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It’s the running of the dogs

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It’s the running of the dogs
Buys

THERE’S Oscar Piastri and then there’s Oscar Mayer, both tastefully involved in the high echelons of motorsport.

But while Piastri was doing practice laps in his papaya-flavoured McLaren Formula 1 in Monaco, the Mayer variety was already lining up for a race at Indianapolis.

There on the grid, as part of the build-up to the Indy 500, were six giant motorised hot dogs (Americans call them wieners) each of them representing a different region of the US:  New York Dog (East), Slaw Dog (Southeast), Chili Dog (South), Chi Dog (Midwest), Sonoran Dog (Southwest), and Seattle Dog (Northwest).

They were running in the Oscar Mayer Wienie 500.

Oscar Mayer is a Kraft-Heinz-related US meat producer known for its hot dogs, polony, bacon, ham, and similar products. 

About 85,000 fans packed the main straight grandstands to see the action, many of them arriving in wiener-style costume – a tall, walking hot dog is quite a sight – and waving 2m-long inflated red sausage-shaped balloons.

Oscar Mayer reckoned the fans would consume some 30,000 hot dogs at the ‘meating.’

The Wienermobiles are large and beautifully made 9m-long vehicles that ride on an Isuzu NPR truck chassis, with power is from a 240kW 6.0-litre General Motors V8 and transmission is a six-speed automatic.

The mass of each is said to be equivalent to 140,500 wieners and they’re 24 dogs high and 18 wide.

The rolling dogs were piloted by the company’s drivers, called Hotdoggers. 

The fans relished the two-lap race.

 Coming off turn two on the final lap at a sizzling 100km/h, Sonoran Dog had a comfortable lead, but suddenly became overcooked in a cloud of smoke – allowing Chicago Dog to lead the pack until the checkered flag was in sight. 

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But using the draft and entering a slipstream behind Chicago Dog, Slaw Dog – driven by a crew identified as – Grill Master Matthew and Mustard Maddie – shot to the inside coming to the finish, beating Chicago Dog by about half a bun in a photo finish to win the inaugural Wienie 500.

 

 

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Buys
Bill Buys, probably Australia’s longest-serving motoring writer, has been at his craft for more than five decades. Athough motoring has always been in his DNA, he was also night crime reporter, foreign page editor and later chief reporter of the famed Rand Daily Mail. He’s twice been shot at, attacked by a rhinoceros and had several chilling experiences in aircraft. His experience includes stints in traffic law enforcement, motor racing and rallying and writing for a variety of local and international publications. He has covered countless events, ranging from world motor shows and Formula 1 Grands Prix to Targa tarmac and round-the-houses meetings. A motoring tragic, he has owned more than 90 cars. Somewhat of a nostalgic, he has a special interest in classic cars. He is the father of Targa star Robert Buys, who often adds his expertise to Bill’s reviews.
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