Mustache March
March 18, 2009 • written by Ryan Tyler
Guys, it’s that time of year again! The time to grow your scruff and that dirty ‘stache’. It’s Mustache March!
The mustache, also known as Moustache, stache, nose neighbor, muzzy, lip fuzz and flavor savor, has a long history of how it’s worn. The ‘stache’ represents and stands for a person’s manly hood, their power and strength in the mustache.
Mustache March originated during the Vietnam War when a fighter pilot named Robin Olds grew what he called a “bulletproof mustache.” At the time mustaches weren’t allowed to be sported in the military, but Olds, who was far from home on a military base in ‘Nam, thought the stache defined his individuality, so he kept it. This occurred in the month of March 1965.
Once Olds returned home in April, Air Force Chief of Staff Gen. John P. McConnell, who wasn’t fond of Olds’s defiance, greeted him. McConnell walked up to him, stuck a finger under his nose and ordered, “Take it off.” Olds replied, “Yes, sir.”
Thus the roots of Mustache March were born. Air Force pilots now devote one month of defiance of the Air Force facial hair regulations as a way of good-natured protest, and pay to tribute to General Robin Olds.
Now if you are going to participate in Mustache March, you’re going to need to sport a stache for the occasion; even if it’s a stache that isn’t necessarily up to the standards of the average groomed mustache. The following are stache styles that are popular for Mustache March:
Natural (Business man)– Moustache may be styled but without aids such as a comb or mousse. The hairs are allowed to start growing from up to a maximum of 1.5 cm beyond the end of the upper lip.
Hungarian – Big and bushy, beginning from the middle of the upper lip and pulled to the side. The hairs are allowed to start growing from up to a maximum of 2.5 cm beyond the end of the upper lip. Very similar to the Gringo stache.
Dalí (abra kadabra)– Narrow, long points bent or curved steeply upward; areas past the corner of the mouth must be shaved. Artificial styling aids needed. Named after Salvador Dalí who was known to paint with the tips of his moustache.
English (Connoisseur)– Narrow, beginning at the middle of the upper lip the whiskers are very long and pulled to the side and slightly curled. The ends are pointed slightly upward; areas past the corner of the mouth usually shaved.
Imperial – Whiskers growing from both the upper lip and cheeks, curled upward.
Freestyle – All moustaches that do not match other classes. The hairs are allowed to start growing from up to a maximum of 1.5 cm beyond the end of the upper lip.
Fu Manchu – Long, downward pointing ends, generally beyond the chin.
‘Pancho Villa’ moustache – Similar to the Fu Manchu but thicker; also known as a “droopy moustache”, generally known to have been worn by the historical Pancho Villa.
Handlebar – Bushy, with small upward pointing ends. Typical biker stache, may be associated with the shape of the handle bars of a motorcycle.
Horseshoe –The horseshoe was popularized by modern cowboys and consists of a full moustache with vertical extensions from the corners of the lips down to the jawline and resembling an upside-down horseshoe.
Pencil moustache (“special” movie star stache)– Narrow, straight and thin like a pencil, closely clipped, outlining the upper lip, with a wide shaven gap between the nose and moustache.
Chevron (Major)- Thick and wide, usually covering the top of the upper lip. NASCAR driver Richard Petty wears a narrow Chevron. Also known as the Major because of the trend of military officers (Majors) wearing them.
Walrus (trucker)– Bushy, hanging down over the lips, often entirely covering the mouth.
The sensation of Mustache March has grown over the years and now is a tool for charities across the nation. The Follicle Freedom foundation has a Mustache March charity for the Midwest Athletics Against Childhood Cancer (MACC), for which participants of Mustache March, who are willing to participate, collect and donate to the MACC fund. The fund supports research for treatment and a cure to childhood cancer. There are other notable charities across the nation that have also devoted to the Mustache March tradition as a way to raise money for people in need of help.
So, let that dirty fuzz grow and maybe take part in a charity. It’s all in good nature and is for a good cause. If you’re not going to participate in a charity, grow your stache anyway and support the ongoing tradition of Mustach
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