LONDON -- A couple of Alaskans stood out Saturday as hundreds of shaggy men competed to see who had the bushiest, longest and most sculpted whiskers in the World Beard & Moustache Championships.

Dave Traver of Anchorage was listed as a prize winner, and George Haskins of Fairbanks took second place in the "English" mustache category with his 20-inch handlebar.

Traver, 42, is helping to organize the 2009 championship, which will be held in Anchorage. He's a perennial winner of the beard competition at Fur Rendezvous, which is hosting the 2009 event.

"Anchorage knows how to put on a show," Traver told reporters in England. "And they have a fantastic appreciation for whiskers."

About 250 contestants took part in the competition in Brighton, England, lining up before panels of judges to compete in 17 different classes of facial hair.

Mustache categories include the "Dali" -- slender with long tips, straight or arching up -- and the big and bushy "Hungarian," while the beard categories ranged from the shorter "Verdi" to the rounder, more expansive "Garibaldi."

Those with particularly fanciful fuzz -- like one man who showed up with a beard sculpted into the shape of London's Tower Bridge -- were invited to compete in the freestyle categories.

Competitors were barred from using extensions or hair pins, although wax and hairspray were allowed in some cases.

Haskins told the Fairbanks Daily News-Miner last week that it takes him about 20 minutes each morning to get his extravagant handlebar 'stache in shape. The curls at the end are the biggest challenge, he said.

Haskins said he plans to tour Germany, Belgium and Ireland before returning home.

The first championship was held by beard enthusiasts in Germany in 1990.

BIG HAIRY DEAL: World Beard & Moustache Championships: