in the video below were also a part of this awesome convention.

[yframe url=’http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=dxhLpODj6jo’]

I will say that I feel a little self conscious about this healthy little beard obsession of mine, having met such great people at this convention. To come together for such a great cause is admirable; I give two thumbs up to them for making it fun to attend. Below is a list of winners from the competition. For more information and to find out when the next Bearded affair will happen, visit their site or “Like” Beard Team Ohio on Facebook. Whether Bearded or a fan like me, you don’t want to miss whatever remarkable event these dudes come up with for next year!

2012 Beard-Con Winners

Full Beard Styled:
1. John Buckler, Michigan
2. Lyman Robertson, Michigan
3. Chad Roberts, Virginia

Full Beard Natural
1. Neil Moherman, Ohio
2. Myk O’Connor, New York
3. Jeff Langum, New Jersey

Full Beard Groomed
1. Cody Corcoran, Tennessee
2. Kyle Muston, Michigan
3. Joel Andrus, Michigan

Partial Beard Styled
1. “Taxi” Phil Jones, Ohio
2. Colin Cousins, Ohio
3. Chris Newman, Ohio

Partial Beard Natural
1. Dan Roberts, New York
2. Dustin Hall, Ohio
3. Scotty “BigStyle” Lees, Ohio

Moustache Styled
1. Nathan Wilson, Wisconsin

Moustache Natural
1. Albert Dennis, Ohio
2. Sheraz Sadiq, Ohio

Fake Beard – Most Fantastic
1. Lindsey Stinner, California
2. Ashley Brown, Virginia
3. Emily Ann Fette, Kentucky

Fake Beard – Most Realistic
1. Micki Martin, Ohio
2. Deb Smith, Ohio
3. Mrs. Cousins, Ohio

Kids Fake Beard
1. Gavin Dunham, Ohio
2. Mya Harrel

See you next year Beards!