No Close Shaves : Bragging Rights on This Day Belong to Those Bearded Gents and the Chili Cooks

Jumpin’ Jack Jasper zipped up his tattered blue jumpsuit, tossed on a floppy fishing hat and primped his maple-brown shaggy beard to look as grungy as possible.

The morning-long effort paid off Sunday as he took top prize in the scroungiest beard contest, one of six categories in the Conejo Valley Days’ Whiskeroo Contest.

“It was a shoe-in,” said the now two-time winner, who also took top honors in 1990 for maintaining the scroungiest facial hair. “Three years ago I was dressed in red long johns.”

The Thousand Oaks man, whose real name is Paul Kunzler, was one of nearly 60 men who kicked off the 37th annual Conejo Valley Days festival by pitting their beards and mustaches against the stern eyes of grand marshal “Diamond” Dan Urbaniak and six Conejo Valley Days princesses.

“I’ve been out here 15 years,” Jasper said, running his fingers through 10 inches or so of bedraggled scruff growing from his unseen chin. “I enjoy this so much I wanted to get involved. And it’s a good cause.”

More than 5,000 people streamed through Conejo Creek Park in Thousand Oaks for the annual Whiskeroo Contest and Chili Cook-Off, precursors to the five-day festival which continues Wednesday with the Women’s Western Wear and Badgeroo contests and culminates next weekend with a parade and rodeo.

The aroma of Southwestern barbecue and chili wafted through the air Sunday, remnants of the Chili Cook-Off that followed the Whiskeroo Contest.

Dozens of Ventura County organizations and companies stirred up the spiciest and most flavorful chili they could muster to compete for top honors in the competition which benefits more than 30 nonprofit groups.

The beefy, reddish concoctions, fetching 50 cents a cup, ranged from thick and spicy to mild but hearty renditions of the Tex-Mex favorite. And they came with names like “Wacky Waco Chili” and “Road Kill Chili” and “Head Rush Chili.”

Organizers say the cook-off, a Conejo Valley Days tradition since the early 1970s, has become a vital part of the all-volunteer festival.

“We get approximately $35,000 a year from the Chili Cook-Off, which is funneled right back into local charities,” said co-chairman Stan Cowan of Rotary International. “It’s a time for people to come together on a warm day and see people they haven’t seen for awhile. It’s a tradition for them. They grew up with it.”

Judging was done on two levels: Representatives of the International Chili Society selected the official winners, but the People’s Choice award went to the booth that sold the most cups.

For Omar Ghausi, a Thousand Oaks High School senior sampling the fare with some classmates Sunday, the choice was easy.

“Graveyard Chili, for sure,” he said, scraping the last of the recipe from a small plastic foam cup. “It’s got good texture, it’s pretty hot and it has good meat.”

And, he confessed: “it was the first chili I tasted, so my mouth wasn’t destroyed yet.”

But chili-judging is serious business to those responsible for selecting the best.

“It’s rough,” admitted Dave Thomas, a chili society member of wide girth who was one of about 30 judges. “What I like is one that’s sort of firm and won’t fall apart. If it smells good, it’s going to taste good. I’m trying to give each one an equal chance.”

Conejo Valley Days sponsors expect nearly 100,000 people to attend the various festivities, which extend through Sunday.

“It promotes the historical aspect of the Greater Conejo Valley, taking it back to its Western roots,” said Dennis Gillette, a Cal Lutheran University administrator and board member of the Thousand Oaks Chamber of Commerce, which sponsors the annual festival.

“Each of these events is used to raise money for various charitable organizations,” he said. “The end result is the maintenance and improvement of the quality of life in the community.”

Groups and nonprofit organizations receiving proceeds from the festival include the Thousand Oaks High School sports programs, YMCA, Hospice of the Conejo, the Conejo Symphony Youth Concert, Drug Abuse Resistance Education and dozens more.

Cowan said nearly all of the Thousand Oaks Rotary club’s 105 members were volunteering Sunday at the Chili Cook-Off.

“It sounds hokey, but we do it to give something back to the community,” he said. “Most of the members of the Rotary Club are fairly successful merchants and businessmen, and they like to give something back.”

Conejo Valley Days will take today and Tuesday off, but gets back in gear Wednesday for the Badgeroo Contest and the Women’s Western Wear Contest. Friday night a junior rodeo will be held and the weekend will feature the traditional parade and a Western pit barbecue and rodeo.

The Winners

Whiskeroo Contest: Rick Beal of Thousand Oaks, best beard; Bill Reif of Newbury Park, softest beard; Ernie Roberts of Agoura, fullest beard; Roger Meade of Thousand Oaks, best mustache; Dean Shawler of Thousand Oaks, most unique mustache, and Paul Kunzler of Thousand Oaks, scroungiest beard.

Chili Cook-Off: The International Chili Society’s award for best chili went to Steve Deveux of Simi Valley, but the People’s Choice was Bob Delaney of Thousand Oaks, who devised “Graveyard Chili.”