Thom Beers has produced some of the manliest shows in reality television history (Ice Road Truckers, Deadliest Catch, etc.) and his latest is particularly testosterone stuffed. Whisker Wars takes us behind the scenes of the whacky world of competitive facial hair growing. Say what? Yes, beer-fueled beard battles. The series tracks a handful of razor-shunning dudes from Team USA as they compete and travel, with the main goal being the World Championship Competition in Trondhjem, Norway, where they’ll try to unseat the reigning champs, the Germans. The show premieres next Friday, August 5th, at 11:00 pm on IFC.

The GQ Eye recently had a chance to chat with a few of the guys from the show and similar to their rather extremist attitude towards facial adornments, they’re conducive to a proper sound bite or two...

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](http://blog.gq.com/style/blogs/the-gq-eye/Beards1199.jpg) (L-R: Bryan Taylor, Miletus Callahan-Barile, Allen Demling)

The GQ Eye: Can you tell us a little about the show and what it is you do?

Jack Passion: Whisker Wars follows the quirky world of beard competitions. Guys travel to contests all over the U.S. and Europe to be judged on their facial hair and facial hairstyles. Similar to classic beauty contests, there are divas, and those divas bring drama. What is it that I do? Well, I win these competitions.

Allen Demling: The show exposes the gritty side of the competitive beard growing scene. Most of us do it for ’the love of the fuzz,’ but there are others that are trying to make a quick buck on the beard craze. There are a lot of personalities on the beard circuit, and they don’t always get along. Outside of growing the best beard I can, I am also a full-time Mechanical Engineer, and former Austin City Council candidate who is still active in local politics.

GQ: What exactly goes into a beard battle? Are any of your competitors particular stylish?

Bryan Nelson: It takes a lot of mental preparation to go beard-to-beard on a stage in front of other people. You tell yourself, "Ok, I can do this... Just go out there and walk around with this massive beard draping all over you. Act natural." It seems funny at first, but when they call your name and the fans cheer you on and scream for you, it’s easy to get nervous.

I try not to primp too much. My category is "full beard natural" so I want it look organic, but some of the guys who place higher than me spend hours brushing and dying their beards, trying to fluff up as much as possible. Is that natural??