SAN JUAN CAPISTRANO : Hirsute Contestants Lining Up for Fiesta

There are only a few days left before the deadline to enter the most hair-raising event in the monthlong Festival de las Golondrinas.

During the blizzard of activities surrounding the swallows’ legendary return to Mission San Juan, men will be judged not by their ability to spot tiny, migratory birds but by how quickly and how well they grow facial hair.

By Friday, all contestants for the Hairiest Man competition must submit an application and $5.

Those competing in the grown-from-scratch portion of the contest also must shave their faces clean on that day.

On March 18, the judges--five local women--will determine winners in categories that include the best-groomed and longest beard or mustache.

Men who already have beards or mustaches have their own division in the contest, as do those who have just started beards.

The Hairiest Man contest is one of the city’s oldest traditions, dating to the early 1800s, said Helen Morton, special events chairman for the San Juan Capistrano Fiesta Assn.

“When the swallows left (in October), men in town would shave their beards,” she said. “When they came back again, the guys would parade around the grounds and shave again.”

The event is open to anyone, regardless of residency. People have traveled from as far as San Diego to enter, Morton said.

In a festival that is marked by offbeat events such as Hoosegow Day--when people are plucked from the streets, thrown in a makeshift jail and forced to make a charitable contribution to gain their freedom--the Hairiest Man competition has had its share of colorful incidents.

“One year, a man wore a gorilla suit without the head to win the contest,” Morton said. “He wore a trench coat to hide the suit. But when he whipped off his coat, the gorilla suit had gotten hooked (to the trench coat) and he wound up standing there before everyone in his underwear.”

The Fiesta Assn. also runs the Swallows’ Day Parade, the country’s largest non-motorized parade.

Those interested in volunteering to help with the festival or entering events such as the Hairiest Man competition may call (714) 493-1967 or (714) 248-9967.

“It’s hysterical; it’s historical,” Morton said. “And it’s definitely a lot of fun.”