movember kicks off with olympian jon montgomery’s famous moustache in space
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jon montgomery's whiskers went into an acrylic sandwich mold of a groovy handlebar moustache and sent by balloon to the edge of the stratosphere.
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olympian and award-winning television host of the amazing race canada, jon montgomery, hasn’t shaved his face bare with a razor since he was “knee-high to a grasshopper hoping it would grow back thicker.” but right now his trademark moustache is down to a number one trim or about one-eighth of an inch, which he did last for his wedding. (he enjoys his ’stache.)
his whiskers went into an acrylic sandwich mold of a groovy handlebar moustache and sent by balloon to the edge of the stratosphere, which is a first for the guy who’s done a lot of amazing feats of skill and bravery for tv and elite sport. he won a gold medal in skeleton at the 2010 vancouver olympics — a jaw-dropping event to watch where competitors plummet head-first down a steep and treacherous ice track on a tiny sled.
the buzz about his solo moustache mission kicks off movember, the wonderfully hairy global campaign where men grow their facial hair through the month of november to raise awareness, education and funds for men’s health.
“it is maybe the most amount of facial hair that’s ever been sent into the cosmos,” jon says with a laugh. “it’s both exciting to think that my moustache has gone somewhere that i have not, and concerning. if something ever happens on earth and the aliens will be repopulating it with my genetic code, that’s a bit disconcerting, especially for the survival of our species. also, i am the type of guy that loves to be able to do obscure things, so this is something i’m proud of.”
he says he jumped at the opportunity to be part of the movember movement because it hits close to home. his dad was diagnosed and treated for prostate cancer in 2016 successfully, but he has several friends whose fathers died of the disease. his dad’s diagnosis came through regular screening followed by quick treatment.
“when you hear the big c word come up in conversation, as to this is what we’re dealing with and here’s how we’re going to navigate it, it was completely out of my control except for the hope and desire in my heart for there to be a positive outcome,” he says. “it was up to my dad to walk the line to do what’s necessary to have a positive outcome. the early diagnosis was the greatest opportunity for a successful outcome and it was successful for him.”
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the campaign targets three of the largest health issues affecting men: prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and mental health and suicide prevention. and jon is quick to share some of the alarming statistics movember is pushing to change:
- one in eight men in canada will be diagnosed with prostate cancer.
- testicular cancer strikes early and is the most common cancer among canadian men aged 15 to 40. the survival rate is higher than 95 per cent, however, the long-term side effects of treatment compromise quality of life.
- globally, on average, one man dies by suicide every minute of every day. in canada, three out of every four suicides are by men.
- on average, canadian men will die four years earlier than women and for reasons that are largely preventable, if they are proactive about their health.
“fellas don’t really want to talk about their butt,” jon says of prostate issues or bringing up health concerns like testicular cancer and suicide. “these aren’t things that are the topic of conversation at social gatherings and parties and nor should they be in that setting. but amongst friends in having honest moments, these are the things that should be discussed when in fact they’re not and they might be shied away from for reasons of embarrassment and shame in some cases. we need to take that stigma away so that those conversations can be had so that there are better outcomes for men.”
leading by example
jon leads by example when it comes to making health a priority, both mental and physical. training for national and international events in skeleton meant pushing himself to perform and building up the explosive power in his core and lower body that the sport requires. he credits his coaches and tapping into his spirit animal, a painted turtle, in one of the mental exercises during training. he found a painted turtle stranded on his back trying to cross the road in british columbia, and had turned him over so he could continue on and wouldn’t get hit by the next car.
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“i sent him on his way. and then 15 minutes later, literally we’re doing this exercise and we’re going down the rabbit hole and the first animal that populates your mind is your spirit animal or your power animal. and of course, the turtle jumps into my mind and as an athlete looking for speed and power, i was desperately trying to shoo it away. but i had to embrace it. then the more i thought about it, the more it began to resonate with me. my journey through the sport had been slow and progressive. and you look at the tortoise and the hare and the symbolism of the slow and steady wins the race.”
the turtle, as it turns out, is a powerful symbol in many cultures, associated with wisdom, patience, strength and longevity – so a good spirit animal for an olympic competitor and inspirational person like jon to connect with. he had the painted turtle blazoned on the top of his skeleton helmet by an indigenous artist.
retirement, staying busy and raising awareness
since he retired from competition, jon had returned to “looking better in a t-shirt type training” where he’s working out with weights and doing cardio. “i know movement is medicine and that i’ve got to move my body. i’ve got to continue to put pressure on my joints, lift weights and i’ve got a desire to get back into sprinting to remain dynamic and being able to use my body,” he says, adding he needs to keep up with his kids.
he’s also pushed himself for episodes of the amazing race and highlights “terrifying” favourites like jumping off the bungee tower in macau and standing on top of the gondola in jasper national park to deliver a line to a helicopter. “i couldn’t see the edge of the gondola. i was just sort of floating in space and all i could see was a river about 3km off in the distance which was like being on a different planet.”
will he be athletic in his 80s? likely. he witnessed a former professional golfer, south african gary player, do a back flip off his boat on his 83rd birthday. “for me, that was a life goal. i was like right there, gary player, you’re setting the tone. if i can do that, i think that’s going to be great.”
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for now, he’s keen to raise awareness and start conversations around men’s health. “this is a great month to do it,” he says of getting involved in movember. “if we improve men’s health, we improve our community’s bottom line.”
visit movember to find out more, register and donate to the cause.
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