Getting a Handle On...

The Handlebar Club of London, according to its website, has one major qualification: “a hirsute appendage of the upper lip, with graspable extremities.” At Harvard, Christopher S. Nabel ’08 possesses such a mustache, but his is not an effort of vanity—it’s one of practicality.

Nabel, a member of the Harvard Nordic Ski Team, grew a beard to keep his face warm on the icy trails. “It’s really cool because it insulates your face,” he says. When Nabel’s ’stache reached epic proportions, a friend passed him the link to the Handlebar Club’s website.

Nabel’s interest was piqued. He applied for membership to the prestigious club, submitting a picture and a personal description. “They assume you’re a person of high character,” Nabel says.

Nabel hasn’t yet made the pilgrimage to England to meet his fellow facial hair enthusiasts, but he has corresponded with a few of them through e-mail.

And being a member has its perks. Just as an athlete proudly dons a team sweatshirt or jacket, Nabel displays his official Handlebar Club apparel: a red tie embroidered with white mustaches.

“A good way to describe Chris is as a cavalier,” says former roommate Arun Thottumkara ’08. All he needs is the long hair and the frilly collar, and he’s ready to duel.