I’ve never been much for facial hair. Indeed, at this point, I don’t sport much hair anywhere. But apparently most male members of the ski patrol are big beard guys, at least until now. New grooming rules to aid mask wearing in the Covid-19 era have cut – in a big way – into beards among ski patrollers. Article from the Times is here. Sample before and after photos, below. For the record, patrol dogs are exempt – go figure. But in any event, big beard guys: Beware.
A ski patroller in Colorado before shaving his beard.
A soul patch is exempt from the new rules, as are patrol dogs.
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For one National Ski Patrol historian who has rocked a bushy mustache since 1979, the prospect of shaving is something he is willing to put up with in order to continue doing what he loves…. Another ski patrol supervisor recently shaved the beard he had sported for nearly 30 years. “We have a few patrollers whose beards are older than some of their co-workers,” he said. “After the initial shock of learning the new shaving protocol, most patrollers understood it’s a small step to take to help ensure the safety of ourselves, our families, our company and the community as a whole.”