Matthew Hey just broke a world record by doing nothing for 20 years — specifically, never once cutting a single braided lock of his beard.

  • New record: 5 feet 3 inches (1.603 meters) for longest beard lock on a living man
  • Previous record: 3 feet 6 inches (1.06 m), held by Rudolf Martino of the United States
  • Growth time: roughly 20 years without a single trim to the lock
  • A separate record, longest beard overall (not a lock), belongs to Canada's Sarwan Singh at 8 feet 3 inches, unbroken since 2008

Hey, who lives in Baldwin City, Kansas, had the achievement verified back home in Independence, Missouri, before it was confirmed by Guinness World Records this week.

From a Kid's Request to a World Record

The record-breaking lock didn't start as a plan to chase a title. Years ago, Hey said, children asked if they could braid a section of his beard, and rather than undo it afterward, he simply left it alone.

What began as a single braid slowly matted and twisted into a thick, rope-like lock that kept growing, year after year, while the rest of his beard was trimmed normally around it.

"The beard came not because of what I did, but because of what I did not do," Hey told Guinness World Records.

By the time he decided to measure it against the existing record, the lock had grown to nearly a foot and a half longer than the previous title-holder's.

Living With Record-Breaking Facial Hair

A beard lock stretching more than five feet comes with obvious logistics. Hey typically keeps it folded, tucked or tied up during the day, since left hanging straight it would drag at his feet.

He's used to questions about it, including from younger strangers curious about what the look says about him.

"I had a teenage girl ask me if my beard defines me, and I answered not at all."

Hey said grasping the scale of the achievement is still a little surreal. "It is difficult to comprehend that I have the longest natural beard lock in the world on a living person, considering there are over eight billion people in the world and how short of time it took me to grow it," he said, according to Ogeam.

A Record He Plans to Keep

Guinness World Records' "longest beard lock" category is distinct from its better-known "longest beard" title, which measures a full beard rather than a single braided section. That overall record, held by Sarwan Singh since 2008, remains well out of reach for now.

Hey hasn't ruled out one day chasing that bigger title too, but for now he's focused on keeping his current record intact — meaning the scissors stay far away from that one lock, indefinitely.

"I do not plan on cutting my beard — or dying — but sometimes stuff happens," he joked.

Outside of his beard, Hey has other long-running interests: restoring classic Mazda RX-7 cars, tinkering with vintage Amiga computers, and weightlifting. None of those hobbies, he says, required two decades of patience quite like this one did.

For now, the title is his, the lock keeps growing, and somewhere in Alabama, the previous record-holder has a foot and a half of beard to make up if he ever wants it back.