is the deal with beards? Seriously?

I'm watching Miami Ink and a guy with a frizzy, mangy-looking probably 10-inch beard is in the shop getting a tattoo on his back of the record holder of the world's longest beard. He's talking about some beard championship he's going to be in soon.

This reminds me of my ex-BTP (boyfriend type person?)'s crazy idea for a website called Beard Wars or something. Or Battle of the Beards. Anyway the concept is that people submit pictures of their beards and every week two pictures go head to head and people vote and then there's a winner.

I suppose I don't need to mention that my ex-BTP has a substantial(ly unkempt) beard.

Anyway I just don't get it. Is it some machismo thing? Does it make a guy feel more like a real man if he has coarse, thick hairs growing haphazardly on his face?

Would I feel more like a real woman if I let my armpit hairs grow furry and rampant?

Or how about just like... one spot on my leg?

edit: i had to take down the link to the picture of the record holder of the world's longest beard because google images was linking the picture back here whenever anyone searched for it. why 100+ people a day are searching hans langseth on google images, i can't fathom. but now you can, too. maybe it'll still bring you back here! won't that be exciting?