After the big cities, WEENR needed some time at this relaxing lake.

Arkansas is known as “The Natural State.” After exploring nearly the entire length of the state, Tate-yum and I can easily see why it received such a moniker. We stopped in Russellville, AR for a night and were pleasantly surprised by the natural beauty around us. Dardanelle Lake provided a great spot to relax and give WEENR a much needed break after all the driving.

We also had dinner at the Old South Diner, which is on the National Register of Historic places! The food was great and the people were very welcoming.

Good Food, Good Times, Great Oldies

Super Dog's Super Cut!

Franks Michele!

Meet Kim Wille!  Kim is a hunger fighter with a big heart, extraordognary personality, and a spirit to serve that makes those with little feel like they have a lot.  Kim is a resident of El Jebel, CO and received a shotbun ride in the Wienermobile, along with $5,000 to help fulfill her Good Mood Mission.  Kim’s Good Mood Mission was to help fight hunger in the Roaring Fork Valley by visiting LIFT-UP food pantries and encouraging local residents to donate fresh vegetables to the pantries.

For Kim’s shotbun ride we dibbed her “Ketchup Kim” and an Honorary Hotdogger Du Jour.  Our day with “Ketchup Kim” was crammed as tightly as a package of Oscar Mayer wieners.  We visited LIFT-UP food pantries in Carbondale and Glenwood Springs, Colorado.  Oscar Mayer hot dogs were served and “Ketchup Kim” made other snacks from Kraft Foods products.

“Ketchup Kim” passed out high-altitude seeds to visitors of LIFT-UP.  She hopes local gardeners will “Plant a Row for Hunger,” an extra row of vegetables, for donation to the food banks next year.

Kim’s mission truly put residents of the Roaring Fork Valley in a good mood.  Here are some photos from the day’s events:

One visitor to LIFT-UP in Carbondale was Laurie.  She recently put an ad in the newspaper looking for someone in need of her extra produce.  When Laurie heard about Kim’s Good Mood Mission she decided to bring her extra harvest to LIFT-UP.   Laurie has been growing organic produce for over 40 years.

Picklin’ Pat and I met Lisa, Bethany, and Jonathan at the Glenwood Springs LIFT-UP location.  They were vacationing en route to Yellowstone National Park, read about Kim’s Good Mood Mission in a local newspaper, and were inspired to make a donation to LIFT-UP.

Want to follow Kim’s lead and become a hunger fighter?  Visit HuddleToFightHunger.com and join the Kraft Foods virtual huddle and help us donate 20 million meals to Feeding America.

Ever since we’ve hit the road Joey and I have been ecstatic to see dogs at events; we both have pups we miss at home. You can imagine our excitement when we found out we were headed for an all-out dog fest at Dog Days in Homewood, Illinois. An event dedicated entirely to our canine friends? I never sausage a thing! Here I am with a Great Dane bigger than me!

And Joey couldn’t help but snuggle up with some of our favorites – wiener dogs!

We had a bunderful time introducing hundreds of dogs to YUMMY who even made a friend for herself!

Nacho Cheese Nikita and I were lucky dogs and got to spend a day with one of our Shotbun Contest winners, Vickie, in Arizona! Vickie had a whole day of bunderful events planned out.

One of the many ways Nacho Cheese Nikita and I were able to spread miles of smiles with contest winner Vickie was to celebrate a family birthday! Nacho Cheese Nikita, RELSHME and I got a cake specially made for the franktastic day!

Vickie’s Dad was frankful for his cake and the whole family relished the day with the Wienermobile!

As a music lover and past high school band member, I relish the opportunity to visit as many landmarks that honor music as possible.

In Pharr, TX Picklin’ Pat and I saw a display of different jukeboxes at Smitty’s Jukebox Museum.  We brought Flat Wienermobile along for the adventure.  Smitty’s is a “working museum” where all the jukeboxes are ready to play.  The museum also houses a prized Wurlitzer, one of the first jukeboxes with neon lights.

In Houston, TX I discovered The SAX.  Originally known as “The Smoke Sax”, The SAX was built in 1993.  At 70-feet tall (2.5 Wienermobiles), The SAX is made of an oil field pipe, upside down Volkswagen, aluminum cans, a canoe, hub caps, a surfboard, and chrome.

I found a massive trumpet, or a cornet to be exact, in Old Galveston Square, Galveston, TX.  As a brass player back in the day, I appreciate the attention the trumpet draws to the Galveston music scene.

And finally, in Memphis, TN Picklin’ and I stopped at Graceland, the home of Elvis Presley, King of Rock ‘n’ Roll!  We even happened to visit during Elvis Week 2010.

Did you know Graceland was built in 1939, 3 years after the first Wienermobile?

This summer we cruised the hot dog highways of America asking people what they’d do if they had the Wienermobile as their ride for the day. Four lucky wieners were chosen to live out their dreams. Carlos Hubbard wanted to have a cookout to encourage kids in the neighborhood he grew up in to stay in school. Here he is riding shotbun!

We spent the day with the Hubbard’s family and friends, and of course, we took a ride around the neighborhood to encourage the neighbors to come out, enjoy some hot dogs, and stay in school!

Here is a great shot of us at the end of the day. Say, “cheesy wenie!”

If you’re planning on parking your Wienermobile and exploring a new city by foot, the least you can do for your trusty old friend is find him or her a scenic view to enjoy, such as this serene little spot at St. Anthony Falls in downtown Minneapolis, overlooking the mighty meaty Mississippi River.

While staying in Garden City, Georgia, Smiley Kylie and I had the chance to participate in National Night Out Against Crime, a community event which focuses on fostering positive relationships between law enforcement and community members.  There were several police, firefighters, army, national guard… you name it!  We even had the unique opportunity to capture a photo of a helicopter hovering over our Wienermobile.

The firefighters of the Garden City Fire Department were also anxious to get their photo taken and were excited to hang their group photo up in their station.

Smiley Kylie and I were glad we could participate in such a fun event that focused on bringing the community together.  We had a franktastic time!

Tera Louise with Cheese and I embarked on an epic journey from Ohio to Oregon. It was a dream road trip along the hot dog highways of I-80 and I-84 in the Wienermobile.

Along our cross-country trip, we passed through nine different states: Ohio, Indiana, Illinois, Iowa, Nebraska, Wyoming, Utah, Idaho, and Oregon! Each state had different geographical wonders (and amazing scenic-krauts).

There were hills and valleys throughout the Iowa countryside. Nebraska had flat endless plains that stretched out for miles and miles, as far as the eye could see.

In Wyoming, we saw part of the Rocky Mountains rising up from the earth. We saw the vast Great Salt Lake in Utah.  Cows dotted the side of the road throughout Idaho. We began seeing the lush green conifer trees as we drove through Oregon towards our final destination in Portland.

The last few miles of our road trip to Portland took us along the winding Columbia River.

We even saw gorgeous snow-capped mountain in the distance as we neared our destination! What a Franktastic journey!