Men in Chatham-Kent are getting the chance to get in the hockey playoff spirit by showing off their playoff beards.
The Hockey Beard Challenge, which will also raise some money for Chatham Hope Haven, is being put on by Sally Ellis, who owns Smellis Beard Oils, a company she launched four months ago that sells facial hair products for men.
Ellis is encouraging men in CK to post photos of their beards on Facebook or Instagram using the hashtag #CKHOCKEYBEARD. Participants will gain points for every photo they share between now and the Stanley Cup Finals.
According to Ellis, the idea for the contest was inspired by a very close source.
"My husband's a big sports fanatic, we watch hockey all the time," explained Ellis "Last year [I saw] all of these guys with these huge beards, really unkempt and they look awful and that's when I started thinking about my beard oil products. I thought 'man, those guys really need my products.'"
Ellis said with all the sports enthusiasts in the area, she thought the challenge would be a perfect way to incorporate NHL action locally.
"I thought it would be kind of fun to have a beard challenge. There's not much going on in April, May, June, those kinds of months during the year. It would just be kind of fun to put it out there and see if we can get some participants," said Ellis. "You can just do so much locally. You don't have to go out to Toronto or any of the larger communities."
Several finalists will be selected and then a panel of judges will pick the winners during a party at Sons of Kent in Chatham. The top beards will walk away with various prizes.
"We want everybody to come to the party because it's just fun. It's not always about the best or the worst, it's just the fact that people are out there having fun and posting their beards," said Ellis.
The party will always serve as a launch party for Ellis' business, who at 64 years old, recently took the plunge into entrepreneurship after she retired.
"I want people to know my product line, use my product line and I can get some feedback on my product line," she said.
The date for the party will be announced closer to when the dates of the final playoff games are determined. Anyone is welcome to attend and must pay a $10 admission fee to get in. Proceeds from that event will be going to Chatham Hope Haven.