Barbara Layne, Canada

From the Associated Press,
"85-year-old Thai has Hairy Tale"

BANKOK. An 85-year old Hmong tribesman in northern Thailand claims to have the longest hair in the world, with his closest rival being his 87-year-old brother.

Hoo Sateow, officially measured Friday by a judge from the Guinness Book of Records, hasn't shorn a lock on top for almost seventy years. It's now 5.23 metres long.

"I cut it when I was 18 and I got really ill. So I decided I'd never do it again. Since then, I've been able to call up ghosts to help heal the sick."

Fellow villagers in Chiang Rai province regard him as a shaman, or medicine man.

He said he washes his hair just once a year, using a fabric cleaner, and dangles it on trellis work to dry it.