One of our recent stops on our coast-to-coast wiener roast was in Houston, Texas. We had the pleasure of attending an event called Run for the Rose. It is a 5k run with an after party at the Reliant Center.

Run for the Rose is dedicated to Dr. Marnie Rose and all others who have gone through any type of brain cancer or knows someone who is or has fought the disease. Marnie was in her first year of pediatric medical residency when she was diagnosed and continued to work while fighting the cancer. She was a very strong young woman but unfortunately lost the battle. The Rose family took this opportunity to start the Dr. Marnie Rose Foundation. 

Abe the Ham and I enjoyed the beautiful sunny day filled with hundreds of runners and walkers all participating for a single cause, to find the cure for brain cancer. Over the last eleven years the foundation and its supporters have raised 3.5 million dollars. Half of the money has gone to brain cancer research at MD Anderson Cancer Center and the other half has gone to Children’s Memorial Hermann Hospital.

Ketchup next year with Run for the Rose on March 30, 2014.

The day I got the job as a Hotdogger I knew one place I wanted to take the Wienermobile, my families ranch. When I found out Abe the Ham and I were taking the big dog to Alice, I immediately called my Aunt Cindy to tell her the good news. The first day off we had I made my way out to the Cuellar ranch just outside of the city limits of Alice. The property has been in my family a long time and I couldn’t wait to show off the Wienermobile to my relatives. My Aunt had many of my cousins over for a barbecue and a tour of the Wienermobile. I had so much fun and was so happy to spread miles of smiles with my family.

Driving across the country in the Wienermobile gives us Hotdoggers the opportunity to stay at all types of hotels, but it is always nice to stay in a place where you feel at home. Pepper Jackie Cheese did some research and found a bunderful bed & breakfast in the middle of Kirksville, Missouri.

Cottage Grove Bed & Breakfast

We got in late during our first night in Kirksville and slept in the next morning. Waking up around noon we introduced ourselves to the owners of the bed & breakfast. We were pleasantly surprised when we were offered brunch and some great conversation. The cottage must have been on a busy street because the entire town knew where we were staying.

Brunch is served

Jill and Mac treated us like their very own grandchildren, telling us things we should do in Kirksville and restaurants we should go to. We will never forget this trip and the friends we made.

Ketchup with me soon!

Traveling across the country Pepper Jackie Cheese and I have visited places we never thought we would see, especially in a Wienermobile. Taking the scenic-kraut on the hot dog highways we have seen everything from a corn water tower in Rochester, Minnesota to the Abraham Lincoln Museum in Springfield, Illinois.

One of my absolute favorite stops has been to the legendary Field of Dreams in Dyersville, Iowa, where the movie starring was filmed. It is one of my all time favorite movies and bringing the Wienermobile to the field made that memory even more bunderful. Pepper Jackie Cheese and I played a game of catch and took many photographs throughout the premises.

Ketchup with me soon!

Every year Oscar Mayer recruits at colleges across the country for brand ambassadors or hotdoggers. I was one of the lucky dogs that attended an information session at the University of Texas in the spring of 2012. I had heard about the job throughout college and was one of those students that never wanted to graduate. Well graduation was soon approaching and along came the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile rolling through campus once again.

I have known a few previous Hotdoggers and I heard about their adventures on the hot dog highways. It did not take long to convince me that being a hotdogger and driving the Wienermobile would be a chance of a lifetime. I went through the process and got the job! It is February, the tables have turned and I came back UT to find twelve new hotdoggers to become part of class XXVI. I was very happy to be back to Austin and I had the chance to have a photo shoot with the Wienermobile around campus.

Ketchup with y’all later!

While traveling the hot dog highways of Iowa in the Wienermobile, Pepper Jackie Cheese stopped in Des Moines. We did not know what the trip would have in store for us until we watched the weather channel and found out a blizzard was headed our way. We really appreciated all of the helpful tips and information from the locals on the pending winter weather storm.

Pepper Jackie Cheese is from Connecticut and knows how to deal with snow, but being from South Texas I had no idea what to expect. When I looked out of my window I was pleasantly surprised to see beautiful blankets of white snow throughout our hotel parking lot and completely covering OUR DOG. We made a trek out to the parking lot later that afternoon and started scraping the snow off the Wienermobile and shoveling snow so we could maneuver our buns the next day. We also had a short photo shoot and some fun in the snow.

I have become accustomed to the cold climate of the Midwest and find myself saying things like, “It’s such a nice day, it’s sunny with a high of 35 degrees.”

Ketchup with y’all later!

People of all ages love the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile vehicles, but I have never seen anyone more fascinated by the vehicle than children. They walk up to it and have no idea what to think of the Wienermobile, but you can tell they are completely intrigued and have never sausage a thing. This was the exact response when we stopped by the Rochester Public Library this month.

We started the day by opening up OUR DOG for the children and parents to take a sneak peek. Everyone relished the opportunity to see our large comfortable ketchup and mustard seats. We continued the day by joining story time. Pepper Jackie Cheese and I read, “The Pigeon Finds a Hot Dog.” The children thought the book was bunderful and they were even more excited to parade around the library with their brand new Wiener Whistles.

We ended the day with a scavenger hunt, coloring our very own hot dogs and talking to the children about their favorite part of the day.

Ketchup with me soon!

We all know how parking can be a problem at any local grocery store or mall, but have you ever thought about how difficult it would be park the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile? Driving the Wienermobile has been quite an adventure, but nothing compares to the tight spots we have gotten our buns into.

In the windy city of Chicago, Pepper Jackie Cheese and I stayed downtown at the Essex Inn. We had one issue, where would we park the Wienermobile? After some tape measures were brought out and management consulted we found a great parking spot in their parking garage, that’s right their parking garage.

So if you are ever in a bind looking for a spot, just imagine having to park a 27-foot long hot dog on wheels.

The most franktastic part of driving a Wienermobile vehicle is witnessing the children’s curious yet excited faces when seeing a Wienermobile for the first time. My favorite questions to ask the children are their favorite colors they see in the Wienermobile and what they like on their hot dog.

Once they have had the full experience of seeing the vehicle inside and out we usually play games, but my favorite activity with our little visitors is coloring. The children are so eager to get the colors of the Wienermobile just right and pay close attention to every detail. It’s as if they are trying to capture the moment forever. The children are even more proud to find out that their bunderful works of art will be displayed for all to see, once they have finished their picture.

It makes the children so proud to see their drawings hung up and we hope they will remember this moment for the rest of their lives.

Throughout our travels across the Midwest, Pepper Jackie Cheese and I have been asked many questions, including, “do you have a jingle horn?” The answer to that question is, yes! The Oscar Mayer Wienermobile vehicles have a traditional horn on the steering wheel and a horn switch on the side dash that sings, “oh I wish I were an Oscar Mayer wiener.” From place to place we play the jingle horn, most often when we are stuck in bumper to bun traffic. Pepper Jackie and I really wondered who sings the famous jingle horn?

On our third day at the Illinois State Fair, we were greeted by Vicki “the Voice”, a Hotdogger from class VIII. We are always excited to meat Hotdoggers from the past twenty-four years, but this was an extra special occasion. As we chat about being Hotdoggers Vicki tells us that she happens to be the famous voice behind the Wienermobile jingle horn! Pepper Jackie and I were bunyond excited.

Vicki, her family and myself were able to chat in the Wienermobile about how times have changed from class VIII to class XXV. I heard stories of how she met her husband while traveling the hot dog highways and how they had a brand new Wienermobile at their wedding. Vicki’s daughter excitedly told me about how her mom wore her original flight suit to career day!

I hope we get to meat many more Hotdoggers throughout the next year.

Franks for stopping by!