2025 Mullet Contest participants grow big or go home at the Lebanon Area Fair

Curly, straight, short, or long? It doesn’t matter! The Lebanon Area Fair celebrated all kinds of mullets at Thursday’s second annual Mullet Contest.

Contestants strutted down the red carpet and shook out their locks for the judges and a full audience.

Emcees Emma and Madison Copenhaver, also members of the Junior Fair Board, introduced the contest and each competitor.

“This contest was created last year by our first-ever Junior Fair Board,” Madison said. “It was inspired by the iconic Pennsylvania Farm Show’s mullet contest, and we wanted to bring that same energy and fun to our very own fair and celebrate the hairstyle that we all know and love — the mullet.”

The contest was divided into three age categories: 0 to 12, 13 to 20, and 21 and up.

Each category had a first-, second-, and third-place mullet. The panel of judges also awarded a trophy to the greatest overall mullet and gave awards for the curliest, straightest, and best-dressed.

Hunter Kline competed in the 0 to 12 category, winning first in his age division and also bringing home the greatest overall mullet trophy that stood about as tall as him.

His mom, Mandy Kline, said it took about half an hour to get his hair colorful and decorated for this year’s Christmas in July theme.

“My husband, his dad, really wanted him to compete this year, so we decided to give it a try,” she said.

21-year-old Sophia Fitzgibbons won first place in the 21+ division. She was one of two women who competed this year.

“I used some curl cream, got the mullet all curly and nice, made sure it stayed in the hat,” she said.

Fitzgibbons said mullets are a great hairstyle for any gender, and she’d love to see more women rock them.

This was the contest’s second year, and it brought some extra stress with its return, Emma Copenhaver said after the competition.

“Last year, we kind of had a clean slate. It was super fun, we were kind of running off a lot of adrenaline last year, but we were so proud of ourselves for how well it went, especially being a first-year team bringing in such a huge event,” she said. “I think this year didn’t disappoint either. I think it was a great crowd this year — we’re super proud of it, but it definitely made us a little bit more nervous since we had high expectations from last year, but I would say we definitely exceeded them, and we’re happy with ourselves.”

She said they’re looking at continuing the mullet contest, but might introduce new themes to keep the event fresh. They’re also considering other competitions to get more people involved, like a beard competition.

The youngest age bracket was by far the largest, with the older two only bringing three contestants each. Emma Copenhaver said this outreach to young people is important for the Lebanon Area Fair and the agriculture industry as a whole.

“It’s super important to get younger generations out to the fair,” she said. “Agriculture is the backbone of America, so I think it is such a good place as a Junior Fair Board to see younger members come out because you see people connecting with agriculture and the environment, which is super cool. Even though it’s a mullet contest, they’re still getting involved with the fair.”

Here are the winners:

Overall Champion

• Hunter Kline

Ages 0 to 12

• 1st place: Hunter Kline
• 2nd place: Cooper Heckendorn
• 3rd place: Maverick Ebling

Ages 13 to 20

• 1st place: Zion Breckbill
• 2nd place: Boston Weiler
• 3rd place: Eric Layser

Ages 21+

• 1st place: Sophia Fitzgibbons
• 2nd place: Karen S.
• 3rd place: Steven Wolfe

Specialty Awards

• Curliest mullet: Billy Bob Behney
• Straightest mullet: Tucker Kramer
• Best dressed: Carson Luckenbill, Hudson Horning, and Maverick Ebling